seamstress

noun

seam·​stress ˈsēm(p)-strəs How to pronounce seamstress (audio)
 also  ˈsem(p)-
: a woman whose occupation is sewing

Examples of seamstress in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web Her after-school job as a seamstress and her sister’s tanning bed come in handy. Bill Goodykoontz, The Arizona Republic, 7 Feb. 2024 His father, Laban Cooley, was a car salesman, and his mother, Eula Cooley, was a seamstress. Dillon Mullan, Baltimore Sun, 22 Jan. 2024 Some or all of those running no doubt have compelling personal histories, but Atkins’ background seems like a movie script: the daughter of a miner and a seamstress who was raised in a house with no running water in the mountains of southwestern Virginia. Michael Smolens, San Diego Union-Tribune, 21 Jan. 2024 But the doll puts food on the table of the poor and brings jobs to Vietnamese seamstresses and cloth-makers. Diane Scharper, National Review, 21 Dec. 2023 Relocating to the village of Deir Hanna, her great-grandfather lost his mind and died, leaving his seamstress wife Um Ali and eight children, including Soualem’s grandmother Nemat, a teacher. Alissa Simon, Variety, 8 Dec. 2023 His grandmother was a seamstress, and his great-great-great-grandfather was a farmer who was able to accumulate $800 as a Black man in the 1800s. Tracy Scott Forson, Smithsonian Magazine, 6 Feb. 2024 In addition to raising their three children — now 70, 72 and 74 — Brussel cleaned houses for a living and later became a seamstress. Sydney Page, Washington Post, 25 Jan. 2024 These albums were the earliest aughts of Destiny’s Child, where the girl group had the voices and the style to match, wearing vibrant ensembles all handcrafted by Beyoncé’s mother, Tina who was a seamstress. Shelby Stewart, Essence, 9 Jan. 2024

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'seamstress.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

First Known Use

1598, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of seamstress was in 1598

Dictionary Entries Near seamstress

Cite this Entry

“Seamstress.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/seamstress. Accessed 19 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

seamstress

noun
seam·​stress ˈsēm(p)-strəs How to pronounce seamstress (audio)
: a woman who sews especially for a living

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