twinen.1adj.
/twʌɪn/, U.S. /twaɪn/ 1.
a. Thread or string composed of two or more yarns or strands twisted together; now spec. string or strong thread, made of hemp, cotton, or other fibre, used for sewing coarse materials (as canvas or sacking), tying packages, netting, and the like; with a and plural a piece or kind of this.In Old English found only as a rendering of Latin byssus, bissus, probably through association of this with bis twice. In modern English use chiefly technical or commercial, but in Scotland and U.S. common as a general synonym of string.
ΘΚΠ
the world > textiles and clothing > textiles > thread or yarn > [noun] > spun > in specific way > twisted
twinec725
twine thread1530
twist1555
throw1873
twofold1884
society > occupation and work > materials > derived or manufactured material > other manufactured or derived materials > [noun] > rope or cord > twine or string
twine1692
string1827
c725 Corpus Gloss. (O.E.T.) 343 Byssum, tuin.
a800 Erfurt Gloss. 138 Byssum, tuigin.
c897 K. Ælfred tr. Gregory Pastoral Care xiv. 83 Ðæt hrægl..of twispunnenum twine linenum.
c897 K. Ælfred tr. Gregory Pastoral Care xiv. 87 Ðæt scyle beon twiðræwen twin on ðæm massegierelan.
c1000 West Saxon Gospels: Luke (Corpus Cambr.) xvi. 19 He wæs gescrydd mid purpuran & mid twine.
c1275 (?a1200) Laȝamon Brut (Calig.) (1963) l. 7096 Nes þe þwong noht swiðe bræd buten swulc a twines [c1300 Otho twined] þræd.
c1385 G. Chaucer Legend Good Women Ariadne. 2016 By a clewe of twyn [v.r. twyne] as he hath gon..he may returne a-non.
14.. T. Hoccleve Ad Beatam Virginem 71 His sotil snares, and cacchynge twyn.
c1425 tr. Arderne's Treat. Fistula 23 A fourfold þrede of silk white or of strong lyne or tuyne.
1481–90 Howard Househ. Bks. (Roxb.) 63 Paid for marlyn twyn xvj. d.
c1500 New Not-br. Mayd 297 in W. C. Hazlitt Remains Early Pop. Poetry Eng. II. 284 Shetis clene, to lye betwene, made of thred and twyne.
1512–13 in J. T. Fowler Extracts Acct. Rolls Abbey of Durham (1898) I. 106 Pro 6 li. lez sayll twyne, 18d.
1592 R. Dallington tr. F. Colonna Hypnerotomachia f. 17v A spindle ful of twind.
1614 A. Gorges tr. Lucan Pharsalia viii. 346 A twine, That strangle may this throate of mine.
1692 Smith's Sea-mans Gram. (new ed.) ii. xxxi. 158 The Cases..must be Armed about with strong Twine or Cord.
1719 D. Defoe Life Robinson Crusoe 23 A Parcel of Twine or Thread.
1719 D. Defoe Farther Adventures Robinson Crusoe 336 We had Twine or Packthread.
1791 W. Cowper tr. Homer Odyssey in Iliad & Odyssey II. x. 30 The winds,..so bound With silver twine that not a breath escaped.
1806 J. Beresford Miseries Human Life I. iii. 51 No garters, except twine, which you are, at last, obliged to use.
1827 D. Johnson Sketches Indian Field Sports (ed. 2) 42 To these cords a small twine or silk thread is fixed.
1862 Catal. Internat. Exhib., Brit. II. No. 3659 Cotton twines run 30 per cent. longer length than hemp, same weight.
1867 W. H. Smyth & E. Belcher Sailor's Word-bk. (at cited word) Irish twine or thumb-line, like nettles, is worked by the fingers from fine yarns drawn from bolt-rope.
1871 C. Gibbon For Lack of Gold vi He had a bundle of twine between his teeth.
b. transferred and figurative in various applications.
ΚΠ
1557 Earl of Surrey et al. Songes & Sonettes sig. U.iii Of her vntrue professed loue so feble is the twine.
1567 T. Drant tr. Horace Pistles in tr. Horace Arte of Poetrie sig. Gvijv Our toyle..in making of Our poems..By drawinge them so featly forth, And with so cleane a twyne.
1595 G. Markham Most Honorable Trag. Sir R. Grinuile cxxiii Behold a goddesse shall my lifes twine breake.
1614 J. Sylvester Bethulia's Rescue ii. 279 That sacred Twine Which Man to Man, and Man to God doth joyn.
1615 S. Hieron Dignitie of Preaching in Wks. (1620) I. 595 An holy twine, artificially made vp..of three seuerall threeds..for the fastning of the soule of a Christian to his God.
1668 J. Dryden Secret-love iii. i. 25 Destiny..Spinn's all their fortunes in a silken twine.
1728 J. Thomson Spring 13 The dissolving Clouds Are..thy numerous Prism, Untwisting..The various Twine of Light.
a1763 W. Shenstone Wks. Verse & Prose (1764) I. 58 Rob'd in the Gallic loom's extraneous twine.
1895 S. R. Crockett Men of Moss-hags xxv. 187 It liketh us to go to our King's court through the crash of battle rather than through the hank of the hangman's twine.
2. A twined or twisted object or part.
a. A twining or trailing stem or spray of a plant.
ΘΚΠ
the world > plants > part of plant > stem or stalk > [noun] > twining or trailing
bindc1400
vine1563
twine1579
tangle-twine1878
the world > plants > part of plant > shoot, sprout, or branch > [noun] > tendril or twining shoot
tenaclec1500
tendril1538
clasp1577
clasper1577
winder1577
capreol1578
taglet1578
twine1579
string1585
trail1597
tress1605
nervelet1648
cirrus1708
clavicle1725
twister1799
bine1808
1579 E. Spenser Shepheardes Cal. Oct. 111 My temples..girt in girlonds of wild Yuie twine.
1590 E. Spenser Faerie Queene i. vi. sig. F With an yuie twyne his waste is girt about.
1652 N. Culpeper Eng. Physitian Enlarged 35 The root..with many long twines or branches growing from it.
a1678 A. Marvell Appleton House 609 Bind me, ye woodbines, in your 'twines.
