Polite term for sewing or needlework, often used in traditional or domestic contexts. The honorific prefix お adds a respectful or refined tone.
My grandmother does needlework every day.
Archaic or historical term for a seamstress, often a woman who did sewing as a profession. Modern Japanese would more commonly use 針子 or 裁縫師. See also 御針子.
See also: お針子
It's time for sewing.
In the Edo period, a seamstress was one of the jobs for women working in merchant houses.
seamstress; needleworker
Standard polite form with honorific prefix お. The kanji 針 means 'needle'.
Formal or literary spelling using the kanji 御 for the honorific prefix. Rare in modern writing.
The honorific prefix お is attached to 針 (needle), forming a polite noun for needlework. The seamstress sense likely developed from metonymy, referring to the person who does the sewing.