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17 dictionary results for: Fold
Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1) - Cite This Source - Share This
fold1       [fohld] Pronunciation Key
–verb (used with object)
1.to bend (cloth, paper, etc.) over upon itself.
2.to bring into a compact form by bending and laying parts together (often fol. by up): to fold up a map; to fold one's legs under oneself.
3.to bring (the arms, hands, etc.) together in an intertwined or crossed manner; clasp; cross: He folded his arms on his chest.
4.to bend or wind (usually fol. by about, round, etc.): to fold one's arms about a person's neck.
5.to bring (the wings) close to the body, as a bird on alighting.
6.to enclose; wrap; envelop: to fold something in paper.
7.to embrace or clasp; enfold: to fold someone in one's arms.
8.Cards. to place (one's cards) facedown so as to withdraw from the play.
9.Informal. to bring to an end; close up: The owner decided to fold the business and retire.
–verb (used without object)
10.to be folded or be capable of folding: The doors fold back.
11.Cards. to place one's cards facedown so as to withdraw from the play.
12.Informal. to fail in business; be forced to close: The newspaper folded after 76 years.
13.Informal. to yield or give in: Dad folded and said we could go after all.
–noun
14.a part that is folded; pleat; layer: folds of cloth.
15.a crease made by folding: He cut the paper along the fold.
16.a hollow made by folding: to carry something in the fold of one's dress.
17.a hollow place in undulating ground: a fold of the mountains.
18.Geology. a portion of strata that is folded or bent, as an anticline or syncline, or that connects two horizontal or parallel portions of strata of different levels (as a monocline).
19.Journalism.
a.the line formed along the horizontal center of a standard-sized newspaper when it is folded after printing.
b.a rough-and-ready dividing line, esp. on the front page and other principal pages, between stories of primary and lesser importance.
20.a coil of a serpent, string, etc.
21.the act of folding or doubling over.
22.Anatomy. a margin or ridge formed by the folding of a membrane or other flat body part; plica.
—Verb phrases
23.fold in, Cookery. to mix in or add (an ingredient) by gently turning one part over another: Fold in the egg whites.
24.fold up, Informal.
a.to break down; collapse: He folded up when the prosecutor discredited his story.
b.to fail, esp. to go out of business.
[Origin: bef. 900; (v.) ME folden, falden, OE faldan; c. G. falten; (v.) ME fald, deriv. of the n.; akin to L plicāre to fold, plectere to plait, twine, Gk plékein; cf. -fold]

—Related forms
fold·a·ble, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1)
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006.
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fold2       [fohld] Pronunciation Key
–noun
1.an enclosure for sheep or, occasionally, other domestic animals.
2.the sheep kept within it.
3.a flock of sheep.
4.a church.
5.the members of a church; congregation: He preached to the fold.
6.a group sharing common beliefs, values, etc.: He rejoined the fold after his youthful escapade.
–verb (used with object)
7.to confine (sheep or other domestic animals) in a fold.
[Origin: bef. 900; ME fold, fald, OE fald, falod; akin to OS faled pen, enclosure, MLG vālt pen, enclosure, manure heap, MD vaelt, vaelde]
Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1)
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006.
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American Heritage Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
fold 1       (fōld)  Pronunciation Key 


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v.   fold·ed, fold·ing, folds

v.   tr.
  1. To bend over or double up so that one part lies on another part: fold a sheet of paper.
  2. To make compact by doubling or bending over parts: folded the laundry; folded the chairs for stacking.
  3. To bring from an extended to a closed position: The hawk folded its wings.
  4. To bring from a compact to an extended position; unfold: folded the ironing board down from the wall; folded out the map to see where we were.
  5. To place together and intertwine: fold one's arms.
  6. To envelop or clasp; enfold: folded his children to his breast; folded the check into the letter.
  7. To blend (a light ingredient) into a heavier mixture with a series of gentle turns: folded the beaten egg whites into the batter.
    1. Informal To discontinue operating; close: They had to fold the company a year after they started it.
    2. Games To withdraw (one's hand) in defeat, as by laying cards face down on a table.
  9. Geology To form bends in (a stratum of rock).

