stitch

plural stitches · alternative misspelling obsolete stich

1. countableA single pass of a needle in sewing; the loop or turn of the thread thus made.
   1. countableuncountablemedicineA single pass of a surgical suture (to sew the edges of a wound together)

      I cut myself badly while cooking and needed to go to hospital to get stitches.

2. countableuncountableAn arrangement of stitches in sewing, or method of stitching in some particular way or style.

   cross stitch

   1 more example

   herringbone stitch

3. countableuncountableAn intense stabbing pain under the lower edge of the ribcage, brought on by exercise or laughing.

   After about fifteen minutes I got terrible stitch.

   1 more example

   I've got a stitch. I'm going to have to stop and rest.

4. countableuncountableA local sharp pain (anywhere); an acute pain, like the piercing of a needle.

   a stitch in the side

   3 more examples

   He was the next day taken with an oppreſſion, and as it ſeemed with a cold and with ſtitches, which was indeed a pluriſy.

   a. 1716 (date written), [Gilbert] Burnet, “Book III. Of the Rest of King Charles II’s Reign, from the Year 1673 to the Year 1685, in which He Died.”, in [Gilbert Burnet Jr.], editor, Bishop Burnet’s History of His Own Time. […], volume I, London: […] Thomas Ward […], published 1724, →OCLC, page 588

   Violent continuous stitch in the region of the heart, the stitches multiplied when arresting the breathing. […] Feeling of heaviness in the muscles of the neck; he is obliged to bend his neck backwards. Cramp-like pain in right muscles of the neck, terminating in a stitch; the pain went off after motion and returned afterwards. […] Dull stitches in the region of the haunch-bones; pressure on the parts causes a simple pain. […] Drawing stitch in the right thigh, not perceptible when standing or ascending an elevation.

   1848, Gottlieb Heinrich Georg Jahr, New Manual; Or, Symptomen-codex, page 186 (1846, Samuel Hahnemann, Materia Medica Pura, page 73)

   A sharp stitch in the left side of the head, on sitting down […] A sharp stitch in the upper part of the right side of the head, […]

   1878, Timothy Field Allen, The Encyclopedia of pure materia medica v. 8, 1878, page 291

5. countableuncountableA single turn of the thread round a needle in knitting; a link, or loop, of yarn

   drop a stitch

   1 more example

   take up a stitch

6. countableuncountableAn arrangement of stitches in knitting, or method of knitting in some particular way or style.
7. countableuncountableA space of work taken up, or gone over, in a single pass of the needle.
8. countableuncountableA fastening, as of thread or wire, through the back of a book to connect the pages.
9. broadlycountableuncountableAny space passed over; distance.

   [Y]ou have gone a good ſtitch, you may well be a weary; ſit down.

   1684, John Bunyan, The Pilgrim’s Progress. From This World to That which is to Come: The Second Part. […], London: […] Nathaniel Ponder […], →OCLC; reprinted in The Pilgrim’s Progress as Originally Published by John Bunyan: Being a Fac-simile Reproduction of the First Edition, London: Elliot Stock […], 1875, →OCLC, page 148

10. colloquialcountableuncountableAny least part of a fabric or clothing.

    to wet every stitch of clothes

    5 more examples

    She didn’t have a stitch (of clothing) on.

    About DUNSTABLE they plow much in Stitches : and in Essex some very good Farmers practise this Method with very great Success; making five Stitches when they come to sow, which five make a Perch, so that between every two Stitches there is a Thorough a Foot wide.

    1757, Thomas Hale, “Of Tillage”, in A compleat body of husbandry, page 241

    "Why, it's you that are stripping me," replied the Ogress, "and you have not left a stitch on me." "Where the devil is the quilt?" says the Ogre[.]

    1828, Thomas Keightley, Fairy Mythology, volume II, page 237

    […]for your oxen choose Two males of nine years old, for then their use Is most available, since their strengths are then Not of the weakest, and the youthful mean Sticks in their nerves still; nor will these contend With skittish tricks, when they their stitch should end, To break their plough, and leave their work undone.

    1875, George Chapman, Algernon Charles Swinburne, The Works of George Chapman: Poems and Minor Translations, page 224

    I would go out tonight / But I haven't got a stitch to wear

    1983, “This Charming Man”, Johnny Marr, Morrissey (lyrics), performed by The Smiths

11. countableuncountableAn incorporation of an existing video into a new one, resulting in a collaborative clip that shows the two videos in a sequence.

    More than 19,000 people commented, along with more stitches than she could count, Sallee said.

    2023 May 31, Tatum Hunter, “On TikTok, women get real about the pitfalls of motherhood”, in The Washington Post, Washington, D.C.: The Washington Post Company, →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 03 Jun 2023

    2 more examples

    One answer that appeared in multiple comments and stitches was that women often think about the possibility of being victims of violence.

    2023 September 20, Brittany Miller, “Women respond to viral TikTok prompt asking about ‘female version’ of male Roman Empire obsession”, in The Independent, London: Independent News & Media, →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 23 Sep 2023

    The stitches, as they are called on TikTok, nearly always end in agreement that Ms. Vidal was right — store-bought pesto is indeed an inferior product.

