| Nanotechnology | "research and technology development at the atomic, molecular or macromolecular levels (in the 1-100 nanometer range) aimed at creating and using materials which have novel properties and functions." |
| Nainsook | "A lightweight plain weave cotton fabric, usually finished to create a luster and a soft hand. Common end-uses are infants' wear, blouses, and lingerie." |
| Nap | "A fuzzy, fur-like feel created when fiber ends extend from the basic fabric structure to the fabric surface. The fabric can be napped on either one or both sides." |
| Needlebonding | see needlepunching. |
| Needlefelting | The extent to which a geotextile is able to withstand or resist the penetration of an object without perforation. |
| Needlepunching | "a process for making a nonwoven textile in which a continuous mat of randomly laid fibres or filaments is entangled with barbed needles. This causes matting and the production of a ""felt"" textile." |
| Needling | see needlepunching. |
| Net | "An open fabric, which is created by connecting the intersections in a woven, knitted, or crocheted construction to form a mesh-like appearance that won't ravel. End-uses include veils, curtains, and fish nets." |
| Nep | a small knot of entangled fibres commonly regarded as a fault but sometimes introduced as an effect. |
| Nip | a line or area of contact or proximity between two contiguous surfaces which move so as to compress and/or control the velocity of textile material passed between them. |
| Ninon | "A lightweight, plain weave, made of silk or manufactured fibers, with an open mesh-like appearance. Since the fabric is made with high twist filament yarns, it has a crisp hand. End uses include eveningwear and curtains." |
| Noil | Shorter fibres separated from longer fibres in combing. |
| Nonwoven fiber | "(Fabrics made directly from individual fibers that are matted together by forming an interlocking web of fibers either mechanically (tangling together) or chemically (gluing, bonding, or melting together)." |
| Nonwoven geotextile | "a geotextile in the form of a manufactured sheet, web or batt of directionally or randomly orientated fibres, filaments or other elements, mechanically and/or thermally and/or chemically bonded." |
| Novelty Yarn | "A yarn that is intentionally produced to have a special or unique effect. These effects can be produced by twisting together uneven single yarns, by using yarns that contain irregularities, or by twisting yarns that contain a color variance. A slubbed ya |
| Nylon | Another word for polyamide. |
| Nytril | "A manufactured fiber, most often used in sweaters or pile fabrics, where little or no pressing is recommended, as the fiber has a low softening or melting point. However, it has also been successfully used in blends with wool for the purpose of minimizin |