hem (v.) Copy link Outline I. To sew the border of fabricsII. Fig.1. circumsĕdeo, sēdi, sessum, 22. circumvallo, 1 (by entrenchments)3. obsĭdeo, 24. claudo, si, sum, 3 (esp. of rivers, mountains, etc., which shut an army in)III. To make the sound hem! screo, 1 (to clear the throat) • hem (v.): I. To sew the border of fabrics: perh. circumsuo, 3 (to sew round): (R. and A.). II. Fig.: to encompass: to hem in: 1. circumsĕdeo, sēdi, sessum, 2: to come to the aid of troops h.'d in, circumsessis opem ferre, Liv. 25, 22, med.: Cic. Join: circumsedere atque oppugnare, Liv. 3, 5, med. 2. circumvallo, 1 (by entrenchments): cf. Liv. 25, 22, non circumsessi modo, sed circumvallati: which same sense may be expr. by vallo circumsedere, Cic. Phil. 10, 4, extr. 3. obsĭdeo, 2: v. to beset, blockade. 4. claudo, si, sum, 3 (esp. of rivers, mountains, etc., which shut an army in): on the right and the left two seas h. (us) in, dextra laevaque duo maria c., Liv. 21, 43: to h. an army in, by taking advantage of the ground, adversarios locorum angustiis c., Nep. Dat. 8, fin.: Virg. III. To make the sound hem! screo, 1 (to clear the throat): Pl. Phr.: to h. and hah, nearest word perh. haesitare, Cic.: v. to hesitate.