Social workers really see the seamy side of life.
English Idioms & idiomatic expressions. 2014.
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