v.   intr.
    1. To become folded.
    2. To be capable of being folded: a bed that folds for easy storage.
    3. To give in; buckle: a team that never folded under pressure.
    4. To weaken or collapse from exertion.
  2. Informal To close, especially for lack of financial success; fail.
  3. Games To withdraw from a game in defeat.
  4. Informal
    1. To give in; buckle: a team that never folded under pressure.
    2. To weaken or collapse from exertion.

n.  
  1. The act or an instance of folding.
  2. A part that has been folded over or against another: the loose folds of the drapery; clothes stacked in neat folds.
  3. A line or mark made by folding; a crease: tore the paper carefully along the fold.
  4. A coil or bend, as of rope.
  5. Chiefly British A hill or dale in undulating country.
  6. Geology A bend in a stratum of rock.
  7. Anatomy A crease or ridge apparently formed by folding, as of a membrane; a plica.


[Middle English folden, from Old English fealdan, faldan; see pel-2 in Indo-European roots.]

fold'a·ble adj.
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The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2006 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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American Heritage Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
fold 2       (fōld)  Pronunciation Key 
n.  
  1. A fenced enclosure for domestic animals, especially sheep.
  2. A flock of sheep.
    1. A group of people or institutions bound together by common beliefs and aims: "He is a living testament to the wisdom of admitting lay psychoanalysts into the official fold" (Jerome Bruner).
    2. A religious congregation: The priest welcomed new parishioners into the fold.

tr.v.   fold·ed, fold·ing, folds
To place or keep (sheep, for example) in a fenced enclosure.


[Middle English, from Old English fald.]

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The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2006 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Online Etymology Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
fold  (v.)
O.E. faldan (Mercian), fealdan (W.Saxon), "to bend cloth back over itself," class VII strong verb (past tense feold, pp. fealden), from P.Gmc. *falthanan (cf. O.N. falda, M.L.G. volden, Ger. falten, Goth. falþan), from PIE *pel-to- (cf. Skt. putah "fold, pocket," Alb. pale "fold," M.Ir. alt "a joint"), from base *pel- "to fold." The weak form developed from 15c. Sense of "to yield to pressure" is from 1398. The noun meaning "a bend or ply in anything" is c.1250, from the verb. Folder "folding cover for loose papers," is first recorded 1911.

Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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fold  (n.)
"pen or enclosure for sheep or other domestic animals," O.E. falæd, falud, a Gmc. word (cf. E.Fris. folt "enclosure, dunghill," Dan. fold "pen for sheep"), of uncertain origin.

Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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WordNet - Cite This Source - Share This
fold

noun
1. an angular or rounded shape made by folding; "a fold in the napkin"; "a crease in his trousers"; "a plication on her blouse"; "a flexure of the colon"; "a bend of his elbow" 
2. a group of people who adhere to a common faith and habitually attend a given church [syn: congregation] 
3. a geological process that causes a bend in a stratum of rock 
4. a group of sheep or goats [syn: flock] 
5. a folded part (as in skin or muscle) 
6. a pen for sheep 
7. the act of folding; "he gave the napkins a double fold" 

verb
1. bend or lay so that one part covers the other; "fold up the newspaper"; "turn up your collar" [ant: open] 
2. incorporate a food ingredient into a mixture by repeatedly turning it over without stirring or beating; "Fold the egg whites into the batter" 
3. cease to operate or cause to cease operating; "The owners decided to move and to close the factory"; "My business closes every night at 8 P.M."; "close up the shop" [syn: close up] [ant: open] 
4. confine in a fold, like sheep [syn: pen up] 
5. become folded or folded up; "The bed folds in a jiffy" 

WordNet® 3.0, © 2006 by Princeton University.
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American Heritage Dictionary of Idioms - Cite This Source - Share This

fold

In addition to the idioms beginning with fold, also see return to the fold.


