sew

¹ American  

[soh] / soʊ /

verb (used with object)

sewed, sewn, sewed, sewing

1. to join or attach by stitches.

2. to make, repair, etc., (a garment) by such means.

3. to enclose or secure with stitches.

   to sew flour in a bag.

4. to close (a hole, wound, etc.) by means of stitches (usually followed byup ).

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verb (used without object)

sewed, sewn, sewed, sewing

1. to work with a needle and thread or with a sewing machine.

verb phrase

1. sew up

   1. Informal. to get or have a monopoly of; control exclusively.

   2. Informal. to complete or conclude (arrangements, negotiations, etc.) successfully.

      They were about to sew up the deal when the argument started.

   3. to gain or be assured of.

      He tried to sew up as many votes as possible before the convention.

sew ² American  

[soo] / su /

verb (used with object)

sewed, sewing

1. to ground (a vessel) at low tide (sometimes followed by byup ).

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verb (used without object)

sewed, sewing

1. (of a vessel) to be grounded at low tide.

noun

1. the amount of additional water necessary to float a grounded vessel.

sew British  

/ səʊ /

verb

1. to join or decorate (pieces of fabric, etc) by means of a thread repeatedly passed through with a needle or similar implement

2. (tr; often foll by on or up) to attach, fasten, or close by sewing

3. (tr) to make (a garment, etc) by sewing

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Other Word Forms

• sewable
  adjective

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Etymology

Origin of sew¹

First recorded before 900; Middle English seuen, souen, Old English siw(i)an, siowan; cognate with Old High German siuwan, Old Norse sauma, Gothic siujan; akin to Sanskrit sī́vyati “(he) sews,” Latin suere; see also seam

Origin of sew²

First recorded in 1580–90; from Middle French sewer, shortening of essewer, from unattested Vulgar Latin exaquāre, equivalent to Latin ex- “out of, from, thoroughly” + verb derivative of aqua “water”; see also sewer ¹

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Explanation

Sew describes stitching something together. If you sew up the holes in your socks, you use thread and a needle to close them. The word sew comes from the Old English word siwian, to stitch. You can sew a patch on a pair of jeans, sew a dress, or sew up a hole in your grandmother's old quilt. A figurative meaning of sew, as in the phrase to sew something up, is to secure something or bring it to a happy conclusion, like sewing up the plot in the last chapter of a book. Don't confuse sew with sow, to plant or set in motion.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

sew sewed sewing sewn

"Using foot-pedalling to sew uniforms is very hard because it is slow", he told AFP.

From Barron's ● Sep. 17, 2026

He began experimenting with a sewing machine and, in 1846, introduced a foot-powered model that could sew 250 stitches a minute, outracing the fastest human hands by a factor of five.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 9, 2026

“I’m glad I’m not the one who had to sew them on originally!”

From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 30, 2026

PhD fashion students at DMU put on a workshop teaching pupils how to sew and mend damaged clothes.

From BBC ● Jun. 4, 2026

They make it in test tubes and then sew it onto where your skin is burned.

From "Firegirl" by Tony Abbott

Jordan sewed sage green curtains to conceal additional storage spaces and further brighten the space.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 9, 2026

I sewed and quilted through adult life, but retirement has stepped up my game.

From The Wall Street Journal ● May 2, 2026

Ireland sewed up the play-off place in the group thanks to Troy Parrott's 96th-minute hat-trick goal handing them a 3-2 win over third-placed Hungary.

From Barron's ● Nov. 16, 2025

He sells overalls with rain boots sewed in to them on TikTok.

From BBC ● Sep. 17, 2025

Back then she sewed us all kinds of toys.

From "Everything Sad Is Untrue" by Daniel Nayeri

The Chinese factories remain busy, he says, because a single toy can undergo more than one manufacturing process, from moulding the parts, to adding electronics, sewing materials, and final assembly.

From BBC ● Oct. 14, 2026

Research published last year suggested that, of a typical £85 shirt, £8.50 covers fabric, sewing and shipping, £37.45 goes to the retailer, £16.25 to the manufacturer, £9.50 on marketing and £13.60 in VAT.

From BBC ● Oct. 8, 2026

"Her sewing machine was there. She was in tears because it's broken now. So, well, it's a tragedy. But in my family everyone is alive and for that I thank God," he said.

From Barron's ● Sep. 26, 2026

My mother made all our clothes on a Singer sewing machine for years.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 16, 2026

At our local sewing shop, you can buy Cleopatra’s Needle thread and other goodies.

From "The (Mostly) True Story of Cleopatra's Needle" by Dan Gutman

Atop that, there’s a lush landscape sewn with 6,000 native plants.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 8, 2026

"He is always with us," says Bowsley, referring to 'Hitchy #1' which has been sewn on to the back of the club's shirts.

From BBC ● Oct. 2, 2026

It’s like watching stars being sewn into the fabric of the universe.

From Salon ● Sep. 28, 2026

The small-estate procedure does not simply eliminate the need to deal with real estate, and you already have that sewn up.

From MarketWatch ● Sep. 27, 2026

I hid them in a pouch I had sewn in the folds of my robe.

From "The Many Assassinations of Samir, the Seller of Dreams" by Daniel Nayeri

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Related Words

• embroider
• fasten
• stitch
• tailor

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