seamy side of life — This expression refers to the most unpleasant, disreputable or sordid aspects of life that we normally do not see (just as the stitched seams of clothes are generally not seen). Social workers really see the seamy side of life … English Idioms & idiomatic expressions
seamy side — noun 1. The wrong side of a garment (Shakespeare) 2. The disreputable, sordid or unpleasant side or aspect (of something, esp life) • • • Main Entry: ↑seamy … Useful english dictionary
seamy — [sēm′ē] adj. seamier, seamiest 1. having or showing seams, esp. with rough edges, as the underside of a garment 2. unpleasant or sordid [the seamy side of life] seaminess n … English World dictionary
side — I n. right or left part 1) the left; right side 2) the credit; debit side (of a ledger) 3) on a side (on the sunny side of the street) faction, party 4) to take smb. s side; to take sides ( to support a faction ) 5) the losing; right; winning;… … Combinatory dictionary
seamy — seam|y [ simi ] adjective involving the worst aspects of life such as crime and violence: the seamy side of life ╾ seam|i|ness noun uncount … Usage of the words and phrases in modern English
seamy — seaminess, n. /see mee/, adj., seamier, seamiest. 1. unpleasant or sordid; low; disagreeable: the seamy side of life. 2. having, showing, or of the nature of a seam. [1595 1605; SEAM + Y1; in transferred senses alluding to the unpresentable… … Universalium
seamy — seam•y [[t]ˈsi mi[/t]] adj. seam•i•er, seam•i•est 1) sordid; low; disagreeable: the seamy side of life[/ex] 2) having or showing a seam, esp. the seam of the inside of a garment • Etymology: 1595–1605 seam′i•ness, n … From formal English to slang
seamy — /ˈsimi / (say seemee) adjective (seamier, seamiest) 1. disagreeable; vulgar; sordid: the seamy side of life. 2. having or showing seams; of the nature of a seam. –seaminess, noun …
seamy — [[t]si͟ːmi[/t]] seamier, seamiest ADJ GRADED: usu ADJ n If you describe something as seamy, you mean that it involves unpleasant aspects of life such as crime, sex, or violence. Hamburg s seamy St Pauli s district. ...the seamier side of life.… … English dictionary
seamy — adjective (seamier; est) Date: 1605 1. archaic having the rough side of the seam showing 2. a. unpleasant b. degraded, sordid < the seamy side of urban life > • seaminess noun … New Collegiate Dictionary
literature — /lit euhr euh cheuhr, choor , li treuh /, n. 1. writings in which expression and form, in connection with ideas of permanent and universal interest, are characteristic or essential features, as poetry, novels, history, biography, and essays. 2.… … Universalium