Definition of "hem in" [hem in]

• To surround and enclose (verb)

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• "For the scanty knowledge we possess of the German territory we are indebted mainly to Dr. Schlechter (1907): the lofty mountain ranges, which hem in and render almost inaccessible the greater part of the German and especially of the Dutch section, the difficulty of travelling and transporting supplies, the character of the native tribes who regard the setting foot on their special territory as a hostile act, and the insalubrious climate, constitute for the explorer obstacles greater perhaps than any he has to encounter elsewhere in the world."
• "She was not crying or balling up her apron hem in her hands, or in any other visible way fretting over the news of Stobrod's death."