Bodkin

Part of speech: noun

Pronunciation: /ˈbɒdkɪn/

Definitions

1. A fine, pointed implement designed for piercing through textiles or leather materials
2. A slender tool with a sharp tip used to make holes in fabric or leather ; a slim, elongated dagger formerly used as a weapon ; a long needle featuring a sizable eye for threading ribbon or cord
3. An instrument with a pointed end employed to pierce or separate threads in textiles ; a narrow stabbing weapon from earlier centuries ; a needle characterized by a large hole to accommodate thick thread or ribbon

Etymology: Bodkin began as a weapon before it was ever a sewing tool. In Middle English, "boydekin" meant "dagger", a short, narrow blade made for thrusting. The word is built from a root of uncertain origin, possibly Celtic, plus the diminutive suffix "-kin", the same ending found in "napkin" and "lambkin", so the name roughly means "little dagger." The needle sense came later and grew out of the same idea. A slender, pointed instrument for piercing fabric resembled a small blade, and the name carried over to it. Sewing bodkins came in several forms, and the one with a large eye for thick thread or ribbon is the sense most readers now meet, often in old texts about threading cord or tape through a hem.

Synonyms: needle, awl, piercer