Adjacent Words

Darn definitions

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Webster's 1828 Dictionary

D'ARN, v.t. To mend a rent or hole, by imitating the texture of the cloth or stuff with yarn or thread and a needle; to sew together with yarn or thread. It is used particularly of stockings.
D'ARN, n. A place mended by darning.

WordNet (r) 3.0 (2005)

n
1: something of little value; "his promise is not worth a damn"; "not worth one red cent"; "not worth shucks" [syn: damn, darn, hoot, red cent, shit, shucks, tinker's damn, tinker's dam]
2: sewing that repairs a worn or torn hole (especially in a garment); "her stockings had several mends" [syn: mend, patch, darn] v
1: repair by sewing; "darn socks"

Merriam Webster's

I. verb Etymology: perhaps from French dialect darner Date: circa 1600 transitive verb 1. to mend with interlacing stitches 2. to embroider by filling in with long running or interlacing stitches intransitive verb to do darning • darner noun II. noun Date: 1720 a place that has been darned <a sweater full of darns> III. adjective or adverb also durn Etymology: euphemism Date: 1781 damned IV. verb also durn Date: 1781 damn • darned also durned adjective or adverb V. noun also durn Date: 1840 damn

Oxford Reference Dictionary

1. v. & n. --v.tr. 1 mend (esp. knitted material, or a hole in it) by interweaving yarn across the hole with a needle. 2 embroider with a large running stitch. --n. a darned area in material. Phrases and idioms: darning needle 1 a long needle with a large eye, used in darning. 2 US a dragonfly. Etymology: 16th c.: perh. f. obs. dern hide 2. v.tr., int., adj., & adv. (US durn) colloq. = DAMN (in imprecatory senses). Etymology: corrupt. of DAMN

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Darn Darn, n. A place mended by darning.

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Darn Darn, v. t. A colloquial euphemism for Damn.

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Darn Darn, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Darned; p. pr. & vb. n. Darning.] [OE. derne, prob. of Celtic origin; cf. W. darnio to piece, break in pieces, W. & Arm. to E. tear. Cf. Tear, v. t.] To mend as a rent or hole, with interlacing stitches of yarn or thread by means of a needle; to sew together with yarn or thread. He spent every day ten hours in his closet, in darning his stockins. --Swift. Darning last. See under Last. Darning needle. (a) A long, strong needle for mending holes or rents, especially in stockings. (b) (Zo["o]l.) Any species of dragon fly, having a long, cylindrical body, resembling a needle. These flies are harmless and without stings. Note: [In this sense, usually written with a hyphen.] Called also devil's darning-needle.

Collin's Cobuild Dictionary

(darns, darning, darned) 1. If you darn something knitted or made of cloth, you mend a hole in it by sewing stitches across the hole and then weaving stitches in and out of them. Aunt Emilie darned old socks... VERB: V n • darning ...chores such as sewing and darning. N-UNCOUNT 2. People sometimes use darn or darned to emphasize what they are saying, often when they are annoyed. (INFORMAL) There's not a darn thing he can do about it... = damn, damned ADJ: ADJ n [emphasis] • Darn is also an adverb. ...the desire to be free to do just as we darn well please... ADV: ADV adj/adv 3. You can say I'll be darned to show that you are very surprised about something. (AM INFORMAL) 'A talking pig!' he exclaimed. 'Well, I'll be darned.' PHRASE [feelings]

Moby Thesaurus

absolute, accurse, anathematize, blamed, blankety-blank, blaspheme, blast, blasted, blessed, cobble, commission, condition, confound, confounded, curse, cursed, cussed, damn, do up, doctor, doggone, downright, excommunicate, execrate, fix, fix up, fulminate against, hex, imprecate, infernal, mend, outright, overhaul, patch, patch up, positive, put in commission, put in order, put in repair, put in shape, ready, recap, recondition, repair, retread, service, set to rights, sew up, straight-out, throw a whammy, thunder against, tinker, tinker up, unmitigated