1908 Blackwood's Mag. Oct. 536 Golden clusters from the twine depend.
b. A fold; a coil; a convolution; a twist or turn in the course of anything.
ΘΚΠ
the world > space > shape > curvature > coil > [noun]
rundlec1300
waif1513
enwrapping1543
convolution1545
entrail?a1549
wreath1555
roundness1572
spire1572
rolling1576
enfold1578
infold1578
obvolution1578
gyre1590
whorl1592
enfoldment1593
twine1600
turn1625
volume1646
volution1752
swirl1786
coil1805
swirling1825
convolute1846
whirl1862
enfolding1873
snaking1888
1600 E. Fairfax tr. T. Tasso Godfrey of Bulloigne xviii. c. 335 That glorious ensigne, with a thousand twines.
1645 J. Milton On Christ's Nativity: Hymn xxv, in Poems 11 Typhon huge ending in snaky twine.
a1657 G. Daniel Trinarchodia in Poems (1878) III. To Rdr. 134 A trayterous spider in the Twine Of her owne Thred.
1815 W. Scott Lord of Isles vi. xiii. 239 A diadem of gold..And clasp'd within its glittering twine Was seen the glove of Argentine.
1870 E. Peacock Ralf Skirlaugh I. 22 As full of twines as a sheep-track.
c. A tangle, knot, snarl. In quots. figurative.
ΚΠ
1865 J. Thomson Art i. i Such subtle knots and twines!
1869 R. Browning Ring & Bk. III. viii. 126 So multiplied were reasons pro and con, Delicate, intertwisted and obscure, That law Were shamed to lend a finger-tip To unravel, readjust the hopeless twine.
3. The action or an act of twining.
a. An embrace, a clasping. Now rare or Obsolete.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > emotion > love > embrace > [noun]
beclipping1340
complexion1493
clipa1586
brace1589
twine1602
fold1609
grasp1609
claspa1616
abrazoa1626
colla1627
cling1633
hug1659
folding1713
squeeze1790
cuddle1825
bear squeeze1845
bear hug1870
clinch1901
bosie1952
side hug1984
cwtch1992
bro hug2000
1602 J. Marston Antonios Reuenge i. iv. sig. B4v Clipping the strumpet, with luxurious twines.
1607 F. Beaumont Woman Hater ii. i. sig. D1v The twynes of Adders, and of Scorpions..will seeme to mee More tickling then those claspes, which men adore.
1697 J. Dryden tr. Virgil Georgics ii, in tr. Virgil Wks. 80 Aspiring Vines; Embracing Husband Elms in am'rous twines . View more context for this quotation
1759 W. Mason Caractacus 10 In undulating twine, The foaming snakes prolific join.
a1839 L. E. Landon Poems (1844) I. 34 The lattice..Half hidden by a bridal twine Of jasmine with the emerald vine.
b. poetic in various applications: see quots.
ΚΠ
?1615 G. Chapman tr. Homer Odysses (new ed.) x. 306 As she some web wrought; or her spindles twine She cherisht with her song.
1652 J. Ramsey On Mr. Fletchers Wild-goose Chase in J. Fletcher Wild-goose Chase sig. a2 Till to his watry Center he [sc. the river] hath got By wrigling twines, subtile as Fletcher's plot.
1880 R. Browning Pan & Luna in Dramatic Idyls 51 Vain each twist and twine Those lithe limbs try.
c. A turn of fortune, a vicissitude.
ΘΚΠ
the world > time > change > alternation > change of fortune > [noun] > instance of
peripeteia1591
traverse1601
vicissitude1631
reverse1656
peripety1705
fluctuation1712
twine1768
revulsion1832
reversal1842
1768 A. Ross Fortunate Shepherdess iii. 124 A' that's past By unko twines, has fa'en sae well.
a. as adj. Made by twining or twisting; twisted; spun. Obsolete. rare. (See also twine thread n.)
ΘΚΠ
society > occupation and work > materials > derived or manufactured material > other manufactured or derived materials > [adjective] > made of rope or cord > types of
twine1513
twice-laid1592
basten1677
cable-laid1723
hawser-laid1769
water-laid1795
registered1800
shroud-laid1800
whale-laid1812
strap-laid1839
four-strand1867
locked-coil1885
trifilar1903
1513 G. Douglas tr. Virgil Æneid iv. x. 102 The god..biddis smyte the twyne cabill in tuay.
1583 in W. Greenwell Wills & Inventories Registry Durham (1860) II. 78 ij paire of twine roppes.
ΘΚΠ
the world > space > shape > curvature > coil > [adjective] > spiral or helical
twine1551
snailing1615
spireda1625
involved1665
spiralled1665
screwlike1675
spiry1677
voluted1801
corkscrew1815
screwed1821
volute1839
spiriform1841
volutiform1843
spiring1871
corkscrewy1886
turbaned1924
spiralized1928
spiralizing1977
1551 R. Record Pathway to Knowl. i. Defin. A twine or twist line..goeth as a wreyth about some other bodie.
Compounds
C1. General attributive.
a.
twine-ball n. (see ball n.1 9b).
ΚΠ
1889 Pall Mall Gaz. 26 Dec. 5/3 Freethinkers who imagine themselves able to sound with their penny twine-balls the ocean of immensity.
twine-box n.
