Library / English Dictionary

FOLD

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

 I. (noun) 

Sense 1

Meaning:

The act of folding

Example:

he gave the napkins a double fold

Synonyms:

fold; folding

Classified under:

Nouns denoting acts or actions

Hypernyms ("fold" is a kind of...):

change of shape (an action that changes the shape of something)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "fold"):

pleating; plication (the act of folding in parallel folds)

Derivation:

fold (become folded or folded up)

fold (bend or lay so that one part covers the other)

Sense 2

Meaning:

A pen for sheep

Synonyms:

fold; sheep pen; sheepcote; sheepfold

Classified under:

Nouns denoting man-made objects

Hypernyms ("fold" is a kind of...):

pen (an enclosure for confining livestock)

Derivation:

fold (confine in a fold, like sheep)

Sense 3

Meaning:

A folded part (as in skin or muscle)

Synonyms:

fold; plica

Classified under:

Nouns denoting body parts

Hypernyms ("fold" is a kind of...):

anatomical structure; bodily structure; body structure; complex body part; structure (a particular complex anatomical part of a living thing and its construction and arrangement)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "fold"):

epicanthic fold; epicanthus (a vertical fold of skin over the nasal canthus; typical for many east Asian peoples; sometimes occurs in Down's syndrome)

plica vocalis; vocal band; vocal cord; vocal fold (either of two pairs of folds of mucous membrane projecting into the larynx)

ruga ((anatomy) a fold or wrinkle or crease)

tentorium ((anatomy) a fold of dura mater that covers the cerebellum and supports the occipital lobes of the cerebrum)

Sense 4

Meaning:

A group of sheep or goats

Synonyms:

flock; fold

Classified under:

Nouns denoting groupings of people or objects

Hypernyms ("fold" is a kind of...):

animal group (a group of animals)

Meronyms (members of "fold"):

sheep (woolly usually horned ruminant mammal related to the goat)

Sense 5

Meaning:

A group of people who adhere to a common faith and habitually attend a given church

Synonyms:

congregation; faithful; fold

Classified under:

Nouns denoting groupings of people or objects

Hypernyms ("fold" is a kind of...):

social group (people sharing some social relation)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "fold"):

flock (a church congregation guided by a pastor)

Holonyms ("fold" is a member of...):

denomination (a group of religious congregations having its own organization and a distinctive faith)

Sense 6

Meaning:

A geological process that causes a bend in a stratum of rock

Synonyms:

fold; folding

Classified under:

Nouns denoting natural processes

Hypernyms ("fold" is a kind of...):

geologic process; geological process ((geology) a natural process whereby geological features are modified)

Sense 7

Meaning:

An angular or rounded shape made by folding

Example:

a bend of his elbow

Synonyms:

bend; crease; crimp; flexure; fold; plication

Classified under:

Nouns denoting two and three dimensional shapes

Hypernyms ("fold" is a kind of...):

angular shape; angularity (a shape having one or more sharp angles)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "fold"):

plait; pleat (any of various types of fold formed by doubling fabric back upon itself and then pressing or stitching into shape)

kink; twirl; twist (a sharp bend in a line produced when a line having a loop is pulled tight)

pucker; ruck (an irregular fold in an otherwise even surface (as in cloth))

Derivation:

fold (bend or lay so that one part covers the other)

 II. (verb) 

Sense 1

Meaning:

Incorporate a food ingredient into a mixture by repeatedly turning it over without stirring or beating

Example:

Fold the egg whites into the batter

Classified under:

Verbs of size, temperature change, intensifying, etc.

Hypernyms (to "fold" is one way to...):

incorporate; integrate (make into a whole or make part of a whole)

Sentence frames:

Somebody ----s something
Somebody ----s something PP

Sentence example:

They fold the sheets

Sense 2

Meaning:

Become folded or folded up

Example:

The bed folds in a jiffy

Synonyms:

fold; fold up

Classified under:

Verbs of size, temperature change, intensifying, etc.

