Acrylic: Man-made fiber used as a less expensive alternative to wool.

Anti-Microbial: This is a chemistry that is put into the backing of carpets that helps prevent product deterioration and lasting odors when spills occur.

Anti-Static: The ability of a carpet system to dissipate an electrostatic charge before it reaches the threshold of human sensitivity.

Backing: Fabrics and yarns that make up the back of the carpet as opposed to the carpet pile or face.

Background Color: The color that appears to be "behind" the designs and borders of the rug. The background color is usually the dominant color of the rug.

Binding: Band or strip sewn over a carpet edge to protect, strengthen or decorate it.

Blend: Carpets composed of more than one kind of fiber.

Border Rug: A rug with one or more outside borders of one carpet style and an inside area of another carpet type.

Braided Area Rug: Braided area rugs are constructed in several different ways- including tape, tubular, yarn and flat. In the tradition of early America from which braided area rugs were created, these area rugs may be woven with many different materials; such as wool, clothing, old blankets, nylon and blends. Often braided rugs are made of "rag" or multi-colored fabric swatches, which are then sewn into concentric circles or ovals.

Burn Test: The material content of a rug can be tested by burning a small tuft of the fiber. Cotton has a vegetable smell when burned, while wool and silk will smell like burning hair.

Carding: Process of arranging and smoothing wool fibers by pulling them between two spiked paddles.

Carpet Squares: These are wonderfully interactive carpets that come in sets and allow the students or children to turn any time on the floor into a fun game and learning experience. They come in a number of styles, and help kids learn more about math, nature, the alphabet and so much more.

Color: An important attribute in a handmade rug. Colors are generally deriven from natural dyes, or made from synthetic dyes. Rugs are generally attributed by their "primary color" which is the color that dominates the majority of the material, such as the background color.

Combing: Process that organizes carded wool fibers in a parallel arrangement by pulling them through spiked blocks or combs. This process prepares wool for spinning.

Contemporary: Non-traditional styles of rugs that range from shag and braided rugs to pile-weave rugs with geometric or modern patterns.

Cotton: Cotton is a natural fiber of great durability and strength. The soft and fluffy fibers are formed within a cotton boll or seedpod. Each fiber is made up of twenty to thirty layers of cellulose coiled in a neat series of natural springs. When the cotton coll (seed case) is opened, the fibers dry into flat, twisted, ribbon-like shapes and become kinked together. This interlocked form fiber is ideal for spinning and is often used in rugs for backing, fringes and sometimes mercerized cotton is used for pile.

Cross-woven: Cross-woven rugs are made on the Wilton loom. This technique incorporates fringes into the rug rather than requiring them to be sewn on afterwards. Cross-weaving is done from side to side, rather than top to bottom, which allows the use of more colors in addition to delicate details and an elegant abrash look.

Cut Pile: Cut-pile is a smooth finish created by cutting off the tops of the wool loops. The cut loops are then twisted to make tufts of yarn that stand erect, creating a soft even surface. Also known as 'velour' or 'velvet' pile.

Density: Refers to the amount of pile yarn in the carpet and the closeness of the tufts. The more densely or tightly packed the yarn is, the more luxurious the pile will feel and the better the rug will wear.

Dhurrie (Dhurie): Inexpensive flat-woven rugs from India, usually made of wool or cotton. Type of Kilim.

Educational Rugs: These are rugs that are designed for the dual purpose of fun and learning. They are good for the home, but more so are designed for early education classrooms. They come in a variety of designs and styles, as well as a multitude of different educational materials.

Fiber: Area rugs may be from a variety of synthetic or natural materials which will help determine performance and appearance. Natural fibers provide soft, low luster colors and long performance. Synthetic fibers provide brilliant colors, softness, easy maintenance and value.

Field: The center plain of an area rug that is surrounded by the border and contains the central medallion or other motifs.

Frames: The part of the loom that holds the spools of yarn. Every frame in a loom holds a different color of yarn. An eight-frame loom weaves an eight color rug.

Fringe: Warp threads that extend beyond the end of the rug.