ΚΠ
1907 Westm. Gaz. 1 Aug. 2/1 In the tinsmiths' shop..twine-boxes, boxes for stamping-pads, and similar articles, are turned out.
twine colour n.
ΚΠ
1882 Daily News 3 June 3/1 Lace in the prevalent twine colour.
twine-cord n.
ΚΠ
1712 R. Steele Spectator No. 444. ⁋4 A Twine-Cord, strained with two Nails at each End, over his Window.
1862 Catal. Internat. Exhib., Brit. II. No. 3800 Twine cord and line.
twine-maker n.
ΚΠ
1815 L. Simond Jrnl. Tour Great Brit. II. 79 A number of twine-makers.
twine net n.
ΚΠ
1855 Poultry Chron. 2 574 One tarred Twine Net, 9 feet long, by 9 wide.
twine netting n.
ΚΠ
1854 Poultry Chron. 1 228 New twine netting..one yard wide, 1½d. per yard.
twine-reel n.
ΚΠ
1858 P. L. Simmonds Dict. Trade Products Twine-reel, a shop reel or box for holding string.
twine-tone n.
ΚΠ
1900 Westm. Gaz. 22 Mar. 3/1 Twine-toned lawn... To get that twine-tone.., one must either tint one's white collar with tea or coffee or [etc.].
b.
twine-coloured adj.
ΚΠ
1897 Westm. Gaz. 25 Mar. 3/2 Nile green and twine-coloured lace.
twine-like adj.
ΚΠ
1817 S. T. Coleridge Biogr. Lit. 82 Lank, black, twine-like hair.
twine-toned adj.
ΚΠ
1900Twine-toned [see twine-tone n. at Compounds 1a].
c.
twine-making adj. and n.
ΚΠ
1904 Daily News 18 May 5 At eleven I started twine-making.
twine-twisting adj. and n.
ΚΠ
1897 Daily News 1 June 1/1 Twine twisting and polishing mills for making the yarns into twines and thread.
C2. See also twine thread n. † twine-masking n. [compare mask n.1] Obsolete (see quot.).
twine-binder n. a binder which ties the sheaves with twine (cf. wire-binder).
ΚΠ
1902 Sci. Amer. Supp. 20 Dec. 22546/3 A practical twine binder.
twine-binding adj.
ΚΠ
1902 Sci. Amer. Supp. 20 Dec. 22546/3 He established twine binding machines as the grain harvesters of the time.
twine-bush n. an Australian shrub, Hakea flexilis, N.O. Proteaceæ ( Cent. Dict. 1889, at Hakea).
twine cloth n. fine cotton shirting, calico.
ΘΚΠ
the world > textiles and clothing > textiles > textile fabric or an article of textile fabric > textile fabric > textile fabric made from specific material > cotton > [noun] > calico
Calico-cloth1540
Calicut-cloth1540
calico1652
twine cloth1815
nettle-cloth1858
1815 Royal Mil. Chron. June (advt.) The New Imperial Twine Cloth..for family use and for Sheeting.
twine-cutter n. (see quot.).
ΚΠ
1875 E. H. Knight Pract. Dict. Mech. Twine-cutter, a blade or knife on a table, stand, or counter, to cut twine when tying packages.
twine-grass n. the Tufted Vetch ( Vicia cracca), or the Hairy Vetch ( V. hirsuta).
ΘΚΠ
the world > plants > particular plants > plants and herbs > according to family > leguminous plants > [noun] > vetch
vetchc1300
orobusa1398
tarec1400
ervil1551
ers1578
fowl-foot1578
oreb1587
urle1659
tare-grass1686
orobe1714
thetch1733
twine-grass1743
wood-vetch1766
tare-vetch1811
scorpion-wort1852–6
pigeon pea1884
1743 W. Ellis Mod. Husbandman Nov. ii. 48 Wild Thetch, or Twine-grass.
twine-holder n. (see quot.).
ΚΠ
1875 E. H. Knight Pract. Dict. Mech. Twine-holder, a box or case to hold a ball of twine on a counter.
twine-machine n. (see quot.).
ΚΠ
1875 E. H. Knight Pract. Dict. Mech. Twine-machine, a spinning-machine for small hempen or cotton string.
ΚΠ
1615 E. S. Britaines Busse B iij The 7 deepinges of each net are to be sowed, each to other, altogether, with a small thred called, Twine Masking.
twine-reeler n. (see quot.).
ΚΠ
1858 P. L. Simmonds Dict. Trade Products Twine-reeler, a mule-doubler; a string-twister.
twine-spinner n. one who spins twine.
ΚΠ
1723 London Gaz. No. 6128/4 Foulk Wyatt,..Twine-spinner or Ropemaker.
1896 Daily News 14 Nov. 7/6 A retired twine spinner.
twine-spinning n.
ΚΠ
1802 J. Feltham Picture of London 235 Rope-making and twine-spinning.
twine-wheel n. in a spinning-machine, a wheel through which the twisting motion is given.
ΚΠ
1884 W. S. B. McLaren Spinning Woollen & Worsted viii. 159 The driving power comes..through all the twine wheels, to the front roller.
Derivatives
ˈtwineless adj. destitute of twine.
ΘΚΠ
society > occupation and work > materials > derived or manufactured material > other manufactured or derived materials > [adjective] > made of rope or cord > destitute of twine
twineless1909
1909 A. Reid Regality Kirriemuir ii. 12 They were the laddies' ‘strings’ in an almost twineless age.
This entry has not yet been fully updated (first published 1916; most recently modified version published online June 2022).
† twinen.2
Obsolete.
Division, separation, disunion.Apparently an isolated use.