Hypernyms (to "fold" is one way to...):

change (undergo a change; become different in essence; losing one's or its original nature)

Troponyms (each of the following is one way to "fold"):

crease; crinkle; crumple; rumple; wrinkle (become wrinkled or crumpled or creased)

Sentence frame:

Something ----s

Sentence examples:

The sheets didn't fold

These fabrics fold easily

Derivation:

fold (the act of folding)

Sense 3

Meaning:

Bend or lay so that one part covers the other

Example:

turn up your collar

Synonyms:

fold; fold up; turn up

Classified under:

Verbs of touching, hitting, tying, digging

Hypernyms (to "fold" is one way to...):

change surface (undergo or cause to undergo a change in the surface)

Troponyms (each of the following is one way to "fold"):

pleat; plicate (fold into pleats)

crease; furrow; wrinkle (make wrinkled or creased)

crease; crinkle; crisp; ruckle; scrunch; scrunch up; wrinkle (make wrinkles or creases on a smooth surface; make a pressed, folded or wrinkled line in; 'crisp' is archaic)

corrugate (fold into ridges)

pleat; ruffle (pleat or gather into a ruffle)

tuck (make a tuck or several folds in)

crimp; pinch (make ridges into by pinching together)

cross (fold so as to resemble a cross)

collapse (fold or close up)

Sentence frames:

Somebody ----s something
Something ----s something

Antonym:

unfold (spread out or open from a closed or folded state)

Derivation:

fold (the act of folding)

fold (an angular or rounded shape made by folding)

folder (covering that is folded over to protect the contents)

folding (the act of folding)

Sense 4

Meaning:

Confine in a fold, like sheep

Synonyms:

fold; pen up

Classified under:

Verbs of touching, hitting, tying, digging

Hypernyms (to "fold" is one way to...):

confine; constrain; hold; restrain (to close within bounds, or otherwise limit or deprive of free movement)

Sentence frames:

Something ----s
Somebody ----s

Derivation:

fold (a pen for sheep)

Sense 5

Meaning:

Cease to operate or cause to cease operating

Example:

close up the shop

Synonyms:

close; close down; close up; fold; shut down

Classified under:

Verbs of political and social activities and events

Troponyms (each of the following is one way to "fold"):

adjourn; retire; withdraw (break from a meeting or gathering)

Sentence frames:

Something ----s
Somebody ----s something

Sentence example:

The business is going to fold

Credits

 Context examples: 

A geldanamycin analogue binds to HSP90, a chaperone protein that aids in the assembly, maturation, and folding of proteins.

(Anthracycline Antineoplastic Antibiotic, NCI Thesaurus)

This gene is involved in the regulation of both protein folding and apoptosis.

(BAG3 Gene, NCI Thesaurus)

The scientists also tried to understand how its folds contribute to the formation of the pattern.

(Saddle-shaped origami enables new microelectronic applications, National Science Foundation)

In a study of 6,000 people in Lima, Peru, researchers found that those whose diets were lacking in vitamin A had a 10-fold increased risk of developing TB from an infected family member.

(Vitamin A Supplement May Thwart Tuberculosis Infection, Jessica Berman/VOA)

The power performance also needs to be improved by about 1,000-fold for most practical applications.

(New Type of Battery Created from Paper, Fueled by Bacteria, The Titi Tudorancea Bulletin)

Using recently refined analysis methods for the 2007 data, the researchers found an increase in water vapor by more than a hundred-fold in the middle atmosphere during that global storm.

(Dust Storms Linked to Gas Escape from Mars Atmosphere, NASA)

When the inspector and a constable entered the house, Arthur, who had stood sullenly with his arms folded, asked me whether it was my intention to charge him with theft.

(The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

On the day preceding its resumption, the Doctor gave me with his own hands a folded note not sealed.

(David Copperfield, by Charles Dickens)

To be sure, there were certain small evidences, such as that my clothes were folded and laid by in a manner which was not my habit.

(Dracula, by Bram Stoker)

I had folded up the blankets, but she now proceeded to spread them out on the bottom.

(The Sea-Wolf, by Jack London)