seamy side

Cultural  

1. The sordid, unattractive aspect of something: “Lying and stealing are part of the seamy side of life.”

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seamy side Idioms  

1. The sordid or base aspect of something, as in This nightclub certainly shows you the seamy side of the community. This term refers to the wrong side of a garment, revealing the stitched seams. Shakespeare used it figuratively in Othello (4:2): “That turn'd your wit the seamy side without.”

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Example Sentences

The book offers a powerful glimpse into the seamy side of 1970s rock 'n' roll, a time capsule-like rendering of a bygone age.

From Salon • May 7, 2022

Valray’s distinctive style is marked by off-center compositions and elliptical storytelling as well as a near-documentary obsession with the seamy side of Mediterranean ports like his hometown, Toulon.

From New York Times • Mar. 10, 2021

Such belief in the virtue of the people emerges throughout these reports — an unexpected epilogue to their relentless documenting of the seamy side of American public life.

From Washington Post • Mar. 22, 2019

After hearing about the seamy side of 15th-century life, we were eager for something a little more innocent, so we headed to the nearby garden island of Mainau.

From Seattle Times • Jun. 2, 2017

I have not sold furs for thirty years without knowing the seamy side of a Court robe.

From The Works of Honor? de Balzac About Catherine de' Medici, Seraphita and Other Stories by Balzac, Honor? de