ΘΚΠ
society > society and the community > dissent > [noun] > division or lack of unity
unoning1340
schism1390
division1393
departmentc1450
rupture1583
secting1598
disunion1601
twine1606
section1639
distermination1647
scission1736
cleavage1867
non-union1909
1606 J. Sylvester tr. G. de S. Du Bartas Deuine Weekes & Wks. (new ed.) ii. iv. 77 Th' Vnitie dwels in God, ith' Fiend the Twine.
This entry has not yet been fully updated (first published 1916; most recently modified version published online June 2021).
† twinen.3
Apparently an error for tunny n.The form is probably due to mere copying of a misprint.
ΘΚΠ
the world > food and drink > food > animals for food > seafood > [noun] > fish > tunny
tunny1530
tunny fish1552
twine1601
ton1624
maguro1880
tuna1881
tuna fish1917
tuna meat1923
1601 R. Chester Loves Martyr 100 Here swimmes the Shad..The Twine, the Trout, the Scallop and the Whiting. [Cf. 1589 Rider Bibl. Schol. 1724 A fish called a Twinne..Pelamys; ed. 1617 ii. Thinnie; ed. 1640 Thunny.]
This entry has not yet been fully updated (first published 1916; most recently modified version published online September 2019).
twinen.4
/twʌɪn/, U.S. /twaɪn/ English regional (northern, now chiefly Cumberland).
A whine, a moan. Also: a fretful or agitated state; a fit of ill temper, a bad mood.
ΘΚΠ
the world > physical sensation > hearing and noise > voice or vocal sound > cry or shout (loudness) > cry of emotion or pain > [noun] > whine
whiningc1440
whinge?a1513
whine1633
cant1640
whindle1647
whindling1648
whinging1720
beggar-whine1796
wheak1828
caterwaulinga1861
twine1876
whininess1934
1876 C. C. Robinson Gloss. Words Dial. Mid-Yorks. Twine, to whine discontentedly... Twine is also used substantively.
1899 Whitehaven News 5 Jan. in Eng. Dial. Dict. (1905) VI. 286/1 My judgment's wrang, an' aw my twines an' frets Seems noo like silly, empty, false regrets.
1899 Leeds Mercury Weekly Suppl. 22 July in Eng. Dial. Dict. (1905) VI. 286/1 Poor barn! it's all of a twine t'day long.
2012 @Emma1991_ 2 Oct. in twitter.com (O.E.D. Archive) God knows [what is the matter with him] he's just in a twine!
2017 @MentalParentals 29 Apr. in twitter.com (O.E.D. Archive) Having a good twine today—well, I am British and we do love complaining!
This is a new entry (OED Third Edition, June 2018; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
twinev.1
/twʌɪn/, U.S. /twaɪn/ I. transitive.
1.
a. To twist (two or more strands or filaments) together so as to form a thread or cord; to twist (one thread, etc.) with another; to form (thread or cord) by twisting or spinning; to spin (yarn, etc.) into thread or cord; also generally, to combine or make compact by twisting.
ΘΚΠ
the world > space > shape > curvature > coil > [verb (intransitive)]
twinec1300
foldc1330
writhea1413
twind1575
spire1607
wreathe1776
coil1798
scroll1868
threada1879
the world > textiles and clothing > textiles > textile manufacture > manufacture of thread or yarn > [verb (transitive)] > other processes
twinec1300
weave1426
scour1751
gas1825
double-deck1842
pin-work1853
c1300 (?a1200) Laȝamon Brut (Otho) (1963) l. 7096 Nas þe þwang noht brod bote ase hit were a twined þred [c1275 Calig. a twines þræd].
1377 W. Langland Piers Plowman B. xvii. 204 To a torche or a tapre þe trinitee is lykned; As wex and a weke were twyned [v.rr. tweyned, twynnyd] togideres.
14.. Tundale's Vis. (Wagner) 1885 The cordes..were alle wyth silver twynned [rhyme shynned].
c1400 (?c1390) Sir Gawain & Green Knight (1940) l. 191 Þe tayl & his toppyng [were] twynnen of a sute, & bounden boþe wyth a bande.
1447 O. Bokenham Lyvys Seyntys (1835) 8 My fatal threed..Wych lachesys hath twynyd ful yerys fyfty.
a1500 R. Henryson tr. Æsop Fables: Preaching of Swallow l. 1830 in Poems (1981) 71 His wyfe it span, and twynit [1568 Bann. twane] it in to threid.
?1523 J. Fitzherbert Bk. Husbandry f. xv Make a lytell rope..& twene it as harde togyder betwen yor handes as ye can, & so beyng hard twon..cut it.
1599 R. Hakluyt tr. E. de Sande in Princ. Navigations (new ed.) II. ii. 91 They..do curiously keame their dainty locks..and, hauing twined and bound them vp, they couer them with calles.
1681 in New Mills Cloth Manuf. (1905) Introd. 86 [Wool] to be carded spunn twisted and twyned for listing to the cloaths made.
1697 J. Dryden tr. Virgil Georgics i, in tr. Virgil Wks. 60 Let him..twine The Sallow Twigs to tye the stragling Vine. View more context for this quotation
1805 R. Anderson Ballads in Cumberland Dial. 49 I mind..at her wheel, How she'd tweyne the slow thread.
1855 C. Kingsley Westward Ho! xxv We'll twine a double strong halter for the Captain.
1899 H. R. Haggard Swallow xi To twine little threads into a rope.
b. figurative.
ΚΠ
1430–40 J. Lydgate tr. Bochas Fall of Princes (Bodl. 263) i. xi. 52/2 Whan Antropos our lyuys threed hath twyned.
c1460 (?c1400) Tale of Beryn Prol. l. 686 Þe Nyȝtyngale, His amerous notis, lo, how he twynyth smale! [Cf. quot. a1500 at outtwine v.].
a1625 W. Shakespeare & J. Fletcher Two Noble Kinsmen (1634) ii. ii. 64 Our fortunes Were twyn'd together. View more context for this quotation
1651 N. Bacon Contin. Hist. Disc. Govt. 219 By Oath, which to make sure was treble twined.
1672 J. Dryden Conquest Granada i. iv. ii. 46 My clue of Life is twin'd with Ozmyn's Thred.
1827 W. Scott Highland Widow in Chron. Canongate 1st Ser. I. viii. 160 If I persisted in twisting the discourse one way while Donald was twining it another, I should make his objection, like a hempen cord,..the tougher.
