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Glite Dictionary
overhand stitch

overhand stitch

6.6
A sewing stitch made by passing the needle and thread over the cloth edge to join or finish it
  • noun
translation icon : puntada sobrehilada
  • The instructions recommend an overhand stitch to secure the patches in place.

Examples

  • An overhand stitch is perfect for joining two pieces of felt together.

  • To finish the seam neatly, she used an overhand stitch along the raw edges.

  • She used an overhand stitch to join the fabric pieces.

  • The overhand stitches secured the hem effectively.

  • She used an overhand stitch to finish the edge of her dress.

  • To secure the two pieces of fabric, he made an overhand stitch along the seam.

  • The tailor demonstrated how to create an overhand stitch for repairing the hem.

Synonyms

whipping
vsoverhand stitch
  • Specialized
4 6.9

A hand stitch that goes over a fabric edge to stop it coming apart

typically joins pieces or finishes edges using vertical motion instead
overcast
vsoverhand stitch
  • Specialized
9.3

A long stitch sewn over a fabric edge to stop it from coming apart

usually joins pieces or finishes edges rather than only preventing unraveling
overcasting
vsoverhand stitch
  • Specialized
8.6

A long stitch you sew over a fabric edge to stop it from coming apart

is used to join or finish edges rather than just stopping edges coming apart
whipstitching
vsoverhand stitch
  • Specialized
8.1

A way of sewing that joins and finishes fabric edges by passing the needle at an angle over the edge

uses a vertical motion to join pieces rather than diagonal binding

Surface Forms

overhand stitch singular
overhand stitches plural

Morphology

overhand + stitch

The meaning is directly compositional: 'stitch' is a sewing loop and 'overhand' signals that the action passes over the edge (a motion done over/with the hand), so together they describe a stitch made over the fabric edge. Although the term is somewhat technical within sewing, a B1 learner who knows both constituents can reasonably infer this literal sewing action without prior exposure.

Etymology

Overhand stitch comes from the simple picture of the needle and thread being passed over the fabric edge by hand, so each stitch wraps the edge and holds pieces together. That's why it is used to 'join' pieces or 'finish' a raw edge.