STRAIN (through O. Fr. straindre, estraindre, mod. i treindre, from

See also:

• LAT

Lat. stringere, to draw tight, related to stress, stretch,

See also:

• STRING

string, &c.)  , to draw out, extend, stretch, especially with the idea of great effort or beyond measure or limit; hence, from the idea of pressure or constriction, to separate coarser matte or light solids from a liquid by pressure through a " strainer,'' which may be either a sieve or a colander (Lat. colare, to strain), a metal vessel with perforations in the bottom . Another type is the filter (q.v.) . Straining can also be effected by means of cloths, and the name strainer is used of a coarse open cloth usually of flax; a coarser cloth of a more open texture is technically known as " screw." For " strains "and" stresses " in physics see MECHANICS; ELASTICITY and STRENGTH OF MATERIALS .