▪ I. folding, vbl. n.1
(ˈfəʊldɪŋ)
[f. fold v.1 + -ing1.]
1. a. The action of the vb. fold in its various senses; a doubling together, rolling up, etc.; the result of such action. spec. (see quot. 1874).
| 1375 Barbour Bruce xiii. 632 Lo! quhat falding in fortoune is. c 1440 Promp. Parv. 168/2 Foldynge of cloþys..plicacio. 1560 Bible (Genev.) Prov. vi. 10 A little folding of the handes to sleepe. 1561 T. Norton Calvin's Inst. i. xiii. (1634) 44 With such folding and crooked winding these slippery snakes doe slide away. 1642 Jer. Taylor Episc. (1647) 98 To summe up this digest of their acts and ordinations in those generall foldings us'd by the Fathers. 1671 Grew Anat. Plants i. iv. §17 (1682) 32 According to the Form and Foulding of every Leaf..is its protection order'd. 1691 ‘G. D'Emilianne’ Frauds Romish Monks 263 Of a Candid and Open Spirit, without any foldings or deceit. 1712 Budgell Spect. No. 539 ¶1 The many Foldings..and Doublings which I make. 1789 G. White Selborne iii. 7 The curious foldings of the suture the one into the other. 1874 Knight Dict. Mech. I. 899 Folding, the process by which printed sheets are so doubled up as to bring the pages into consecutiveness for gathering and binding. |
† b. A clasping, an embrace.
lit. and
fig. Obs.| 1685 Earl Halifax Death Chas. II Wks. (1715) 5 When round his Trunk the Vine Does in soft Wreaths and amorous Foldings twine. 1713 C'tess of Winchilsea Misc. Poems 381 The gentle foldings of my Love. 1781 Emma Corbett II. 172 Replace brother in the embraces of brother, and friend in the foldings of friend. |
c. Geol. The doubling up of strata; the result of this.
| 1849 Murchison Siluria viii. 154 Illustrating the foldings..of the Silurian series. 1884 Geikie in Nature 13 Nov. 30/1 The general trend of all these foldings and ruptures is from north-north-east to south-south-west. |
2. quasi-
concr. and
concr. a. The point or region of folding; the bend or depression of a limb; a sinuous part or curve of a range of hills, the winding of a valley.
Cf. fold n.3 1 c.
| c 1400 Lanfranc's Cirurg. 109 A smal seem in foldynge of þe forheed. Ibid. 159 In þe foldynge of þe myddil of þe arm. 1818 Shelley Let. to Mrs. Shelley 20 Aug., The foldings of the Vale of Arno. 1886 T. Westwood Quest of the Sancgreall, From the far folding of the hills. |
b. A fold of a garment, etc., of flesh, skin, etc.;
† a lock or plait of hair;
† pl. the leaves of a folding-door; also,
† a coil or wreath of flame.
| 1552 Huloet, Folding of a womans heere, trica. 1558 T. Phaer æneid iii. 584 With..flames in foldings round. 1603 Knolles Hist. Turks. (1638) 37 Many pleits and foldings. 1669 W. Simpson Hydrol. Chym. 347 The tunicles and fouldings of the Stomach. 1756–7 tr. Keysler's Trav. (1760) II. 256 [This door] is made of brass, with two foldings. 1808 Scott Marm. iii. xxvii, The foldings of his mantle green. 1808 Barlow Columb. iii. 370 The lightning's glancing fires..Bend their long forky foldings o'er the world. |
| transf. and fig. 1719 Young Revenge iv. i, Deep in the secret foldings of my heart, She liv'd. 1853 Talfourd Castilian iii. ii, The parted foldings of the mist. |
3. attrib. and
Comb., as
folding-machine,
folding-place,
folding-room;
folding-stick (
Bookbinding)
= folder b.;
folding strength, the strength of paper when subjected to continuous alternate creasing.
| 1858 Simmonds Dict. Trade, *Folding-machine, a machine which delivers newspapers or printed book-work folded. 1874 Knight Dict. Mech. I. 900 Folding-machine..2 (Metal.), one which bends pans and tin-ware to form. 1884 Ibid. IV. 353 Folding Machine (Printing), a folder attached to a perfecting printing machine. (Bookbinding), a machine for folding sheets, signatures or quires. |
| 1715 Desaguliers Fires Impr. 160 The prick'd Lines represent the *folding Places where the Plates must be bent. |
| 1892 Pall Mall G. 23 Mar. 4/2 The *folding-room in a sub-basement of the south wing. |
| 1880 J. W. Zaehnsdorf Bookbinding 1 Holding a *folding-stick in the right hand. |
| 1936 Discovery May 156/2 The percentage decrease in the *folding-strength of a paper after it has been heated for 72 hours at 105°C. is taken as a measure of its permanence on ageing. 1963 R. R. A. Higham Handbk. Papermaking iii. 79 The folding strength of a paper is dependent on the fibre length and flexibility of the sheet. |
▸
Molecular Biol. The process whereby a polypeptide or polynucleotide chain acquires a specific three-dimensional structure; the specific three-dimensional (secondary or tertiary) structure of a protein or nucleic acid molecule.
