What is "hem"

Hem \Hem\, v. i. [[root]15. See Hem, interj.] To make the sound expressed by the word hem; hence, to hesitate in speaking. ``Hem, and stroke thy beard.''
--Shak.

Hem \Hem\, n. [AS. hem, border, margin; cf. Fries. h["a]mel, Prov. G. hammel hem of mire or dirt.]

1. The edge or border of a garment or cloth, doubled over and sewed, to strengthen it and prevent raveling.

2. Border; edge; margin. ``Hem of the sea.''
   --Shak.

3. A border made on sheet-metal ware by doubling over the edge of the sheet, to stiffen it and remove the sharp edge.

Hem \Hem\, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Hemmed; p. pr. & vb. n. Hemming.]

1. To form a hem or border to; to fold and sew down the edge of.
   --Wordsworth.

2. To border; to edge

   All the skirt about Was hemmed with golden fringe.
   --Spenser.

   To hem about, To hem around, or To hem in, to inclose and confine; to surround; to environ. ``With valiant squadrons round about to hem.''
   --Fairfax. ``Hemmed in to be a spoil to tyranny.''
   --Daniel.

   To hem out, to shut out. ``You can not hem me out of London.''
   --J. Webster.

Hem \Hem\ (h[e^]m), pron. [OE., fr. AS. him, heom, dative pl. of. h[=e] he. See He, They.] Them [Obs.]
--Chaucer.

Hem \Hem\, interj. An onomatopoetic word used as an expression of hesitation, doubt, etc. It is often a sort of voluntary half cough, loud or subdued, and would perhaps be better expressed by hm.

Cough or cry hem, if anybody come.
--Shak.

Hem \Hem\, n. An utterance or sound of the voice, hem or hm, often indicative of hesitation or doubt, sometimes used to call attention. ``His morning hems.''
--Spectator.

Old English hem "a border," especially of cloth or a garment, from Proto-Germanic *hamjam (cognates: Old Norse hemja "to bridle, curb," Swedish hämma "to stop, restrain," Old Frisian hemma "to hinder," Middle Dutch, German hemmen "to hem in, stop, hinder"), from PIE *kem- "to compress." Apparently the same root yielded Old English hamm, common in place names (where it means "enclosure, land hemmed in by water or high ground, land in a river bend"). In Middle English, hem also was a symbol of pride or ostentation.\n\nIf þei wer þe first þat schuld puplysch þese grete myracles of her mayster, men myth sey of hem, as Crist ded of þe Pharisees, þat þei magnified her owne hemmys. [John Capgrave, "Life of Saint Gilbert of Sempringham," 1451] \n

late 15c., probably imitative of the sound of clearing the throat. Hem and haw first recorded 1786, from haw "hesitation" (1630s; see haw (v.)); hem and hawk attested from 1570s.

late 14c., "to provide (something) with a border or fringe" (surname Hemmer attested from c.1300), from hem (n.). Related: Hemmed; hemming. The phrase hem in "shut in, confine," first recorded 1530s.

Etymology 1 interj. Used to fill in the gap of a pause with a vocalized sound. n. An utterance or sound of the voice like "hem", often indicative of hesitation or doubt, sometimes used to call attention. vb. To make the sound expressed by the word ''hem''; to hesitate in speaking. Etymology 2

n. 1 (context sewing English) The border of an article of clothing doubled back and stitched together to finish the edge and prevent it from fraying. 2 A rim or margin of something. 3 In sheet metal design, a rim or edge folded back on itself to create a smooth edge and to increase strength or rigidity. vb. 1 (context intransitive English) (qualifier: in sewing) To make a hem. 2 (context transitive English): To put hem on an article of clothing, to edge or put a border on something. 3 (context transitive English): To surround something or someone in a confine way. Etymology 3

pron. (obsolete form of 'em English)

1. n. lap that forms a cloth border doubled back and stitched down

2. [also: hemming, hemmed]

1. v. fold over and sew together to provide with a hem; "hem my skirt"

2. utter `hem' or `ahem'

3. [also: hemming, hemmed]

A hem in sewing is a garment finishing method, where the edge of a piece of cloth is folded narrowly and sewn to prevent unravelling of the fabric.

A hem is a sown edge of cloth.

Hem may also refer to:

Hem is a musical group from Brooklyn, New York. Band members include Sally Ellyson ( vocals), Dan Messé ( piano, accordion, glockenspiel), Gary Maurer ( guitar, mandolin), Steve Curtis (guitar, mandolin, banjo, back-up vocals), George Rush ( bass guitar), Mark Brotter ( drums), Bob Hoffnar ( pedal steel guitar), and Heather Zimmerman ( violin). The group sometimes expands to include other musicians and orchestral accompaniments.

Their music has been variously described as "folk", "indie", "Americana" and "roots". Stylistically, their songs bridge 19th-century American parlour music, Appalachian folk music, gospel music, traditional American ballads, the European art song, early jazz and even contemporary classical music.

A hem in knitting is the edge of a piece of knitted fabric that is parallel to the rows of stitches, as compared to a selvage, which is perpendicular to the hem and rows of stitches. Hems can be made in several ways.

The simplest approach is to bind off, possibly with decorative elements such as picots. This approach adds no extra thickness at the hemline (which is sometimes desirable).

Another approach amounts to a tuck: the fabric is folded over and the stitches are knit together pairwise with the stitches of a previous row. In this approach, the fabric is doubled along the hemline.