stitch

[stich]

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR stitch ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

one complete movement of a threaded needle through a fabric or material such as to leave behind it a single loop or portion of thread, as in sewing, embroidery, or the surgical closing of wounds.

a loop or portion of thread disposed in place by one such movement in sewing: to rip out stitches.

a particular mode of disposing the thread in sewing or the style of work produced by one such method.

one complete movement of the needle or other implement used in knitting, crocheting, netting, tatting, etc.

the portion of work produced.

a thread, bit, or piece of any fabric or of clothing: to remove every stitch of clothes.

the least bit of anything: He wouldn't do a stitch of work.

a sudden, sharp pain, especially in the intercostal muscles: a stitch in the side.

verb (used with object)

to work upon, join, mend, or fasten with or as if with stitches; sew (often followed by together): to stitch together flour sacks to make curtains; a plan that was barely stitched together.

to ornament or embellish with stitches: to stitch a shirt with a monogram.

verb (used without object)

to make stitches, join together, or sew.

Idioms

in stitches, convulsed with laughter: The comedian had us in stitches all evening.

Origin of stitch

before 900; (noun) Middle English stiche, Old English stice a thrust, stab; cognate with German Stich prick; akin to stick²; (v.) Middle English stichen to stab, pierce, derivative of the noun

Related formsstitch·er, nounstitch·like, adjectivere·stitch, verb (used with object)un·stitch, verbun·stitched, adjectivewell-stitched, adjective

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Related Words for stitch

sew, fasten, suture, baste, join

Examples from the Web for stitch

Contemporary Examples of stitch

In that way that was cathartic too, to sort of stitch up all those pieces and see how that is.
Richard Blanco’s Gay Latino Poet Survival Kit
William O’Connor
October 8, 2014
In fact, by the way he challenged my thoughts on the case, I thought perhaps he was aiming to stitch up the media.
What It's Like to Watch Kate Beckinsale Play You in a Movie
Barbie Latza Nadeau
September 3, 2014
Advice that was given me by Florence Ridley, a professor in graduate school: Stitch, stitch.
How I Write: Diane Johnson
Noah Charney
January 15, 2014
Also, by carrying an M-4 carbine, everybody knew I was carrying something that could stitch even U.S. body armor.
Don’t Arm America: A Soldier’s Reply to Connecticut Shooting
Tony Schwalm
December 18, 2012
He just needs to stitch together all the threads into a coherent vision of the future that includes a vibrant economy.
Mitt Romney’s Immigration Gap Highlighted by Supreme Court Arizona Ruling
Mark McKinnon
June 26, 2012

Historical Examples of stitch

"Now at last I am ready," she said, as she finished her first stitch.
The Dream
Emile Zola
You reckermember my old sayin', don't you, 'a stitch in time saves nine'?
Southern Lights and Shadows
Various
He measured these round his waist, and then began to stitch them together, slowly and laboriously.
Henry Dunbar
M. E. Braddon
May stopped in the middle of a stitch, and stared at him with something akin to dismay.
People of Position
Stanley Portal Hyatt
I had a stitch in my side, and both Harold's stockings had come down.
The Golden Age
Kenneth Grahame

British Dictionary definitions for stitch

stitch

noun

a link made by drawing a thread through material by means of a needle

a loop of yarn formed around an implement used in knitting, crocheting, etc

a particular method of stitching or shape of stitch

a sharp spasmodic pain in the side resulting from running or exercising

(usually used with a negative) informal the least fragment of clothinghe wasn't wearing a stitch

agriculture the ridge between two furrows

drop a stitch to allow a loop of wool to fall off a knitting needle accidentally while knitting

in stitches informal laughing uncontrollably

verb

(tr) to sew, fasten, etc, with stitches

(intr) to be engaged in sewing

(tr) to bind together (the leaves of a book, pamphlet, etc) with wire staples or thread

noun, verb

an informal word for suture (def. 1b), suture (def. 6)

Word Origin for stitch

Old English stice sting; related to Old Frisian steke, Old High German stih, Gothic stiks, Old Norse tikta sharp

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for stitch

Old English stice "a prick, puncture," from Proto-Germanic *stikiz, from the root of stick (v.). The sense of "sudden, stabbing pain in the side" was in late Old English. Senses in sewing and shoemaking first recorded late 13c.; meaning "bit of clothing one is (or isn't) wearing" is from c.1500. Meaning "a stroke of work" (of any kind) is attested from 1580s. Surgical sense first recorded 1520s. Sense of "amusing person or thing" is 1968, from notion of laughing so much one gets stitches of pain (cf. verbal expression to have (someone) in stitches, 1935).

early 13c., "to stab, pierce," also "to fasten or adorn with stitches;" see stitch (n.). Related: Stitched; stitching.

stitch in Medicine

stitch

[stĭch]

n.

A sudden sharp pain, especially in the side.

A single suture.

v.

To suture.

Idioms and Phrases with stitch

stitch

In addition to the idiom beginning with stitch

stitch in time, a

also see:

in stitches
without a stitch on