| 1934 Philos. Trans. (Royal Soc.) (A.) 232 334 We may picture a polypeptide chain... Both the pattern formed by the crumpling or folding of the main-chains..and also the lateral extension of the side-chains, may..be examined by X-ray methods. 1967 Jrnl. Amer. Chem. Soc. 89 6193/1 The folding of peptide chains is determined by nonbonded interactions among the side chains of the amino acid residues and by the geometry of covalent and hydrogen bonds. 1985 Science 29 Dec. 1390/2 (caption) A schematic representation of the folding of the polypeptide chains in native fibrinogen. 1995 Proc. National Acad. Sci. U.S.A. 92 12510/1 The 2{p} hydroxyl groups in RNA play an important role in the folding and in the biological functions of the RNA. 2000 L. Crane Ninth Day of Creation 41 Don't ask me... Protein folding I have some idea about, but when this sort of thing happens I call Ben. |
▪ II. folding, vbl. n.2 (
ˈfəʊldɪŋ)
[f. fold v.2] 1. The action of folding sheep; an instance of this. Also
concr. Manure dropped in the fold.
| c 1440 Promp. Parv. 168/2 Foldynge or puttynge in felde incaulacio. 1626 Bacon Sylva §599 We see againe that Foldings of Sheepe helpe Ground..by their Compost. 1794 Burns Hark! the Mavis, Then a faulding let us gang. 1855 Browning Love among Ruins v, The quiet-coloured eve Smiles to leave To their folding, all our many-tinkling fleece. |
2. attrib. and
Comb., as
folding-hour,
folding-time; also
folding-slap (
Sc.), the gate of the fold;
folding-star, a star rising at folding-time, an evening-star.
| 1803 Leyden Scenes of Inf. i. 291 When evening brings the merry *folding hours. |
| 1786 Burns And Maun I still, The sheep-herd steeks his *faulding slap. |
| 1746–7 Collins Ode to Evening Poems (1771) 72 When thy *folding-star arising shows His paly circlet. 1822 Shelley Hellas 221 The powers of earth and air Fled from the folding star of Bethlehem. |
| 1876 Whitby Gloss., *Fauding-time, the time when the cattle are housed or folded. |
▪ III. folding, ppl. a. (
ˈfəʊldɪŋ)
[f. fold v.1 + -ing2.] 1. a. That folds; that is or can be folded.
| 1611 Bible 1 Kings vi. 34 The two leaues of the one doore were folding. 1701 Rowe Amb. Step-Moth. iii. ii. 1178 The circle of my folding arms. 1863 T. Wright in Macm. Mag. Jan. 173 Written on folding sheets of vellum. 1871 R. Ellis Catullus lxiv. 307 Round them a folding robe their weak limbs aguish hiding. |
b. folding money: paper money.
colloq. (chiefly
U.S.).
| 1930– in Wentworth Amer. Dial. Dict. (1944) 225/1 Foldin' money, paper money, bills;—humorous. W.Va. & general. 1940 J. O'Hara Pal Joey 162 Any time the socialites go out they leave there [sic] folding money at home. 1968 L. Deighton Only when I Larf iv. 47 I'd walked straight out of the bank carrying a bag full of folding money. 1970 Daily Tel. (Colour Suppl.) 15 May 10/2 They used to ask me to prepare the cars and then work, say, in the pits at Le Mans. This gave me a bit of folding money. |
2. esp. in the names of various articles of furniture, appliances, etc. as
folding-bed,
folding-board,
folding-boat,
folding-chair,
folding-chase,
folding-joint,
folding-net,
folding-screen,
folding-spoon,
folding-stool,
folding-table. Often hyphened. Also folding-door.
| 1771 Smollett Humph. Cl., Wks. 1806 VI. 179 When the *folding-bed is down, there is just room sufficient to pass between it and the fire. |
| 1422–3 Abingdon Acc. (1892) 98 In Aula: j tabula vocata *voldyngbord. |
| 1874 Knight Dict. Mech. I. 899 *Folding-boat, one whose frame is collapsible for compact stowage. |
| 1677 Govt. Venice 316 The Parasol, the *Folding-Chair, the Cushions. 1884 F. M. Crawford Rom. Singer I. 24 They bring strange little folding chairs. |
| 1875 Southward Dict. Typogr., *Folding chases, two or more chases, constructed in such a manner that when laid together they form one large chase. |
| 1842 Gwilt Encycl. Arch. Gloss., *Folding Joint, a joint made like a rule-joint or the joint of a hinge. |
| 1874 Knight Dict. Mech. I. 900 *Folding-net, a bird-net shutting upon its prey. |
| 1858 Simmonds Dict. Trade, *Folding-screen, an upright portable screen, in several leaves or parts, which shuts up. |
| 1480 Will Don Somerset Ho., A *folding spone of siluer. |
| 1340 Ayenb. 239 Ane *uyealdinde stole. 1705 Hickeringill Priest-cr. ii. iii. 29 One of them..flung a little folding Stool, whereon she sat, at the Dean's Head. |
| 1502 Bury Wills (Camden) 93 The beste *faldyng table. 1532 Inv. in Noakes Worc. Mon. & Cathedr. (1866) 157 A voldyng table with two leves. |