weave

[weev]

verb (used with object)

wove, weaved, woven, wove, weaving. 

1. to interlace (threads, yarns, strips, fibrous material, etc.) so as to form a fabric or material.

2. to form by interlacing threads, yarns, strands, or strips of some material.

   to weave a basket; to weave cloth.

3. to form by combining various elements or details into a connected whole.

   to weave a tale; to weave a plan.

   Synonyms: compose, construct, fabricate, contrive

4. to introduce as an element or detail into a connected whole (usually followed by in orinto ).

   She wove an old folk melody into her latest musical composition.

   Synonyms: intermingle, intermix, insert

5. to direct or move along in a winding or zigzag course; move from side to side, especially to avoid obstructions.

   to weave one's way through traffic.

verb (used without object)

wove, weaved, woven, wove, weaving. 

1. to form or construct something, as fabric, by interlacing threads, yarns, strips, etc.

2. to compose a connected whole by combining various elements or details.

3. to be or become formed or composed from the interlacing of materials or the combining of various elements.

   The yarn wove into a beautiful fabric.

4. to move or proceed in a winding course or from side to side.

   dancers weaving in time to the music.

noun

1. a pattern of or method for interlacing yarns.

2. hairweave.

weave

/ wiːv /

verb

1. to form (a fabric) by interlacing (yarn, etc), esp on a loom

2. (tr) to make or construct by such a process

   to weave a shawl

3. (tr) to make or construct (an artefact, such as a basket) by interlacing (a pliable material, such as cane)

4. (of a spider) to make (a web)

5. (tr) to construct by combining separate elements into a whole

6. (tr; often foll by in, into, through, etc) to introduce

   to weave factual details into a fiction

7. to create (a way, etc) by moving from side to side

   to weave through a crowd

8. (intr) () vet science (of a stabled horse) to swing the head, neck, and body backwards and forwards

9. informal,  to hurry; start to do something

noun

1. the method or pattern of weaving or the structure of a woven fabric

Other Word Forms

• outweave verb (used with object)
• reweave verb
• weaving noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of weave¹

before 900; Middle English weven, Old English wefan; cognate with German weben, Old Norse vefa; web

Word History and Origins

Origin of weave¹

Old English wefan; related to Old High German weban, Old Norse vefa, Greek hyphos, Sanskrit vābhis; compare _web , _weevil , _wasp

Example Sentences

The delight for the reader comes from the author’s casting a wide net over the basketball universe and choosing a not-always-obvious moment to weave into a saga.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

“Oh, what a tangled web we weave,” Alex says in response to the prosecutor questioning why he lied about his whereabouts on the night of the murders.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

I picture Grandma weaving the threads together, humming and chuckling while she brainstorms the next mind-bending story she’s going to tell me about Ghana.

Read more on Literature

But there was something so brave and solitary about this little ship of gold, weaving its way through the air currents.

Read more on Literature

Practicing the opposite of all that she had been taught, she wove together the most boring, dull, tedious, and uninteresting bits of every speech she knew.

Read more on Literature

Related Words

• braid 
• careen 
• compose 
• construct 
• create 
• entwine 
• fabricate 
• fold 
• fuse 
• incorporate 
• intertwine 
• introduce 
• knit 
• loop 
• mesh 
• sew 
• snake 
• spin 
• splice 
• twist