seamstress

English

Alternative forms

• sempstress

Etymology

From seamster +‎ -ess.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): (traditional) /ˈsɛm(p).stɹɪs/, (now more common) /ˈsiːm(p).stɹɪs/

Noun

seamstress (plural seamstresses)

1. A woman who sews clothes professionally.
   • 1656, James Howell, Some Sober Inspections Made Into the Carriage and Consults of the Late Long-Parliament, whereby Ocaſsion is Taken to ſpeak of Parliaments in former Times, and of Magna Charta, with Some Reflexes Upon Government in General, pages 128-129:

     […] the Seamſtreſs brought in her ſilver thimble, the Chamber-maid her Bodkin , the Cook his ſilver ſpoon , the Vintner his Bowl into the common Treaſury of War and they who contribured to ſo pious a work, were invited more then others in ſome Churches to come to the Holy Communion in the very time of adminiſtration; […]

   • 1846, Nathaniel Hawthorne, “The Procession of Life”, in Mosses from an Old Manse:

     They are seamstresses, who have plied the daily and nightly needle in the service of master tailors and close-fisted contractors, until now it is almost time for each to hem the borders of her own shroud.

   • 1992, Robert Jordan, “Chapter 52: Need”, in The Shadow Rising (The Wheel of Time; 4), London: Orbit Books, published 2021, →ISBN, page 862:

     “If you have finished blathering about men, perhaps you won’t mind skipping over the new seamstress you’ve no doubt found?"

Related terms

• seamster
• sempstress
• sewist

Translations

a woman who sews clothes professionally

• Arabic: خَيَّاطَة f (ḵayyāṭa)
• Azerbaijani: tikişçi
• Belarusian: шва́чка f (šváčka)
• Bulgarian: шива́чка f (šiváčka)
• Catalan: cosidora (ca) f, costurera f
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 女裁縫／女裁缝 (nǚcáifeng)

• Czech: švadlena (cs) f, šička f
• Danish: syerske (da) c
• Dutch: naaister (nl) f
• Esperanto: kudristino (eo)
• Estonian: õmbleja
• Finnish: ompelijatar (fi)
• French: couturière (fr) f
• Georgian: მკერავი (mḳeravi), თერძი (terʒi)
• German: Näherin (de) f, Weißnäherin f
• Hebrew: תּוֹפֶרֶת f (tophérét)
• Hungarian: varrónő (hu)
• Irish: bean fuála f, maintín f
• Italian: sarta (it) f, cucitrice f
• Japanese: 針子 (はりこ, hariko), 裁縫師 (さいほうし, saihōshi)
• Korean: 침모(針母) (chimmo), 재봉사(裁縫師) (ko) (jaebongsa)
• Macedonian: шивачка f (šivačka)
• Maori: kaitui
• Middle English: semestere
• Norwegian:

  Bokmål: syerske m or f, sydame m or f

  Nynorsk: syerske f, sydame f

• Old English: sēamestre f
• Polish: szwaczka (pl) f
• Portuguese: costureira (pt) f
• Romanian: croitoreasă (ro) f, cusătoreasă (ro) f (dated, rare), cuturieră f (rare)
• Russian: швея́ (ru) f (švejá), белошве́йка (ru) f (belošvéjka) (sewing linen)
• Sardinian: cusidòra f
• Serbo-Croatian:

  Cyrillic: шва̏ља f, кроја̀чица f

  Roman: švȁlja (sh) f, krojàčica (sh) f

• Slovak: šička f
• Slovene: šivilja (sl) f
• Spanish: costurera f
• Swedish: sömmerska (sv) c
• Thai: please add this translation if you can
• Ukrainian: шва́чка f (šváčka), шва́ля f (šválja)
• Uzbek: tikuvchi (uz) (any gender)
• Volapük: nägan m or f, hinägan m, jinägan (vo) f

Anagrams

• mastresses, rest masses, restmasses