maw

[ maw ]

/ mɔ /

SEE SYNONYMS FOR maw ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

the mouth, throat, or gullet of an animal, especially a carnivorous mammal.

the crop or craw of a fowl.

the stomach, especially that of an animal.

a cavernous opening that resembles the open jaws of an animal: the gaping maw of hell.

the symbolic or theoretical center of a voracious hunger or appetite of any kind: the ravenous maw of Death.

QUIZZES

CHALLENGE YOURSELF WITH THIS MIDDLE SCHOOL PART OF SPEECH QUIZ!

How well do you know your adjectives from your adverbs? Your preposition from your pronouns? Your interjections from your conjunctions? Let’s put your knowledge of parts of speech to the text! Note: Many of the following questions will ask you to identify the parts of speech “in order.” That means the first word in all capital letters will correspond to the first option in an answer, and so on.

Question 1 of 10

In order, what parts of speech are the words in all capital letters? Alisa was VERY tired, SO she decided to go to bed.

adverb, adverb

adverb, conjunction

adjective, conjunction

TAKE THE QUIZ TO FIND OUT

Origin of maw

before 900; Middle English mawe, Old English maga; cognate with Dutch maag, German Magen, Old Norse magi

WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH maw

mall maul maw

Words nearby maw

maverick, mavis, mavors, mavourneen, mavun, maw, mawger, mawkin, mawkish, mawlamyine, mawlid

Definition for maw (2 of 2)

maw²

[ maw ]

/ mɔ /

noun Informal.

mother¹.

Origin of maw

variant of ma

Example sentences from the Web for maw

Privately, they admit they have to provide the data that feed that maw.
How to Reinvent College Rankings: Show the Data Students Need Most|Steve Cohen|March 24, 2013|DAILY BEAST
The other is that people actually lose skills (even very basic skills) and many of them fall into the maw of depression.
The Federal Government Should Hire the Long-Term Unemployed|Megan McArdle|March 8, 2013|DAILY BEAST
Every time I step onto an airplane, I turn to the right and take a good, hard stare into the maw of the engine.
Barbara Kingsolver: How I Write|Noah Charney|December 5, 2012|DAILY BEAST
Having been caught red-handed with a smoking bong firmly pasted to his maw, the long knives are out for the Olympic hero.
Up in Smoke?|Mike Edison|February 3, 2009|DAILY BEAST

Owing to the peculiar shape of its maw a shark can not bite until it turns over.
Under the Ocean to the South Pole|Roy Rockwood
My maw says Mr. Stagg always was that waythat he hates to let go of anything he once gets in his hands.
Carolyn of the Corners|Ruth Belmore Endicott
The seeds, which are known as maw seeds, are collected at maturity and placed in wooden boxes.
Birds and all Nature Vol VII, No. 3, March 1900|Various
If anything fall out amiss which cannot be smothered, the diurnal hath a help at maw.
Character Writings of the 17th Century|Various
His eyes gleamed like two lamps and he was spitting fire and flame from his maw.
The Chinese Fairy Book|Various

British Dictionary definitions for maw

maw

/ (mɔː) /

noun

the mouth, throat, crop, or stomach of an animal, esp of a voracious animal

informal the mouth or stomach of a greedy person

Word Origin for maw

Old English maga; related to Middle Dutch maghe, Old Norse magi

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

maw

noun

QUIZZES

CHALLENGE YOURSELF WITH THIS MIDDLE SCHOOL PART OF SPEECH QUIZ!

Origin of maw

WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH maw

Words nearby maw

Definition for maw (2 of 2)

noun Informal.

Origin of maw

Words related to maw

Example sentences from the Web for maw

British Dictionary definitions for maw

noun

Word Origin for maw