thread

[ thred ]

noun

1. a fine cord of flax, cotton, or other fibrous material spun out to considerable length, especially when composed of two or more filaments twisted together.
2. twisted filaments or fibers of any kind used for sewing.
3. one of the lengths of yarn forming the warp or weft of a woven fabric.
4. a filament or fiber of glass or other ductile substance.
5. Ropemaking.
   1. any of a number of fibers twisted into a yarn.
   2. a yarn, especially as enumerated in describing small stuff.
6. something having the fineness or slenderness of a filament, as a thin continuous stream of liquid, a fine line of color, or a thin seam of ore:

   a thread of smoke.

7. the helical ridge of a screw.
8. that which runs through the whole course of something, connecting successive parts:

   I lost the thread of the story.

9. something conceived as being spun or continuously drawn out, as the course of life fabled to be spun, measured, and cut by the Fates.
10. Digital Technology. a series of posts and responses on a message board or electronic mailing list that deal with the same subject and are grouped together.
11. threads, Slang. clothes none.

verb (used with object)

1. to pass the end of a thread through the eye of (a needle).
2. to fix (beads, pearls, etc.) upon a thread that is passed through; string.
3. to pass continuously through the whole course of (something); pervade:

   A joyous quality threaded the whole symphony.

4. to make one's way through (a narrow passage, forest, crowd, etc.).
5. to make (one's way) thus:

   He threaded his way through the crowd.

6. to form a thread on or in (a bolt, hole, etc.).
7. to place and arrange thread, yarn, etc., in position on (a sewing machine, loom, textile machine, etc.).
8. to remove (facial hair, especially eyebrow hair) by using a looped and twisted thread to roll over the hair and lift it from the follicles.

verb (used without object)

1. to thread one's way, as through a passage or between obstacles:

   They threaded carefully along the narrow pass.

2. to move in a threadlike course; wind or twine.
3. Cooking. (of boiling syrup) to form a fine thread when poured from a spoon.
4. to remove facial hair, especially from the eyebrows, by using a looped and twisted thread.

thread

/ θrɛd /

noun

1. a fine strand, filament or fibre of some material
2. a fine cord of twisted filaments, esp of cotton, used in sewing, weaving, etc
3. any of the filaments of which a spider's web is made
4. any fine line, stream, mark, or piece

   from the air, the path was a thread of white

5. a helical groove in a cylindrical hole ( female thread ), formed by a tap or lathe tool, or a helical ridge on a cylindrical bar, rod, shank, etc ( male thread ), formed by a die or lathe tool
6. a very thin seam of coal or vein of ore
7. something acting as the continuous link or theme of a whole

   the thread of the story

8. the course of an individual's life believed in Greek mythology to be spun, measured, and cut by the Fates

verb

1. tr to pass (thread, film, magnetic tape, etc) through (something)

   to thread a needle

   to thread cotton through a needle

2. tr to string on a thread

   she threaded the beads

3. to make (one's way) through or over (something)
4. tr to produce a screw thread by cutting, rolling, tapping, or grinding
5. tr to pervade

   hysteria threaded his account

6. intr (of boiling syrup) to form a fine thread when poured from a spoon

Derived Forms

• ˈthreader, noun
• ˈthreadˌlike, adjective
• ˈthreadless, adjective

Other Words From

• threader noun
• threadless adjective
• threadlike adjective
• mis·thread verb
• re·thread verb
• self-threading adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of thread¹

before 900; (noun) Middle English threed, Old English thrǣd; cognate with Dutch draad, German Draht, Old Norse thrathr wire; (v.) Middle English threeden, derivative of the noun See throw none

Word History and Origins

Origin of thread¹

Old English thrǣd; related to Old Frisian thrēd, Old High German drāt, Old Norse thrāthr thread

Idioms and Phrases

see hang by a thread ; lose the thread .

Example Sentences

The film finds a rich thread in exploring all this.

From Los Angeles Times

The pair teamed up to make “Sugarcane,” a harrowing account that deftly weaves together multiple threads as a community struggles to uncover the truth and find justice and healing.

From Los Angeles Times

That kind of stuff was fun to thread through the script as we tried to build the symbolic vocabulary of the movie.

From Salon

In order to stay energized, a restaurant needs to continually reinvent itself, while keeping a thread of continuity.

From Salon

After carefully drying the fragile threads in the shade, farmers sell them for $3 a gram—one-tenth of the U.S. retail price.

From Science Magazine

Related Words

• cord
• cotton
• fiber
• filament
• hair
• ribbon
• strand
• string
• wire
• wool
• yarn