1828 C. Lamb Char. Late Elia in Elia 2nd Ser. 225 To imply and twine with his own identity the griefs and affections of another.
1871 R. H. Hutton Ess. (1877) I. 77 So closely twined are the threads of human faith and scepticism.
c. transferred. To form by interlacing; to weave, to wreathe.
ΘΚΠ
the world > space > relative position > intertwining or interweaving > intertwine or interweave [verb (transitive)]
wind971
braidc1000
writheOE
biwevec1300
enlacec1374
winda1387
tracec1400
bredec1440
knit1470
embraid1481
interlace1523
entrail?1530
wreathea1547
beknit1565
twist1565
wand1572
embroid1573
mat1577
complect1578
intertex1578
inweave1578
lace1579
plight1589
entwine1597
bewreath1598
interweave1598
implicate1610
twine1612
complicatea1631
implex1635
intertwine1641
plash1653
enwreathe1667
raddle1671
intertwist1797
pleach1830
impleach1865
1612 M. Drayton Poly-olbion xv. 240 The Naïads..some dainty Chaplets twine.
1697 J. Dryden tr. Virgil Æneis viii, in tr. Virgil Wks. 445 A double Wreath Evander twin'd.
1709 M. Prior Love & Friendship 51 I'll twine fresh Garlands for Alexis' Brows.
1817 T. Moore Lalla Rookh 311 Oh! twine that wreath for me to-night.
1858 W. T. Matson Armiger iv. Poems 59 Mourning garlands twined of many a bloom Of doleful hue.
d. transferred. To interlace, entwine.
ΘΚΠ
the world > space > shape > curvature > coil > [verb (transitive)] > coil or twist together
entertain1481
wreathe1553
wringle1572
weave1578
entwine1616
intertwine1641
encurl1647
betwine1661
intervolve1667
twine1679
interwind1693
implicate1826
interwreathe1866
thong1888
1679 S. Lee in Row's ‘Emmanuel’ Pref. Pray for the mantle..of Elijah, for the love of John, and the zeal of Paul, to twine hands together.
a1701 H. Maundrell Acct. Journey from Aleppo in Journey to Jerusalem (1721) 2 Two Syrens..twining their fishy Tails together.
1870 C. E. L. Riddell Austin Friars ii She only sat still, with her fingers twined together.
1880 Blackwood's Edinb. Mag. Feb. 218 Reata..sat twining her fingers together in silence.
2.
a. To cause (one thing) to encircle or embrace another; to twist, wreathe, clasp, or wrap (a thing) about or around another; also, to insert (one thing) in or into another with a twisting or sinuous movement (also figurative).
ΘΚΠ
the world > space > shape > curvature > coil > [verb (transitive)] > coil round (something) > coil (something) round or upon itself
windc1325
wrap?1523
to roll up1530
wreathe1530
upwind1560
twist1582
twinec1585
circumvolute1599
bottom1612
rolla1616
overwhelm1634
c1585 A. Montgomerie Sonn. viii. 9 About his temple tuyn Ȝour laurell leivis with palmis perfytly plet.
1602 J. Marston Antonios Reuenge ii. i. sig. C3 I haue but newly twone my arme in the curld locks Of snakie vengeance.
1613 S. Purchas Pilgrimage 513 In many places he insinuates himselfe within the Land by Gulfes or Bayes, twining his louing armes about some whole countries.
a1616 W. Shakespeare Coriolanus (1623) iv. v. 107 Let me twine Mine armes about that body. View more context for this quotation
1617 F. Moryson Itinerary i. 239 Long bracelets of peeces of gold twined about his arme.
1789 E. Darwin Bot. Garden: Pt. II ii. 180 Round the white circlet in relievo bold, A Serpent twines his scaly length.
1819 W. Irving Sketch Bk. i. 40 The vine which has long twined its graceful foliage around the oak.
1838 J. Sparks Amer. Biogr. IX. 27 The only garment they possess is a blanket elegantly twined about them.
1853 D. Rock Church our Fathers III. ii. 25 ‘Tropes’..twined and threaded into the words of the daily service.
1862 M. E. Braddon Lady Audley's Secret II. xiii. 289 My lady twined her fingers in her loose amber curls.
1890 R. Bridges Shorter Poems iv. xxviii. 84 I feel thy being twine Her graces over me.
1901 T. J. Alldridge Sherbro xxi. 220 The stem [of the pipe]..formed separately by twining a strip of clay round a thin stick of palm cane.
b. reflexive.
ΘΚΠ
the world > space > shape > curvature > coil > [verb (reflexive)] > coil round something
twine1543
wreathe1580
1543 B. Traheron Interpr. Straunge Wordes in tr. J. de Vigo Most Excellent Wks. Chirurg. sig. §§.iii/1 Uitis alba..twyneth it self aboute brambles, wyth hys tendrelles, as a vine byndeth it selfe to trees.
1662 J. Davies tr. A. Olearius Voy. & Trav. Ambassadors 10 One end of the rope..twin'd itself about one of the Rocks.
1796 J. Morse Amer. Universal Geogr. (new ed.) I. 220 They [Snakes] have sometimes twined themselves round the bodies of children, squeezing them till they die.
