leather with a napped surface
"She decided to buy a jacket made from soft suede because of its distinctive napped texture."
a fabric made to resemble suede leather
"The designer chose a soft blue suede dress that felt like real leather but was actually a synthetic fabric made to resemble suede."
A type of soft leather, made from calfskin, with a brushed texture to resemble fabric, often used to make boots, clothing and fashion accessories.
"The designer chose suede for the new collection because its soft, brushed texture feels luxurious against the skin while maintaining the durability of leather."
In plain English: Suede is soft leather made from the underside of animal skin that feels fuzzy and smooth to touch.
"She bought a new jacket made from soft brown suede."
Usage: Suede refers specifically to the soft, napped finish applied to the underside of animal hide rather than the leather itself. Use this term when describing items like jackets or shoes that have a fabric-like texture created by brushing the grain side of the skin.
To make (leather) into suede.
"The worker used a special brush to abrade the grain and transform the raw hide into soft suede."
In plain English: To suede something means to rub its surface with fine sandpaper until it becomes soft and smooth, though this usage is very rare today since most people only know the word as a type of fabric.
"She decided to suede her shoes before storing them away for winter."
Made of suede
"The new jacket is made of soft, napped suede that feels gentle against the skin."
The word suede comes from the French phrase gants de Suède, which literally means "gloves of Sweden." Although it is related to the English word for a person from that country, the fabric name specifically traveled into English via France rather than directly describing its origin.