The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer.
Copyright © 1997 by The Christine Ammer 1992 Trust. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
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The American Heritage Science Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
fold       (fōld)  Pronunciation Key 


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A bend in a layer of rock or in another planar feature such as foliation or the cleavage of a mineral. Folds occur as the result of deformation, usually associated with plate-tectonic forces.

The American Heritage® Science Dictionary
Copyright © 2002 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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American Heritage Stedman's Medical Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This

fold 1 (fōld)
n.

  1. A crease or ridge apparently formed by folding, as of a membrane; a plica.
  2. In the embryo, a transient elevation or reduplication of tissue in the form of a lamina.

The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
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Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This

Fold

Fold\, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Folded; p. pr. & vb. n. Folding.] [OE. folden, falden, AS. fealdan; akin to OHG. faltan, faldan, G. falten, Icel. falda, Dan. folde, Sw. f[*a]lla, Goth. fal?an, cf. Gr.? twofold, Skr. pu?a a fold. Cf. Fauteuil.]

1. To lap or lay in plaits or folds; to lay one part over another part of; to double; as, to fold cloth; to fold a letter.

As a vesture shalt thou fold them up. --Heb. i. 12.

2. To double or lay together, as the arms or the hands; as, he folds his arms in despair.

3. To inclose within folds or plaitings; to envelop; to infold; to clasp; to embrace.

A face folded in sorrow. --J. Webster.

We will descend and fold him in our arms. --Shak.

4. To cover or wrap up; to conceal.

Nor fold my fault in cleanly coined excuses. --Shak.

Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc.
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Fold

Fold\, v. i. To become folded, plaited, or doubled; to close over another of the same kind; to double together; as, the leaves of the door fold. --1 Kings vi. 34.

Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc.
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Fold

Fold\, n. [From Fold, v. In sense 2 AS. -feald, akin to fealdan to fold.]

1. A doubling,esp. of any flexible substance; a part laid over on another part; a plait; a plication.

Mummies . . . shrouded in a number of folds of linen. --Bacon.

Folds are most common in the rocks of mountainous regions. --J. D. Dana.

2. Times or repetitions; -- used with numerals, chiefly in composition, to denote multiplication or increase in a geometrical ratio, the doubling, tripling, etc., of anything; as, fourfold, four times, increased in a quadruple ratio, multiplied by four.

3. That which is folded together, or which infolds or envelops; embrace.

Shall from your neck unloose his amorous fold. --Shak.

Fold net, a kind of net used in catching birds.

Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc.
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Fold

Fold\, n. [OE. fald, fold, AS. fald, falod.]

1. An inclosure for sheep; a sheep pen.

Leaps o'er the fence with ease into the fold. --Milton.

2. A flock of sheep; figuratively, the Church or a church; as, Christ's fold.

There shall be one fold and one shepherd. --John x. 16.

The very whitest lamb in all my fold. --Tennyson.

3. A boundary; a limit. [Obs.] --Creech.

Fold yard, an inclosure for sheep or cattle.

Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc.
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Fold

Fold\, v. t. To confine in a fold, as sheep.

Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc.
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Fold

Fold\, v. i. To confine sheep in a fold. [R.]

The star that bids the shepherd fold. --Milton.

Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc.
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Easton's 1897 Bible Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This

Fold

an enclosure for flocks to rest together (Isa. 13:20). Sheep-folds are mentioned Num. 32:16, 24, 36; 2 Sam. 7:8; Zeph. 2:6; John 10:1, etc. It was prophesied of the cities of Ammon (Ezek. 25:5), Aroer (Isa. 17:2), and Judaea, that they would be folds or couching-places for flocks. "Among the pots," of the Authorized Version (Ps. 68:13), is rightly in the Revised Version, "among the sheepfolds."

Easton's 1897 Bible Dictionary
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