# seam

> English word · Noun · IPA /siːm/ · frequency rank #16,342

## Definitions
1. A folded-back and stitched piece of fabric; especially, the stitching that joins two or more pieces of fabric.
2. A suture.
3. A thin stratum, especially of an economically viable material such as coal or mineral.
4. The stitched equatorial seam of a cricket ball; the sideways movement of a ball when it bounces on the seam.
5. A joint formed by mating two separate sections of materials.
6. A line or depression left by a cut or wound; a scar; a cicatrix.
7. A line of junction; a joint.

## Etymology
From Middle English seem, seme, from Old English sēam (“seam”), from Proto-West Germanic *saum, from Proto-Germanic *saumaz (“that which is sewn”).

## Easily confused with
- **SM** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/seam-vs-sm)
- **see** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/seam-vs-see)
- **set** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/seam-vs-set)
- **sex** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/seam-vs-sex)
- **sum** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/seam-vs-sum)
- **sec** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/seam-vs-sec)
- **sen** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/seam-vs-sen)
- **SEO** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/seam-vs-seo)
- **spa** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/seam-vs-spa)
- **SEP** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/seam-vs-sep)
- **SIM** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/seam-vs-sim)
- **ser** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/seam-vs-ser)
- **sew** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/seam-vs-sew)
- **sha** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/seam-vs-sha)
- **STA** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/seam-vs-sta)
- **ses** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/seam-vs-ses)
- **sem** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/seam-vs-sem)
- **som** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/seam-vs-som)
- **sia** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/seam-vs-sia)
- **SEQ** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/seam-vs-seq)

## Common misspellings (4)
`esam`, `seamm`, `sema`, `sseam`

## Source
Compiled from Wiktionary via kaikki.org (CC BY-SA). Data vintage: 2026-05-06.
Canonical page: https://plainspell.com/en/word/seam