sleeve

American  

[sleev] / sliv /

noun

• sleeves
  plural

1. the part of a garment that covers the arm, varying in form and length but commonly tubular.

2. a protective container, usually thin and flexible with an opening on one side for insertion or removal of an item, as a paper storage envelope for a phonograph record, or a padded case for a tablet or other electronic device: a 24-sleeve CD wallet.

   a form-fitting laptop sleeve;

   a 24-sleeve CD wallet.

3. a pliable tubular or rectangular container for crackers, cookies, and the like that is typically opened at one end to remove individual servings: The largest box has four sleeves of saltines inside.

   I ate a whole sleeve of shortbreads before I realized how many calories that is!

   The largest box has four sleeves of saltines inside.

4. Machinery. a tubular piece, as of metal, fitting over a rod or the like.

5. a pattern of tattoos that covers the arm from shoulder to wrist in one integrated piece of tattoo art.

   I got my first tattoo when I turned 18, and by 28 I had full sleeves on both arms.

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verb (used with object)

sleeved, sleeving

1. to furnish with sleeves.

2. Machinery. to fit with a sleeve; join or fasten by means of a sleeve.

idioms

1. have something up one's sleeve, to have a secret plan, scheme, opinion, or the like.

   I could tell by her sly look that she had something up her sleeve.

2. laugh up / in one's sleeve, to be secretly amused or contemptuous; laugh inwardly.

   to laugh up one's sleeve at someone's affectations.

sleeve British  

/ sliːv /

noun

1. the part of a garment covering the arm

2. a tubular piece that is forced or shrunk into a cylindrical bore to reduce the diameter of the bore or to line it with a different material; liner

3. a tube fitted externally over two cylindrical parts in order to join them; bush

4. US name: jacket. a flat cardboard or plastic container to protect a gramophone record

5. to prepare oneself for work, a fight, etc

6. secretly ready

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verb

1. (tr) to provide with a sleeve or sleeves

sleeve More Idioms  

1. see card up one's sleeve; laugh up one's sleeve; roll up one's sleeves; wear one's heart on one's sleeve.

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• sleeveless
  adjective
• sleevelike
  adjective
• unsleeved
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• sleeves
  plural

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Etymology

Origin of sleeve

First recorded before 950; Middle English sleve, slieve, Old English slēfe (Anglian), slīefe; akin to Dutch sloof “apron”

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Explanation

The part of your clothing that covers your arm (or part of your arm) is a sleeve. Some t-shirts have long sleeves, others have short sleeves, and your tank top doesn't have any sleeves at all. On a hot day, you might roll up the sleeves of your shirt, or you might change into one with short sleeves (or no sleeves at all, also known as sleeveless). Another kind of sleeve is a container or protective covering, like a record sleeve or a sleeve of crackers. If you have something "up your sleeve," it means you're hiding something to use later in a surprising way.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

sleeve sleeves sleeved sleeving

They took your coat at the door and are handing it back one sleeve a quarter.

From MarketWatch ● Oct. 7, 2026

As Duckhorn, who died in February, used to tell the story: Rinaldi showed up to meet him on his Harley-Davidson, a pack of cigarettes rolled up in the sleeve of his T-shirt.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 2, 2026

Caland worked constantly: on stretched canvas, on fabric folded in her lap, on a children’s menu, on the wall of her kitchen, or the sleeve of her smock.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 21, 2026

"Maybe it could be a tiny bit on his sleeve or right forearm. But is it clear and obvious? No. That's the answer."

From BBC ● Sep. 7, 2026

I’m just starting to read question three when I feel a gentle tug at my sleeve.

From "Popcorn" by Rob Harrell

The actress marked the occasion by donning a stunning lace Schiaparelli gown featuring long sleeves and a high neckline.

From MarketWatch ● Sep. 23, 2026

He rolls up his sleeves, says a colleague, negotiating boiler repairs and driving six hours round-trip to close a deal to earn $12,000 a year in rent.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 5, 2026

That is, her look was very much inspired by basketball icon Allen Iverson, complete with cornrows, a headband and arm sleeves.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 1, 2026

She kept fans tantalized with rumors that a penchant for long-sleeved shirts in her later years concealed two full sleeves of tattoos.

From Salon ● Aug. 25, 2026

Under the sleeves of my sweatshirt, I had two cuffs around my wrists, just like the superheroes sometimes wore in the comics.

From Absolutely Almost by Lisa Graff

Not that he’s got a dearth of it; he’s been creating nearly a “postcard” a day for 30 years, and now has thousands of carefully curated pieces in archival sleeved books.

From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 11, 2025

The doll is dressed is a puff sleeved frock adorned with butterflies and flowers in yellow and blue - colours associated with Down’s syndrome awareness.

From Reuters ● Apr. 25, 2023

"I mostly wear jumpers and long sleeved blouses or longer dresses from there," the 23-year-old says.

From BBC ● Apr. 19, 2023

The final looks were several long sleeved, ankle-length form-fitting dresses made of jersey, in a dark palette with geometrical shapes in bright colors like yellow and red.

From Seattle Times ● Feb. 14, 2022

She held both palms up to face the sky, one gloved, one sleeved in bees, like a shaman performing some ancient ritual.

From "Bone Gap" by Laura Ruby

At the Safa Recycling and Material Processing company, workers shovel wiring from electronics and electrical cables into a $220,000 grinding machine that shreds copper cables and separates them from their plastic sleeving.

From Nature ● Nov. 29, 2016

When these wires are adjacent to ground or battery wires they may be protected by sleeving, so as to prevent crosses.

From Cyclopedia of Telephony and Telegraphy, Vol. 2 A General Reference Work on Telephony, etc. etc. by Samuel McMeen

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