What does "seam" mean?
Seam: The fold or line formed by sewing together two pieces of cloth or leather.
Additional senses
- 2.Hence, a line of junction; a joint; a suture, as on a ship, a floor, or other structure; the line of union, or joint, of two boards, planks, metal plates, etc. Precepts should be so finely wrought together . . . that no coarse seam may discover where they join. Addison.
- 3.(geol. & Mining) A thin layer or stratum; a narrow vein between two thicker strata; as, a seam of coal.
- 4.A line or depression left by a cut or wound; a scar; a cicatrix. Seam blast, a blast by putting the powder into seams or cracks of rocks. -- Seam lace, a lace used by carriage makers to cover seams and edges; -- called also seaming lace. -- Seam presser. (Agric.) (a) A heavy roller to press down newly plowed furrows. (b) A tailor's sadiron for pressing seams. Knight. -- Seam set, a set for flattering the seams of metal sheets, leather work, etc.
- 5.To form a seam upon or of; to join by sewing together; to unite.
- 6.To mark with something resembling a seam; to line; to scar. Seamed o'Pope.
- 7.To make the appearance of a seam in, as in knitting a stocking; hence, to knit with a certain stitch, like that in such knitting.
- 8.To become ridgy; to crack open. Later their lips began to parch and seam. L. Wallace.
- 9.A denomination of weight or measure. Specifically: (a) The quantity of eight bushels of grain. "A seam of oats." P. Plowman. (b) The quantity of 120 pounds of glass. [Eng.]
Sources
- Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913 edition (public domain, via GCIDE / Project Gutenberg).
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- Published: 2026-07-17T00:00:00-07:00 · Modified: 2026-07-17T00:00:00-07:00