    2023 October 24, Remy Tumin, “She Made Pesto. People Started Spilling Their Secrets.”, in The New York Times, New York, N.Y.: The New York Times Company, →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 24 Oct 2023

12. countabledateduncountableagricultureA ridge of ploughed land between two furrows.

    Now plow down your Weat-stitches, by running the Two-wheel Fallow-Plough three or four times through each Stitch, which will almost level the Ground;

    1750, William Ellis, “Of Plowings preparatory for Sofing Lent Crops of Grain, &c. in Chilturn Grounds”, in The Modern Husbandman - Volume 4, page 42

13. countableobsoleteuncountableA contortion, or twist.

    If you talke / Or pull your face into a ſtich againe, / As I love truth I ſhall be very angry.

    1609–1612, Francis Beaumont, John Fletcher, “The Captaine”, in Comedies and Tragedies […], London: […] Humphrey Robinson, […], and for Humphrey Moseley […], published 1647, →OCLC, Act II, scene ii, page 54, column 2

present singular third person stitches · participle present stitching · participle past stitched · past stitched · alternative misspelling obsolete stich

1. To form stitches in; especially, to sew in such a manner as to show on the surface a continuous line of stitches.

   to stitch a shirt bosom.

   Synonyms: sew

2. To sew, or unite or attach by stitches.

   to stitch printed sheets in making a book or a pamphlet.

   1 more example

   With such focus from within the footballing community this week on Remembrance Sunday, there was something appropriate about Colchester being the venue for last night’s game. Troops from the garrison town formed a guard of honour for both sets of players, who emerged for the national anthem with poppies proudly stitched into their tracksuit jackets.

   2011 November 10, Jeremy Wilson, “England Under 21 5 Iceland Under 21 0: match report”, in Telegraph

   Synonyms: sew, stitch together

3. intransitiveTo practice/practise stitching or needlework.
4. agricultureTo form land into ridges.

   Synonyms: plough, plow

5. To weld together through a series of connecting or overlapping spot welds.

   You can prevent warping and get a very strong weld by stitching your pieces together.

   2009, Jeffery Zurschmeide, Automotive Welding: A Practical Guide, →ISBN, page 44

   2 more examples

   For example, the butt joint can be welded with the continuous technique or the stitch technique.

   2014, James E. Duffy, Auto Body Repair Technology, →ISBN, page 239

   Apply cement and stitch as necessary. A hot knife can be used to seal down loose seams.

   2017, Chellappa Chandrasekaran, Anticorrosive Rubber Lining: A Practical Guide for Plastics Engineers, →ISBN

6. To include, combine, or unite into a single whole.

   The scheme promises to stitch parts of the city back into the commuter rail map, to reshape short urban journeys, and to relieve some of the pressure on the city's roads and bus routes.

   2025 October 1, Peter Plisner, “Closing in on Camp Hill reopening”, in RAIL, number 1045, page 44

   3 more examples

   Whereas liturgically, in the sacramental narrative of the Cross, worshippers are stitched into a salvation story, cinema spectators are stitched into a narrative in which the ordinary guy overcomes the Other in an extraordinary situation.

   2011, Steve Nolan, Film, Lacan and the Subject of Religion, →ISBN

   However, it is the depth and breadth of your scholarship, your incisive and decisive writing, your numerous books exemplifying this masterful craftsmanship (I stopped counting after nineteen), your wit, and your relentless resolve to listen and get it right that are now stitched into my memories.

   2013, Peyton McCoy, Walk into Your Season: The Art of Cultural Work, →ISBN, page viii

   Effective landscape-scale conservation thus calls for stitching the management of public, tribal, and private lands together using collaborative processes to achieve mutual social and ecological objectives.

   2014, Susan Charnley, Thomas E. Sheridan, Gary P. Nabhan, Stitching the West Back Together: Conservation of Working Landscapes, →ISBN, page xvi

   1. computer graphicsTo combine two or more photographs of the same scene into a single image by putting them side by side and smoothing the edges.

      I can use this software to stitch together a panorama.

   2. To incorporate (an existing video) into a new one, resulting in a collaborative clip that shows the two videos in a sequence.

      She talks briefly about their park picnic and then inserts a cliffhanger: “I’m going to stitch this when we’re either in a relationship or he absolutely obliterates my self-esteem.” (Stitch is a creation tool that allows users to add new content to an existing video.)

      2023 March 1, Rachel Ellison, “Bad Dates Turn Out to Be Excellent on TikTok”, in The New York Times

      1 more example

      One site, PearPop.com, hooks TikTok or Instagram influencers up with fans to create duetted or stitched videos that fans pay for. This can be an effective way to build followers fast.⁹ Model Leah Svoboda added 120,000 followers after a PearPop duet with megainfluencer Anna Shumate.¹⁰

      2022, Brian Boxer Wachler, Influenced: The Impact of Social Media on Our Perception, Lanham, MD: Rowman & Littlefield, →ISBN, pages 186–187