1823 C. Lamb in London Mag. May 536/1 Awful ideas of the Tower twined themselves about his presence.
1852 F. W. Robertson Serm. 3rd Ser. xvii. 216 Round which the heart's best affections have twined themselves.
3. To enfold, wreathe, or encircle (one thing) with another; also of a plant, wreath, etc.: to clasp, encircle, enwrap. Also figurative.
ΘΚΠ
the world > space > shape > curvature > coil > [verb (transitive)] > coil round (something)
enlacec1374
whipc1500
wreathe1509
enwrap1578
circumvolute1599
twine1602
ingyre1610
wrap?1611
wire1645
serpenta1660
whirl1676
convolute1698
intertwine1717
entwine1796
overtwinea1817
enwind1849
warplea1870
1602 J. Marston Antonios Reuenge iii. iii. sig. F Maist thou be twined with the softst imbrace Of cleare eternitie.
1712 A. Pope Rape of Locke i, in Misc. Poems 362 Let Wreaths of triumph now my Temples twine.
1790 W. Wrighte Grotesque Archit. 3 Branches of trees twined round with ivy.
1819 J. H. Wiffen Aonian Hours (1820) 102 The weed of ruin darkly twines Her marble walls.
1848 E. Bulwer-Lytton Harold I. i. i. 4 Boys, with their May-gads (peeled willow wands twined with cowslips).
1876 J. R. Lowell Among my Bks. 2nd Ser. 127 Twining the bare stem of old tradition with graceful sentiment.
4.
a. To turn (something) about, away, round, etc.; to twist or wring. Now dialect.
ΘΚΠ
the world > space > direction > direct [verb (transitive)] > turn (something) to a (different) direction
i-wendeOE
wendOE
turnc1300
convertc1384
avirec1440
kyr1448
twine1600
wheel1805
to put about1832
the mind > mental capacity > intelligibility > misinterpretation > distortion or perversion of meaning > pervert or distort [verb (transitive)]
crooka1340
deprave1382
pervertc1390
strainc1449
drawc1450
miswrest?a1475
bewrya1522
wry?1521
to make a Welshman's hose ofa1529
writhea1533
wrest1533
invert1534
wring?1541
depravate1548
rack1548
violent1549
wrench1549
train1551
wreathe1556
throw1558
detorta1575
shuffle1589
wriggle1593
distortc1595
to put, set, place, etc. on the rack1599
twine1600
wire-draw1610
monstrify1617
screw1628
corrupt1630
gloss1638
torture1648
force1662
vex1678
refract1700
warp1717
to put a force upon1729
twist1821
ply1988
1600 E. Fairfax tr. T. Tasso Godfrey of Bulloigne xvii. lvii. 307 From the waste shore their steps at last they twinde.
1600 E. Fairfax tr. T. Tasso Godfrey of Bulloigne xx. cxxviii. 389 She shrikes, and twines away her sdeignefull eies From his sweete face.
1601 B. Jonson Every Man in his Humor i. iii. sig. C4 Oh twine your bodie more about, that you may come to a more sweet comely gentleman-like guard. View more context for this quotation
1653 J. Nayler Answer Perfect Pharisee 12 You wrest and twine the Scriptures.
1901 F. E. Taylor Folk-speech S. Lancs. s.v. (E.D.D.) Iv aw catch him, aw'll twoine his neck reawnd.
b. To get off, or out, by twisting. Now dialect.
ΘΚΠ
the world > space > place > removal or displacement > extraction > extract [verb (transitive)] > twist out or up
to wring outc1420
to wring upc1440
wrestc1450
outtwinea1500
throwa1500
outwrest1590
twine1600
screw1611
to ply out1668
wrench1726
the world > space > place > removal or displacement > remove or displace [verb (transitive)] > remove or take away > from the position of being on > by twisting
wrest1297
to wring offa1529
twine1705
offwringa1889
twist-off1932
1600 E. Fairfax tr. T. Tasso Godfrey of Bulloigne xi. xliii. 204 He..from the wound the reed out twinde, But left the iron in his flesh behinde.
1705 S. Wesley in Quiller Couch Hetty Wesley (1913) I. ix. 87 The iron latch of my door was twined off.
1885 Ballads & Poems Glasgow Club 213 Twine out his lugs, root out his tongue.
II. intransitive.† 6. † b. Of timber: To be contorted or irregular in formation. Obsolete. rare.
5. † b. To become entangled or complicated. Obsolete. rare.
a. To wind or twist (about, over, or round something); almost always of a plant: to grow in a twisting or spiral manner; spec. to become twisted or wreathed together in growing; to grow in spiral convolutions. Also figurative.
ΚΠ
c1400 (?c1380) Cleanness l. 1691 Faxe fyltered,..Þat schad fro his schulderes..& twenty-folde twynande hit to his tos raȝt.
1567 J. Maplet Greene Forest f. 64v It [woodbine] twineth like a threede or line, about other herbes and fruits.
1593 W. Shakespeare Venus & Adonis sig. Fiij Some [bushes] twin'd about her thigh to make her stay. View more context for this quotation
1646 R. Crashaw Steps to Temple 42 For whose manly brow Both lawrels twine into one wreath.
a1652 J. Smith Select Disc. (1660) i. i. 5 Like the wanton Ivie..it will twine about our Judgments and Understandings.
1697 J. Dryden tr. Virgil Pastorals viii, in tr. Virgil Wks. 35 Amidst thy Laurels let this Ivy twine.
a1748 J. Thomson Happy Man 9 For whom the cooling shade in summer twines.
1810 W. Scott Lady of Lake i. 32 Where Ellen's hand had taught to twine The ivy and Idæan vine.
1831 G. P. R. James Philip Augustus I. ii A thousand shrubs and flowers twined..over them.
1875 A. Maclaren Serm. 2nd Ser. viii. 136 His heart and will twined..round the fragments.
1875 A. W. Bennett & W. T. T. Dyer tr. J. von Sachs Text-bk. Bot. 772 Only a few plants twine to the right..the greater number twine to the left.
