caw

[ kaw ]

/ kɔ /

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See synonyms for: caw / cawed / cawing on Thesaurus.com

noun

the harsh, grating cry of the crow, raven, etc.

verb (used without object)

to utter this cry or a similar sound.

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Origin of caw

First recorded in 1580–90; imitative

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2022

How to use caw in a sentence

If your 11-year-old mocks you by making a cawing voice, upturn his dinner plate and mock his mocking voice.
It’s Not Just the Vaccines. Jenny McCarthy’s New Book Offers More ‘Lessons’|Tim Teeman|April 28, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Now when she calls in to the show, Stern frequently plays crows cawing as she speaks.
Meet Mariann From Brooklyn, Howard Stern’s Biggest Fan|Kevin Fallon|February 28, 2013|DAILY BEAST
I love the rainy windy days of fall when thousands of crows populate the near landscape, cawing and scowling.
How I Write: Erik Larson Revisits ‘Isaac’s Storm’|Noah Charney|October 31, 2012|DAILY BEAST
From without, the cawing of rooks and shouts of children at play are faintly audible.
Punch, or the London Charivari, Vol. 108, April 6, 1895|Various

Three separate times previous to this that faint cawing signal had been heard, as it seemed, from the distant tree-tops.
The Phantom of the River|Edward S. Ellis
While the words were in the mouth of Boone, the soft, faint cawing of the crow was heard for the fifth time.
The Phantom of the River|Edward S. Ellis
No need of that, for the elder had caught the sound—a faint and apparently distant cawing of a crow from some lofty tree-top.
The Phantom of the River|Edward S. Ellis
In a dark hemlock wood in a valley, the owls were hooting ominously, and the crows dismally cawing.
A Year in the Fields|John Burroughs

British Dictionary definitions for caw (1 of 2)

caw

/ (kɔː) /

noun

the cry of a crow, rook, or raven

verb

(intr) to make this cry

Word Origin for caw

C16: of imitative origin

British Dictionary definitions for caw (2 of 2)

CAW

abbreviation for

Canadian Auto Workers (trade union)

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012