thread

Study(23)

UK /θɹɛd/ US [θɾ̪̊ɛd]

noun 5verb 5

Collocations

(noun.) piece of cotton, etc.

ADJ

QUANT

length, piece

VERB + THREAD

spin

catch, pull

My sweater caught a thread on the fence and now it's unraveling.

PHRASES

hanging by a thread

Their marriage was hanging by a thread before they decided to go to couples therapy.

(noun.) connection between ideas, parts of a story, etc.

ADJ

central, main | common, connecting | consistent, continuous | narrative

loose

My sweater has a loose thread that I need to tie off before it unravels.

VERB + THREAD

follow, trace

She traced the thread of the story back to its beginning in the old diary.

lose

During the confusing explanation, I completely lost the thread of what he was trying to say.

keep

It's hard to keep the thread of the conversation when people keep interrupting.

draw together, pick up, pull together, weave

The detective carefully pulled together the threads of evidence to solve the mysterious case.

THREAD + VERB

run through sth

A common theme runs through every episode of the TV series.

emerge

Several important themes began to emerge as we discussed our childhood memories together.

unravel

Their friendship started to unravel when they stopped talking to each other.

Definitions

noun

A cord formed by spinning or twisting together textile fibers or filaments into one or more continuous strands, typically used in needlework.

Woolen threads were an occult means, according to the Roman poet Horace, of depriving a person of virility.

A piece of yarn, especially said of warps and wefts in a woven fabric.

Any of various natural (as spiderweb, etc.) or manufactured filaments (as glass, plastic, metal, etc.).

the threads of a spiderweb

He walked. To the corner of Hamilton Place and Picadilly, and there stayed for a while, for it is a romantic station by night. The vague and careless rain looked like threads of gossamer silver passing across the light of the arc-lamps.

A slender stream of water.

a thread of water

The line midway between the banks of a stream.

verb

To pass a thread through the eye of a needle.

To fix (beads, pearls, etc.) upon a thread that is passed through; to string.

To make one's way through or between (a constriction or obstacles).

to thread through narrow passages

I think I can thread my way through here, but it’s going to be tight.

To make one's way through or between (a constriction or obstacles).

He threaded his way through legal entanglements.

To pass through; to pierce through; to penetrate.

And when the Miners by theſe Shafts or Adits do ſtrike or threed a Vein of any Metal […] then the Metal which is digged […] is called Oar […]

Tom out here will have leave to thrid you with bullets.

Thesaurus

Synonyms

noun — a fine cord of twisted fibers (of cotton or silk or wool or

yarn

noun — any long object resembling a thin line

ribbon

verb — thread on or as if on a string

verb — to move or cause to move in a sinuous, spiral, or circular c

Antonyms

Idioms & Phrases

hang by a thread

To be in danger, calling for precise caution; to be in a precarious situation.

A giant section of an Antarctic ice shelf is hanging by a thread and could break off at any moment, researchers have revealed.

thread the needle

To perform a tedious task with extreme precision; to manage to find harmony or strike a balance between conflicting forces, interests, etc.

Were I writing for the Court, I would seek to thread the needle between acknowledging Principal Morse's authority, on the one hand, while respecting student Frederick's rights, on

thread of thought

A train of thought; a thought process.

Example Bank

Woolen threads were an occult means, according to the Roman poet Horace, of depriving a person of virility.

Wiktionary

the threads of a spiderweb

Wiktionary

to thread through narrow passages

Wiktionary

I think I can thread my way through here, but it’s going to be tight.

Wiktionary

The line to Uganda goes up the side of a slope in a series of S-bends, and as the telegraph wires follow the line, from below they look like a forest as they thread backwards and forwards about six ti

Wiktionary

Usage Notes

i Register

In some senses, thread is marked as figuratively. Watch for register when choosing this word.

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