A horny material from the upper jaws of certain whales; used as the ribs of fans or as stays in corsets.

synonym: whalebone.

Roget 325: elasticity, springiness, spring, resilience, renitency, buoyancy.    rubber, India rubber, Indian rubber, latex, caoutchouc, whalebone, gum elastic, baleen, natural rubber; neoprene, synthetic rubber, Buna-S, plastic.    flexibility, Young's modulus.    ... show more

Dutch: balein
Polish: fiszbin