vlakno

Vlakno is a Czech noun meaning thread or filament. In ordinary language it denotes a single strand of material, such as sewing thread, and it can also refer more broadly to any thin, elongated fiber. In textiles, vlákno describes a single fiber or filament that can be natural or synthetic. Natural vlákna include cotton, wool, or silk; synthetic vlákna include polyester or nylon. Processed vlákna are used to produce yarns by spinning or twisting, and several vlákna together form fabric through weaving or knitting. The mechanical and chemical properties of vlákno—such as strength, elasticity, and moisture absorption—are studied in fiber science and textile engineering.

In computing, vlakno denotes a thread of execution within a process. A program may run with multiple vlákna concurrently, enabling parallelism and improved responsiveness. The operating system schedules vlákna, allocates CPU time, and coordinates access to shared resources, often using synchronization mechanisms to prevent data races.

In biology and medicine, vlákno is used to describe filaments such as nerve fibers or muscle fibers, and it appears in botany to describe plant filaments as well. The term is common in Czech technical writing, education, and industry when referring to slender, threadlike structures.