1879 Ld. Tennyson Lover's Tale (new ed.) 14 The light soul twines and mingles with the growths Of vigorous early days.
ΘΚΠ
the world > relative properties > order > disorder > confusion or disorder > entanglement or entangled state > become tangled [verb (intransitive)]
rivelOE
tangle1575
ravela1585
snarl1600
harl1609
twine1658
reeve1821
foul1835
taffle1840
1658 F. Osborne Advice to Son in Wks. (1673) 220 Whilst one is unraveling, another twines.
a. Of a weapon: To twist or turn aside. Obsolete.
ΘΚΠ
the world > movement > motion in a certain direction > sideways movement or a sideways movement > move sideways [verb (intransitive)] > move obliquely > glide off obliquely
gliff?c1225
twinec1400
glancea1500
slant?1521
glenta1533
c1400 Rowland & Otuel 557 Þe Sarazene..hit hym on þe hede..And nere þe swerde twynede hade, His life þer hade he lefede.
ΘΚΠ
society > occupation and work > materials > raw material > wood > actions of wood [verb (intransitive)] > warp
warpc1440
twine1601
1601 P. Holland tr. Pliny Hist. World I. xvi. xxxviii. 486 If a man lay his eare close to one end of a beame or peece of timber, he shall heare the knocke or pricke that is made but with a penknife at the other end... By this meanes also a man shall find when the timber doth twine.
1601 P. Holland tr. Pliny Hist. World I. xvi. xl. 490 Because it twineth and casteth not, it is passing good for hinges and hookes, for sawne bords, for ledges in dores and gates.
7. † b. To turn away. Obsolete. rare.† c. To bend, bow, or sink down. Obsolete. rare.
a. To extend or proceed in a winding manner; to bend, incline circuitously; to wind about, meander; of a serpent, etc., to crawl sinuously (also reflexive).
ΘΚΠ
the world > movement > motion in a certain direction > change of direction of movement > change direction of movement [verb (intransitive)] > move in winding course
to turn and winda1398
wreathea1500
twine1553
indent1567
virea1586
crank1594
to dance the hay or hays1600
maze1605
serpent1606
to indent the way1612
cringlea1629
indenture1631
circumgyre1634
twist1635
glomerate1638
winda1682
serpentine1767
meander1785
zigzag1787
zag1793
to worm one's way1822
vandyke1828
crankle1835
thread the needle1843
switchback1903
rattlesnake1961
zig1969
the world > space > direction > point or lie in a direction [verb (intransitive)] > change direction > turn or bend > bend or wind
twine1553
crankle1598
crinklea1600
creek1610
straggle1612
wind1613
serpentize1699
wander1747
serpentine1767
meander1785
zigzag1787
serpentinize1791
twister1872
snake1875
twist1879
1553 [implied in: T. Wilson Arte Rhetorique (1580) 101 A priuie twinyng, or close crepyng in, to win fauour.., called insinuation. (at twining n.)].
1601 P. Holland tr. Pliny Hist. World I. vi. xvii. 124 Streight forth, as farre as to that place where India beginneth to twine and bend toward the Indian sea.
1610 P. Holland tr. W. Camden Brit. ii. 117 The shore, as it twineth backe from hence Southerly.
1674 J. Josselyn Acct. Two Voy. 2 The 28th we twined into the Downs.
c1710 C. Fiennes Diary (1888) 291 The river runns twineing about.
a1774 A. Tucker Light of Nature (1834) II. 464 I have been forced to twist and twine over a great deal more ground than had otherwise been needful.
1831 W. Scott Count Robert ix, in Tales of my Landlord 4th Ser. I. 256 The snake..twines himself through the grass.
1857 P. H. Gosse Omphalos ii. 40 Sea-worms twined over the mud.
1902 J. Buchan Watcher by Threshold v. 267 The little brown river..twined to the sea.
1913 Daily News 28 Mar. 6 A highway..twining through a wilderness.
ΘΚΠ
the world > space > direction > point or lie in a direction [verb (intransitive)] > turn round or to face a direction > turn away
abowOE
hieldc1275
to turn awayc1300
to hide one's facea1382
wrenka1400
awherfc1400
avert1483
to turn the backc1540
twine1600
averse1652
1600 E. Fairfax tr. T. Tasso Godfrey of Bulloigne xviii. xxxiii. 322 But yet the knight, wise, warie, not vnkind, Drew foorth his sword and from her carelesse twind.
1614 W. Browne Shepheards Pipe B vj b He twyned thence, and home to his countree.
ΘΚΠ
the world > movement > motion in a certain direction > downward motion > falling > fall [verb (intransitive)] > fall down or from erect position
fallOE
to fall downc1175
torple?c1225
glidec1275
overthrowc1330
downfallc1350
swaya1400
reversea1470
twine1600
to go down1697
1600 E. Fairfax tr. T. Tasso Godfrey of Bulloigne xx. xliii. 372 Right on the front he gaue that Ladie kinde A blow, so huge,..That out of sense and feeling, downe she twinde.
8. To contort the body; to writhe, wriggle, squirm. Now dialect.
ΘΚΠ
the world > movement > motion in specific manner > writhing or twisting movement > writhe or twist [verb (intransitive)]
wendOE
throwOE
to-writhec1000
windc1000
wrenchc1050
writhec1300
wrenka1400
wrestle?a1400
chervec1440
wring1470
wrele1513
wriggle1573
wrincha1625
curla1637
twingle1647
twine1666
twirl1706
retort1720
1666 J. Bunyan Grace Abounding §166 Thus did I wind, and twine, and shrink under the burthen that was upon me.
1680 V. Alsop Mischief Impositions iii. 19 When men are pincht with plain Scripture, they use to twist and twine and turn themselves into all shapes to get out of their streights.