Gauge: Ends of pile yarn per unit of length across the width of the carpet.

Guard Stripes: Stripes of color that embellish the main border and separate it from the field.

Ground: Background color that accents the rug's design motif.

Hand: The feel of the rug's texture. Qualities could include scratchiness, stiffness, roughness and softness.

Hand-Hooked: Rugs made in a manner similar to that of hand-tufted rugs, except that the pile is left looped rather than cut. Canvas backing is spread on a frame and a hooking implement is then used to pull the yarn through the fabric. Latex glue is then applied to the back of the rug to hold the loops in place. Another layer of cloth is added to the back of the rug and the rug is then finished by turning under the ends.

Hand-Knotted: The most expensive and longest to make, hand-knotted rugs are traditionally made with wool or silk. The weaver loops wool or silk around the warps one at a time, creating a thick pile. Cotton yarn is then woven through the warps to hold them together. Generally the cotton yarns are tied off to form a decorative fringe.

Hand-Woven: Rugs woven on a hand loom.

Hand-Made Area Rug: There are different types of hand-made area rugs: knotted, tufted, hooked, looped and flat weave. These are generally more expensive than machine-made rugs.

Hand-Tufted: Hand-tufted rugs are made much like hand-hooked rugs, except that the loops are sheared to create a flat surface. Tufted rugs can be made with combinations of fibers, and offer a great value. Hi-Lo Tufted Rugs feature a combination of cut and looped pile, yielding a three dimensional effect.

Hard Twist/Cut Pile: Practical type of cut-pile carpet that minimizes flattening with its durable stiffness. The yarns are twisted and set at a high temperature.

Heat-Set: Process of using heat to treat twisted yarns to maintain their strength.

Hooked Rug: Rug made by pushing loops of yarn through a canvas backing. (See also Hand-Hooked.)

I.A.Q.: This is the abbreviation for “Indoor Air Quality” which many carpets can actually help. Air quality is a primary concern with educational carpets, where there will be constant activity of younger children on them.

Kilim: A flatwoven, two-sided rug for reversibility. These rugs are similar to a dhurrie but they are woven tighter. Most often, they are woven with wool.

Latex: Emulsion of synthetic rubber or plastic, used in rug adhesives.

Line Count: Number of horizontal knots in a foot of rug. The greater the number of knots, the higher the quality of the rug.

Loop Pile: Loop pile is a hard-wearing surface, designed to minimize tracking. Loop pile is the same as cut pile before it is trimmed.

Luster: Brightness and sheen of the rug fibers or yarns.

Machine-Made: These area rugs are made on a power-loom by hand, machine or computer. The loom is strung with a cotton or jute warp and then woven using nylon, polypropylene, wool or other material. Computer operated machines produce a number of contemporary designs in various sizes and colors from a predetermined design. More than 40 shades can be achieved in a single area rug using a cross-weaving technique. Machine-made area rugs have become very popular due to the variety of sizes, colors, designs, lower-pricing and availability.

Make: An attribute that determines where a rug was made.

Motifs: Single or repeated elements of a rug pattern.

Multi-Level Loop Pile: Varied heights of yarn loops that create a three dimensional effect.

Nap: Surface or pile of a rug.

Natural Rug: Rugs made of natural fibers that are usually ivory or neutral colored. Texture is the main feature of these rugs.

Natural Dyes: Dyes used for coloring weaving yarns that can be either plant dyes, animal dyes, or mineral dyes.

Nylon: Nylon is a durable synthetic fiber which also has good dyeing characteristics. Nylon yarns can can be solution-dyed, skin-dyed and/or space-dyed.

Oriental: Out-of-date word for 'of the Eastern World', or the region of the world that was found by early European explorers who circled Africa.

Pattern: The design or form of lines on a rug. A pattern is usually curvilinear, geometric or pictorial.

Pile: Surface of the rug formed by cut ends of the knots.

Pile Height: Height of the pile, measured by tenths of an inch from the top surface of the rug backing to the top of the pile's surface.

