Printer Friendly
Dictionary, Encyclopedia and Thesaurus - The Free Dictionary
1,527,511,522 visitors served.
forum mailing list For webmasters
?
New: Language forums
Dictionary/
thesaurus
Medical
dictionary
Legal
dictionary
Financial
dictionary
Acronyms
 
Idioms
Encyclopedia
Wikipedia
encyclopedia
?

hem
(redirected from hems)

   Also found in: Acronyms, Idioms, Encyclopedia, Wikipedia, Hutchinson 0.03 sec.
hem 1  (hm)
n.
1. An edge or border on a piece of cloth, especially a finished edge, as for a garment or curtain, made by folding an edge under and stitching it down.
2. The height or level of the bottom edge of a skirt, dress, or coat; a hemline.
tr.v. hemmed, hem·ming, hems
1. To fold back and stitch down the edge of.
2. To surround and shut in; enclose: a valley hemmed in by mountains. See Synonyms at enclose.

[Middle English, from Old English hem, hemm.]

hemmer n.

hem 2  (hm)
n.
A short cough or clearing of the throat made especially to gain attention, warn another, hide embarrassment, or fill a pause in speech.
intr.v. hemmed, hem·ming, hems
1. To utter a hem.
2. To hesitate in speech.
Idiom:
hem and haw
To be hesitant and indecisive; equivocate: "a leader who cannot make up his or her mind, never knows what to do, hems and haws" (Margaret Thatcher).

[From Middle English heminge, coughing, of imitative origin.]

hem 1
Noun
the bottom edge of a garment, folded under and stitched down
Verb
[hemming, hemmed]
to provide (a garment) with a hem
See also hem in [Old English hemm]

hem 2
Noun
a representation of the sound of clearing the throat, used to gain attention
Verb
[hemming, hemmed]
1. to make this sound
2. hem and haw See haw2
ThesaurusLegend:  Synonyms Related Words Antonyms
Noun1.hemhem - the edge of a piece of cloth; especially the finished edge that has been doubled under and stitched down; "the hem of her dress was stained"; "let down the hem"; "he stitched weights into the curtain's hem"; "it seeped along the hem of his jacket"
edge - the outside limit of an object or area or surface; a place farthest away from the center of something; "the edge of the leaf is wavy"; "she sat on the edge of the bed"; "the water's edge"
cloth, fabric, textile, material - artifact made by weaving or felting or knitting or crocheting natural or synthetic fibers; "the fabric in the curtains was light and semitransparent"; "woven cloth originated in Mesopotamia around 5000 BC"; "she measured off enough material for a dress"
2.hem - the utterance of a sound similar to clearing the throat; intended to get attention, express hesitancy, fill a pause, hide embarrassment, warn a friend, etc.
utterance, vocalization - the use of uttered sounds for auditory communication
Verb1.hem - fold over and sew together to provide with a hem; "hem my skirt"
sew, sew together, stitch, run up - fasten by sewing; do needlework
2.hem - utter `hem' or `ahem'
let loose, let out, utter, emit - express audibly; utter sounds (not necessarily words); "She let out a big heavy sigh"; "He uttered strange sounds that nobody could understand"

hem
hem something or someone in
1. surround, edge, border, skirt, confine, enclose, shut in, hedge in, environ
Translations
hem [hɛm] ndobladillo
vtponer or coser el dobladillo a
hem in vtcercar;
to feel hemmed in (fig) → sentirse acosado

hem [hɛm] nourlet m
vtourler
hem in vtcerner;
to feel hemmed in (fig) → avoir l'impression d'étouffer, se sentir oppressé(e) or écrasé(e)

hem [hɛm] nSaum m
vtsäumen
hem in hem vteinschließen, umgeben;
to feel hemmed in hem (fig); sich eingeengt fühlen

hem [hɛm] norlo
vtfare l'orlo a
hem in vtcingere;
to feel hemmed in (fig) → sentirsi soffocare

hem
n hem [hem]
the border of a piece of clothing, folded over and sewn. soom حاشِيَه، هُدْب подгъв obruba søm; kant der Saum στρίφωμα dobladillo palistus حاشيه päärme ourlet שָׂפָה שׁל בֶּגֶד किनारा obrub, porub szegély tepi faldur orlo へり 옷단 palankas, apsiuvas, kraštelis vīle; (svārku) apakšmala kelepet zoom fald, kant obrąbek bainha tiv край obruba rob porub fåll ขอบ (ผ้า) kıvrım, kenar 折邊 рубець; пруг کپڑے کا کنارا đường viền (áo, quần...)
vpast tense, past participle hemmed
to make a hem on (a piece of clothing) I've hemmed the skirt. omsoom, omstik يَكُفُّ أو يَغْبِنُ ثَوْبا подгъвам obroubit sømme; kante säumen στριφώνω hacer un dobladillo palistama حاشيه دوزی كردن päärmätä ourler לִתפוֹר שָׂפָה ב- घेरा डालना obrubiti, porubiti (be)szeg membuat tepi falda orlare, fare l'orlo 縁をかがる 가장자리를 감치다 palenkti, apsiūti apvīlēt menjahit kelepet zomen, zoom leggen in, zoom leggen op falde, legge opp podszyć pôr bainha em a tivi подшивать (край) obrúbiť zarobiti porubiti fålla เย็บริม (ผ้า) kenarını bastırmak 縫邊 підрублювати حاشیہ بنانا viền
hem in
to surround (someone) The soldiers were hemmed in on all sides by the enemy. omring, omsingel يُطَوِّقُ ، يُحيط ограждам obklíčit omringe umzingeln περικυκλώνω cercar, rodear piirama احاطه كردن ympäröidä encercler לְהָקִיף घेरना opkoliti, okružiti körülzár mengepung inniloka circondare 囲む 포위하다 apsupti aplenkt mengepung sso omsingelen, omzomen faldet, kantet otoczyć cercar a încer­cui окружать obkľúčiť obkoliti opkoliti stänga inne, omringa ล้อมรอบ kuşatmak, sarmak, etrafını çevirmek 包圍 оточувати, обмежувати دشمن کو گھیر لینا bao vây


How to thank TFD for its existence? Tell a friend about us, add a link to this page, add the site to iGoogle, or visit webmaster's page for free fun content.
?Page tools
Printer friendly
Cite / link
Email
Feedback
Add definition
? Mentioned in
 
Dictionary/thesaurus browser? ? Full browser
 
 
Dictionary, Thesaurus, and Translations
?

Disclaimer | Privacy policy | Feedback | Copyright © 2009 Farlex, Inc.
All content on this website, including dictionary, thesaurus, literature, geography, and other reference data is for informational purposes only. This information should not be considered complete, up to date, and is not intended to be used in place of a visit, consultation, or advice of a legal, medical, or any other professional. Terms of Use.