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mow

1
[ moh ]
/ moʊ /
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See synonyms for: mow / mowing on Thesaurus.com
verb (used with object), mowed, mowed or mown, mow·ing.
to cut down (grass, grain, etc.) with a scythe or a machine.
to cut grass, grain, etc., from: to mow the lawn.
verb (used without object), mowed, mowed or mown, mow·ing.
to cut down grass, grain, etc.
Verb Phrases
mow down,
  1. to destroy or kill indiscriminately or in great numbers, as troops in battle.
  2. to defeat, overwhelm, or overcome: The team mowed down its first four opponents.
  3. to knock down.
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Origin of mow

1
First recorded before 900; Middle English mowen, mouwen “to stack hay or grain,” Old English māwan “to mow;” cognate with Old Frisian mÄ«a, German mĂ€hen

Words nearby mow

moving stairway, moving target indicator, moving van, moving violation, Moviola, mow, Mowat, mowburnt, mowdie, mow down, mower

Other definitions for mow (2 of 3)

mow2
[ mou ]
/ maʊ /
noun
a heap or pile of hay or of sheaves of grain in a barn.
the place in a barn where hay, sheaves of grain, etc., are stored.
verb (used with object)
Chiefly Northern and North Midland U.S. to store (hay) in a barn.

Origin of mow

2
First recorded before 900; Middle English mow(e), mou, moghe, Old English mĆ«ga, mĆ«ha, mĆ«wa “a heap or stack of grain”; cognate with Old Norse mĆ«gi “swath”

Other definitions for mow (3 of 3)

mow3

or mowe

[ mou, moh ]
/ maʊ, moʊ /
Archaic.
noun
a wry or derisive grimace.
verb (used without object), mowed, mow·ing.
to make mows, mouths, or grimaces.

Origin of mow

3
First recorded in 1275–1325; Middle English moue, mouwe, mouhe, from Middle French moue “lip, pout,” Old French möe, from Frankish; akin to Middle Dutch mouwe “protruding lip”
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Words related to mow

shear, trim, clip, crop, scythe, sickle

How to use mow in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for mow (1 of 3)

mow1
/ (məʊ) /
verb mows, mowing, mowed, mowed or mown
to cut down (grass, crops, etc) with a hand implement or machine
(tr) to cut the growing vegetation of (a field, lawn, etc)

Derived forms of mow

mower, noun

Word Origin for mow

Old English māwan; related to Old High German māen, Middle Dutch maeyen to mow, Latin metere to reap, Welsh medi

British Dictionary definitions for mow (2 of 3)

mow2
/ (maʊ) /
noun
the part of a barn where hay, straw, etc, is stored
the hay, straw, etc, stored

Word Origin for mow

Old English mĆ«wa; compare Old Norse mĆ«gr heap, Greek mukƍn

British Dictionary definitions for mow (3 of 3)

mow3
/ (maʊ) /
noun, verb
an archaic word for grimace

Word Origin for mow

C14: from Old French moe a pout, or Middle Dutch mouwe
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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