trames

Trames, the plural of trame, is a term with several uses in French and in English in specialized contexts. In textile contexts, a trame is the weft—the horizontal yarn that is woven through the warp threads (chaîne) to form the fabric. Weft threads cross the fabric and contribute to its texture, opacity, and color when combined with the warp and the weave structure (armure). The plural trames can refer to multiple weft threads or to the concept of weft in the fabric as a whole.

In literary and film discourse, trame refers to the narrative thread or storyline that organizes events. The trame is the underlying sequence that links scenes, characters, and conflicts; analysts may speak of the main trame as the primary plot and of subplots as secondary trames. This use emphasizes the continuity and architecture of a narrative rather than its individual moments.

In French technical language, trame also means a data frame, the unit of information transmitted in a network or protocol layer, as in trame Ethernet or trame de protocole. In English, trames is uncommon and mostly appears in translations or in discussions of French terminology; the corresponding English terms are frame for data units and storyline or plot for narrative threads.

Related terms include trame narrative, weft, warp, and armure.