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hem

From Wiktionary, the free dictionary

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See also: Appendix:Variations of "hem"

Translingual

Symbol

hem

  1. (international standards) ISO 639-3 language code for Hemba.

See also

  • Wiktionary’s coverage of Hemba terms

English

Etymology 1

A sound uttered in imitation of clearing the throat (onomatopoeia)

Pronunciation

Interjection

hem

  1. Used to fill in the gap of a pause with a vocalized sound.

Noun

hem (plural hems)

  1. An utterance or sound of the voice like "hem", often indicative of hesitation or doubt, sometimes used to call attention.
    • January 8, 1712', John Dryden, The Spectator No. 269
      his morning hems

Verb

hem (third-person singular simple present hems, present participle hemming, simple past and past participle hemmed)

  1. To make the sound expressed by the word hem; to hesitate in speaking.
Derived terms
Translations

See also

Etymology 2

    From Middle English hem, hemm, in turn from Old English hem, of West Germanic origin, from Proto-West Germanic *hammjan from Proto-Germanic *hamjaną. Related to Middle High German hemmen (“to hem in”), Old Norse hemja (“to hem in, restrain”); outside of Germanic, to Armenian քամել (kʻamel, “to press, wring”), Russian ком (kom, “lump”).

    The verb is from Middle English hemmen, from Old English hemman, from Proto-Germanic *hamjaną, or alternatively derived from the noun.

    Pronunciation

    Noun

    hem (plural hems)

    2. (sewing) The border of an article of clothing doubled back and stitched together to finish the edge and prevent it from fraying.
    3. A rim or margin of something.
    4. In sheet metal design, a rim or edge folded back on itself to create a smooth edge and to increase strength or rigidity.
    Derived terms
    Translations
    border of an article of clothing doubled back and stitched together

    Verb

    hem (third-person singular simple present hems, present participle hemming, simple past and past participle hemmed)

    2. (sewing, intransitive) To make a hem.
    3. (transitive) To put hem on an article of clothing, to edge or put a border on something.
    4. (transitive) To shut in, enclose, confine; to surround something or someone in a confining way.
      A small yard hemmed about by a tall hedge.
      • 1862, John Williamson Palmer, Stonewall Jackson's Way:
        He’s in the saddle now. Fall in! Steady, the whole brigade! Hill’s at the ford, cut off — we’ll win his way out, ball and blade! What matter if our shoes are worn? What matter if our feet are torn? “Quick step! We’re with him before the morn!” That’s “Stonewall Jackson’s Way.”
        The sun’s bright lances rout the mists of morning, and by George! Here’s Longstreet struggling in the lists, hemmed in an ugly gorge. Pope and his Yankees, whipped before, “Bay’nets and grape!” hear Stonewall roar; “Charge, Stuart! Pay off Ashby’s score!” in “Stonewall Jackson’s Way.
    Derived terms
    Translations
    to put hem on an article of clothing

    Etymology 3

    From Middle English hem, from Old English heom (“them”, dative), originally a dative plural form but in Middle English coming to serve as an accusative plural as well. More at 'em.

    Pronoun

    hem

    1. Obsolete form of 'em.
      • 1481, William Caxton, The Historie of Reynart the Foxe:
        And wente to the kinge and to the queene, and said to hem with a glad cheer.
      • 1485, William Caxton, Paris and Vienne:
        For eyther of hem mayntened.
      • 1591, John Florio, Second Frutes to be gathered of twelve trees, of diverse but delightful tastes to the tongues of Italian and English:
        ‘What thinke you of this English, tel me I pray you.’ ‘It is a language that wyl do you good in England but passe Dover, it is woorth nothing.’ ‘Is it not used then in other countreyes?’ ‘No sir, with whom wyl you that they speake?’ ‘With English marchants.’ ‘English marchantes, when they are out of England, it liketh hem not, and they doo not speake it.
      • 1579, Immeritô [pseudonym; Edmund Spenser], “May. Ægloga Quinta.”, in The Shepheardes Calender: […], London: […] Iohn Wolfe for Iohn Harrison the yonger, […], →OCLC:
        Tho to the greene wood they speeden hem all.
      • 1598, Beniamin Ionson [i.e., Ben Jonson], “Euery Man in His Humour. A Comœdie. […]”, in The Workes of Beniamin Ionson (First Folio), London: […] Will[iam] Stansby, published 1616, →OCLC, (please specify the act number in uppercase Roman numerals, and the scene number in lowercase Roman numerals):
        Except we make hem such.
      • 1605 August (first performance), Geo[rge] Chapman, Ben Ionson, Ioh[n] Marston, Eastward Hoe. […], London: […] [George Eld] for William Aspley, published September 1605, →OCLC, (please specify the page):
        They go forth on Holydays and gather hem by the seashore.

    Further reading

    Anagrams

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    Bislama

    Alternative forms

    Etymology

    From English him. Cognate with Tok Pisin em.

    Pronunciation

    • IPA(key): /ˈhem/
    • Hyphenation: hem

    Pronoun

    hem

    1. he, she, it; him, her

    See also

    More information singular, dual ...
    1 Used only as an object of a preposition or a verb.
    2 The collective pronouns specify that the action is performed by all subjects together, rather than on their own.
    Some speakers may not distinguish various plurality categories, using only one or two plural pronouns.

    References

    • Terry Crowley (2004), Bislama Reference Grammar, Honolulu: University of Hawaiʻi press, →ISBN, page 46

    Catalan

    Verb

    hem

    1. first-person plural present indicative of haver

    Dutch

    Etymology

    From Middle Dutch hem, from Old Dutch himo, from Proto-Germanic *himmai.

    Pronunciation

    Pronoun

    hem

    1. him; third-person singular masculine objective personal pronoun
      Stuur dat maar naar hem. ― Send that to him.
    2. it (tagger in a game of tag)
      Tikkie, jij bent hem! ― Tag, you're it!

    Declension

    More information subject, object ...

    1) Not as common in written language.
    2) Inflected as an adjective.
    3) In prescriptivist use, used only as direct object (accusative).
    4) In prescriptivist use, used only as indirect object (dative).
    5) Archaic. Nowadays used for formal, literary or poetic purposes, and in fixed expressions.
    6) To differentiate from the singular gij, gelle (object form elle) and variants are commonly used colloquially in Belgium. Archaic forms are gijlieden and gijlui ("you people").
    7) Zich is preferred if the reflexive pronoun immediately follows the subject pronoun u, e.g. Meldt u zich aan! 'Log in!', and if the subject pronoun u is used with a verb form that is identical with the third person singular but different from the informal second person singular, e.g. U heeft zich aangemeld. 'You have logged in.' Only u can be used in an imperative if the subject pronoun is not overt, e.g. Meld u aan! 'Log in!', where u is the reflexive pronoun. Otherwise, both u and zich are equally possible, e.g. U meldt u/zich aan. 'You log in.'
    8) Not officially recognized in standard Dutch. It has gained popularity, especially in mainstream media and queer circles, as a respectful term for non-binary individuals.

    Derived terms

    Descendants

    • Javindo: gem
    • Jersey Dutch: häm
    • Negerhollands: em, am, an, ham, him, hem
      • → Virgin Islands Creole: ahm, am
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    French

    Pronunciation

    Interjection

    hem

    1. interjection expressing doubt and/or hesitation

    Further reading

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