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Antonyms for hem

Grammar : Noun
Spell : hem
Phonetic Transcription : hɛm

Definition of hem

Origin :
  • Old English hem "a border," especially of cloth or a garment, from Proto-Germanic *hamjam (cf. Old Norse hemja "to bridle, curb," Swedish hämma "to stop, restrain," Old Frisian hemma "to hinder," Middle Dutch, German hemmen "to hem in, stop, hinder"), from PIE *kem- "to compress." Apparently the same root yielded Old English hamm, common in place names (where it means "enclosure, land hemmed in by water or high ground, land in a river bend"). In Middle English, hem also was a symbol of pride or ostentation.
  • If þei wer þe first þat schuld puplysch þese grete myracles of her mayster, men myth sey of hem, as Crist ded of þe Pharisees, þat þei magnified her owne hemmys. [John Capgrave, "Life of Saint Gilbert of Sempringham," 1451]
  • noun border, edge
Example sentences :
  • And it is, I cannot but confess it, it is too often—hem—acceptable.
  • Extract from : « Little Dorrit » by Charles Dickens
  • "Good as new, almost," she said, looking critically at the hem.
  • Extract from : « The Incomplete Amorist » by E. Nesbit
  • What, all the way to the well and back, nothing but hem, and clear his throat?
  • Extract from : « Tales And Novels, Volume 8 (of 10) » by Maria Edgeworth
  • Ten golden pieces are sewn into the hem of your under doublet.
  • Extract from : « Micah Clarke » by Arthur Conan Doyle
  • Then he fell before her and, for a second time, kissed the hem of her robe.
  • Extract from : « The Strand Magazine, Volume V, Issue 25, January 1893 » by Various
  • Marilou dabbed the moisture from her forehead with the hem of her dress.
  • Extract from : « One Martian Afternoon » by Tom Leahy
  • The hypocrite caught the hem of her cloak, and bore it to his lips.
  • Extract from : « Love-at-Arms » by Raphael Sabatini
  • Then hem the other edge, and conceal the stitches with silk braid that will wash.
  • Extract from : « The Ladies' Work-Table Book » by Anonymous
  • Hem all round, with a broad hem, three-fourths of a nail deep.
  • Extract from : « The Ladies' Work-Table Book » by Anonymous
  • To me he seemed to be stooping low as if to touch the hem of her garment.
  • Extract from : « A Set of Six » by Joseph Conrad

Synonyms for hem

Based on : Thesaurus.com - Gutenberg.org - Dictionary.com - Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019