Is duck cloth the same as canvas?

Duck is a kind of canvas. Both are heavy plain-woven cotton, but duck is woven more tightly, often with paired warp yarns, giving a smoother, denser cloth. All duck is canvas, but not all canvas is duck.

Why is it called duck?

The name comes from the Dutch doek, meaning cloth or canvas, and has nothing to do with the bird. It entered English through the sailcloth trade, which is also why heavy cotton work cloth is graded in a numbered duck system.

At the same weight, duck's tighter weave makes it denser and often more abrasion-resistant, which is why it is favored for workwear and tarpaulins. Canvas can be made just as strong by using a heavier weight.

Side by side

Canvas vs Duck

Canvas and duck are both heavy, strong, plain-woven cotton (or linen) cloths, and the terms overlap so much that duck is really a kind of canvas. The usual distinction is in the weave: plain canvas is a basic over-under weave, while duck is woven more tightly, often with two yarns together in the warp, giving a smoother, denser, more tightly packed cloth of the same weight.

Canvas

No. 031

plain or basket weave, heavy · first documented Antiquity

Duck

No. 075

tight plain weave, plied yarns · first documented 1700s

The differences

Aspect	Canvas	Duck
Relationship	The broad family of heavy plain-woven cloth.	A specific, more tightly woven member of the canvas family.
Weave	Plain weave, single yarns, can be quite open or very heavy.	More tightly woven, often with paired warp yarns, so it is denser.
Surface	Coarser and more textured.	Smoother and more closely packed at the same weight.
Naming	Often graded by weight in ounces; the artist's and sailmaker's cloth.	Graded by a numbered duck system; the workwear and tarpaulin cloth.
Best for	Sails, tents, painting grounds, bags.	Workwear, coveralls, tool bags, tarpaulins, sneakers.

Which to choose

Duck is a type of canvas, woven more tightly and smoothly. If a precise distinction is needed: call the looser, coarser, weight-graded cloth canvas, and the denser, smoother, number-graded cloth duck. In practice the words are often used interchangeably for heavy cotton cloth.

Common questions

Is duck cloth the same as canvas?: Duck is a kind of canvas. Both are heavy plain-woven cotton, but duck is woven more tightly, often with paired warp yarns, giving a smoother, denser cloth. All duck is canvas, but not all canvas is duck.
Why is it called duck?: The name comes from the Dutch doek, meaning cloth or canvas, and has nothing to do with the bird. It entered English through the sailcloth trade, which is also why heavy cotton work cloth is graded in a numbered duck system.
Which is stronger?: At the same weight, duck's tighter weave makes it denser and often more abrasion-resistant, which is why it is favored for workwear and tarpaulins. Canvas can be made just as strong by using a heavier weight.

Full entry: Canvas Full entry: Duck

Sources & References

1.Canvas, Wikipedia
2.canvas, Online Etymology Dictionary
3.Cotton duck, Wikipedia