1735 tr. C. Rollin Anc. Hist. V. 44 The antagonists tumbling and twining with each other.
a1794 M. Palmer Dialogue Devonshire Dial. (1837) 17 I'd twack thee till I made thee twine like an angletwitch.
1877 R. De B. Trotter Galloway Gossip Sixty Years Ago 290 The wean twining and kicking.
This entry has not yet been fully updated (first published 1916; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
twinev.2
/twʌɪn/, U.S. /twaɪn/, Scottish English /twʌin/ Scottish.1621 Compend. Bk. Godly & Spiritual Songs (rev. ed.) sig. Dv How suld wee twine that no man can depart.1728 A. Ramsay Robert Richy & Sandy 57 Twin'd of its nourishment it lifeless lay.?a1800 Bob Norice vi, in F. J. Child Eng. & Sc. Pop. Ballads (1886) II. iv. 267/2 To twyne him o his wife.a1831 H. Mackenzie in R. Burns Wks. (1836) V. 407 What ruefu' chance Has twin'd ye o' your stately trees?1886 R. L. Stevenson Kidnapped xviii. 167 ‘You and me must twine,’ I said... ‘I will hardly twine from ye, David, without some kind of reason for the same,’ said Alan.1894 R. Reid in Poets of Dumfriesshire (1910) x. 303 Cauld maun his heart be, twined o' its joys.1895 S. R. Crockett Men of Moss-hags 31 What cause is guid that twines a woman frae her ain man?
intransitive and transitive. To separate, part, etc.; = twin v.1 in various uses. It is doubtful whether an infinitive twyne is to be assumed for the Middle English examples of the past tense twynde cited below; in other cases the form is shown by rhymes or other evidence to be a mere variant of twin v.1 The spelling twin'd is ambiguous, and may represent either twined or twinned.
ΘΚΠ
the world > relative properties > wholeness > mutual relation of parts to whole > separation > separate, come, or go apart [verb (intransitive)]
to-dealeOE
shedc1000
asunderOE
to-twemea1225
sunderc1225
twin?c1225
atwin?a1400
to make separationc1450
separe1490
twain15..
sever1545
unsever1609
spread1611
separate1638
disclaim1644
to come apart1764
to go separate ways1774
twine1886
society > society and the community > social relations > lack of social communication or relations > separation or isolation > separate or isolate [verb (transitive)]
shedOE
depart1297
externec1420
deforce1430
sequesterc1430
enstrange1483
estrange1523
separate1526
alienate1534
segregate1542
foreign1598
excommunicate1602
stranger1608
dissociate1623
discorporate1695
disincorporate1701
atomize1895
twine1895
ghetto1936
?c1450 Life St. Cuthbert (1891) l. 6305 In partyes he it twynde, Ȝit sulde he..within a while Aboute his nek it fynde.
c1535 New Nutbroune Maid 303 in W. C. Hazlitt Remains Early Pop. Poetry Eng. (1866) III. 13 And I am twynde Out of his mynde, Ryght as a banysshed man.]
This entry has not yet been fully updated (first published 1916; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
twinev.3
/twʌɪn/, U.S. /twaɪn/, Scottish English /twʌin/ English regional (northern, esp. Cumberland) and Scottish.
intransitive. To cry, to fret; to whine; to complain, to moan. Frequently with on.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > emotion > suffering > sorrow or grief > lamentation or expression of grief > weeping > weep [verb (intransitive)]
greetc725
weepc900
tearc950
plore1373
beweepc1374
to put one's finger in one's eye1447
waterc1450
lachryme1490
cryc1532
lerma1533
tricklec1540
to water one's plants1542
to show tears1553
shower1597
issuea1616
lachrymate1623
sheda1632
pipe1671
to take a pipe1671
to pipe one's eye (also eyes)?1789
twine1805
to let fall1816
whinnya1825
blub1866
slobber1875
blart1896
skrike1904
water-cart1914
the world > physical sensation > hearing and noise > degree, kind, or quality of sound > unpleasant quality > mournful or plaintive sound > mournful or plaintive [verb (intransitive)] > howl, wail, or whine
yella1470
hurl1530
howl1687
gowl1724
twine1805
whine1874
bloop1926
1805 J. Stagg Misc. Poems (ed. 2) 144 For still 'tmun rather ease my meynde, At is bit owr dispwosed to tweyne, To ruminate on aul lang seyne.
1825 J. T. Brockett Gloss. North Country Words 223 Twine, to cry.
1876 C. C. Robinson Gloss. Words Dial. Mid-Yorks. Twine, to whine discontentedly.
1878 W. Dickinson Gloss. Words & Phrases Cumberland (ed. 2) 107/1 Twine, tweyn, to whine; complain. ‘She tweyns an' twists on, peer āal body!’
1963 H. Orton & W. J. Halliday Surv. Eng. Dial. I. ii. 628 When a baby wakes up and starts making loud, shrill noises, you say the baby is..[Durham] twining on.
2000 J. Tulloch Season Ticket vii. 135 Then what? Say it, bugger lugs. Ye've been twining aboot it all bloody day.
2004 Re: was Bree - Brown Nosers in uk.rec.equestrian (Usenet newsgroup) 17 Jan. The ‘is my horse too fat’ thread went on and on ad nauseum [sic], with Petra twining on about how fat her horse was.
2016 @Muzzer_Daftbat 19 Nov. in twitter.com (O.E.D. Archive) Sorry—I don't mean to moan at you. I've twined about it enough over the years.
This is a new entry (OED Third Edition, January 2018; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
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n.1adj.c725
n.21606n.31601
n.41876v.1c1300v.21621v.31805