Dictionary.com

mew

1
[ myoo ]
/ myu /
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.

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Question 1 of 11
Which of the following animal names traces its immediate origin to Portuguese?
owl
crow
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Origin of mew

1
First recorded in 1275–1325; Middle English meuen; imitative

Words nearby mew

Meurthe-et-Moselle, Meuse, MeV, Mevacor, mevrou, mew, Mewar, mewl, mews, Mex., Mexicali

Definition for mew (2 of 4)

mew2
[ myoo ]
/ myu /

noun

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

Origin of mew

2
First recorded in before 900; Middle English; Old English mǣwe; cognate with German Müwe

Definition for mew (3 of 4)

mew3
[ myoo ]
/ myu /

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.
  1. (formerly) an area of stables built around a small street.
  2. 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

3
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

Definition for mew (4 of 4)

mew4
[ myoo ]
/ myu /

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. 2021

Words related to mew

fence, wall, bound, restrict, intern, wrap, circumscribe, encompass, imbue, veil, limit, pen, jail, circle, confine, impound, encircle, coop, blockade, hedge

Example sentences from the Web for mew

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

Word Origin for mew

C14: imitative

British Dictionary definitions for mew (2 of 4)

mew2
/ (mjuː) /

noun

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

Word Origin for 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

Word Origin for 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)

Word Origin for mew

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