mew

[ myoo ]

See synonyms for: mew mews on Thesaurus.com

noun

the tiny, high-pitched sound a cat or kitten makes.
the characteristic sound a gull makes.

verb (used without object)

to make a mew or emit a similar sound.

Origin of mew

First recorded in 1275–1325; Middle English meuen; imitative

Words Nearby mew

Other definitions for mew (2 of 4)

mew²

[ myoo ]

noun

a small gull, Larus canus, of Eurasia and northwestern North America.

Origin of mew

First recorded in before 900; Middle English; Old English mǣwe; cognate with German Müwe

Also called mew gull .

Other definitions for mew (3 of 4)

mew³

[ myoo ]

noun

a cage for hawks, especially while molting.
a pen in which poultry is fattened.

a place of retirement or concealment.
mews, (usually used with a singular verb)Chiefly British.
- (formerly) an area of stables built around a small street.
- a street having small apartments converted from such stables.

verb (used with object)

Archaic. to shut up in or as in a mew; confine; conceal (often followed by up).

Origin of mew

First recorded in 1325–75; Middle English mue, from Middle French, akin to muer “to molt”; see mew⁴

Words that may be confused with mew

mews , muse

Other definitions for mew (4 of 4)

mew⁴

[ myoo ]

verb (used with or without object)

to shed (feathers); molt.

Origin of mew

⁴

First recorded in 1325–75; Middle English mewen, from Old French muer “to molt,” from Latin mūtāre “to change”

Other words from mew

mewer, noun

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use mew in a sentence

A dog would bark; a kitten would mew; a parrot would say "Pardon!"
The Nursery, December 1881, Vol. XXX | Various
He brushed around Von Rosen out in the kitchen, and mewed a little, delicate, highbred mew.
The Butterfly House | Mary E. Wilkins Freeman
mew-hew-she-kaw, the White Cloud; first Chief of the nation.
Adventures of the Ojibbeway and Ioway Indians in England, France, and Belgium; Vol. I (of 2) | George Catlin
How they would mew over my delinquencies, and what scratches I should get from their velvet-shod claws!
The Man Between | Amelia E. Barr
The Black Cat gave vent to a single mew,—a most unnatural sound for a mouser,—it seemed as it were mewed through a cow's horn!
Bentley's Miscellany, Volume II | Various

British Dictionary definitions for mew (1 of 4)

mew¹

/ (mjuː) /

verb

(intr) (esp of a cat) to make a characteristic high-pitched cry

noun

such a sound

Origin of mew

C14: imitative

British Dictionary definitions for mew (2 of 4)

mew²

/ (mjuː) /

noun

any seagull, esp the common gull, Larus canus: Also called: mew gull, sea mew

Origin of mew

Old English mǣw; compare Old Saxon mēu, Middle Dutch mēwe

British Dictionary definitions for mew (3 of 4)

mew³

/ (mjuː) /

noun

a room or cage for hawks, esp while moulting

verb

(tr often foll by up) to confine (hawks or falcons) in a shelter, cage, etc, usually by tethering them to a perch
to confine, conceal

Origin of mew

C14: from Old French mue, from muer to moult, from Latin mūtāre to change

British Dictionary definitions for mew (4 of 4)

mew⁴

/ (mjuː) /

verb

(intr) (of hawks or falcons) to moult
(tr) obsolete to shed (one's covering, clothes, etc)

Origin of mew

⁴

C14: from Old French muer to moult, from Latin mūtāre to change

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

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