Pile Weight: Weight of pile yarn per square yard of the rug.

Plush: Cut pile rug in which the tuft ends blend together.

Ply: Number of yarns spun together to form a tuft of pile. Measurement of the yarn's thickness.

Point: One tuft of pile.

Polyester: Synthetic fiber most often used in staple spun yarns.

Polypropylene: Polypropylene or Olefin fibers are petroleum-based synthetic materials derived from propylene and ethylene gases. The fiber is characterized by its resistance to moisture. It is often heat-set to guarantee vibrant color, long lasting beauty and easy maintenance. It is quick drying as well as mildew, soil and stain resistant. Its fibers have the lowest density of all manufactured fibers giving olefin textiles a very lightweight quality.

Primary Backing: Backing in a tufted carpet into which the tufts are inserted. The backing is then bonded with latex on its back-side to hold the tufts in place.

Resilience: The durability of a rug's carpet pile or cushion under heavy use.

Rug Pad: A rug pad helps to keep your rug in place, but it also helps to prolong the life of a rug by cushioning it from the floor by absorbing the weight of traffic.

Runner: Long, narrow rug used primarily for hallways and stairways.

Saxony: Cut pile rugs made with a dense cut pile and heavy yarns. Similar to shag rug, but with shorter pile.

Secondary Backing: In tufted carpet, an additional backing is bonded onto the primary backing with latex.

Setting: For good tuft definition, yarns are twisted and then 'set' with heat to hold the twist's shape.

Shag Rug: Contemporary rug style with long, typically synthetic, pile.

Shedding: New rugs sometimes lose loose fibers, but it is not harmful to the carpet.

Sheen: The luster of a carpet that usually comes from having a special chemical wash.

Spandrels: Corner designs in the field of a rug, often arc shaped.

Static: Build-up of electric charge when a person walks over a carpet. Occurs with both natural and synthetic fibers, and is effected by humidity.

Strapwork: Interlacing pattern resembling straps.

Style: The way different motifs, colors and patterns give a rug its character.

Synthetic Fibers: Synthetic fibers are used exclusively in machine-made rugs. These fibers are non-porous, meaning that they are inherently stain proof. They resist staining from almost any chemical. They are very durable, yet they feel soft and are incredibly easy to maintain.

Textured Loop Pile: With loops of differing pile height, textured loop has a unique sculptured look. Like level loop pile, this hard wearing texture minimizes tracking.

Tone-on-Tone: Two or more tones of the same color in a rug. This look is achieved either by mixing yarns of different tones or by using the same color of yarn in a rug with both cut and looped pile.

Tracking: A footprint effect on carpets. The effect is temporary and disappears after a vacuuming.

Traditional: Style name that refers to the characteristic designs of the European and Oriental/Persian schools of weaving. Modern traditional rugs replicate the classic patterns, colors and styles of antique rugs.

Transitional: Broad style that falls between traditional European and Oriental rug designs and new contemporary styles. Floral and botanical patterns are good examples of rugs in this category.

Tufted Rug: Technique of punching tufts of wool through the base fabric. Used to create inexpensive versionse of hand-knotted rugs. (See also Hand-Tufted.)

Twist: Winding of the yarn around itself to create a neat, well-defined strand. A yarn twist that is tighter provides added durability.

Village Rug: Rugs made by a group of people in shifts, working around the clock. Most large tribal carpets are made in this manner.

Washing: Chemical treatment of wool rugs that tones down the colors and gives the rug a soft texture. Sometimes imitates the effects of aging. Some purists believe that rugs should be allowed to age without the wash.

Wool: Fiber acquired from the hair of sheep, goats and a selection of other domesticated animals, including alpacas.

Worsted Wool: An extra step in wool processing that combs out shorter fibers resulting in durable and lustrous yarns.

Woven Carpets: Carpet made on a weaving loom where backing threads and pile are woven at the same time, creating strong anchors for the tufts. Axminster and Wilton are both well known woven carpets, offering a wider range of patterns.

Yarn: Cord of twisted fibers.