Natural fibers are hairlike raw material directly obtainable from an animal, vegetable, or mineral source and convertible into nonwoven fabrics such as felt or paper or, after spinning into yarns, into woven cloth. A natural fiber may be further defined as an agglomeration of cells in which the diameter is negligible in comparison with the length examples: cellulose types such as cotton, wool, grains, and straw.
Synthetic fibers are fibers that are human-made by chemical synthesis, as opposed to natural fibers. In general, synthetic fibers are created by extruding fiber-forming materials through spinnerets into air and water, forming a thread. These fibers are called synthetic or artificial fibers. Some fibers (such as the diverse family of rayons) are manufactured from plant-derived cellulose and are thus semi-synthetic, whereas others are totally synthetic, being made from crudes and intermediates including petroleum, coal, limestone, air, and water.