mow

1
[ moh ]
/ moʊ /
SEE SYNONYMS FOR mow 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
before 900; Middle English mowen, Old English māwan; cognate with German mähen

Words nearby mow

moving stairway, moving target indicator, moving van, moving violation, moviola, mow, mow down, mowat, mowburnt, mowdie, mowe
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2020

Words related to mow down

obliterate, topple, demolish, overthrow, wreck, erase, smash, destroy, extinguish, bulldoze, scatter, dynamite, shave, slice, rip, slash, carve, curtail, divide, crush

British Dictionary definitions for mow down (1 of 4)

mow down

verb

(tr, adverb) to kill in large numbers, esp by gunfire

British Dictionary definitions for mow down (2 of 4)

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 down (3 of 4)

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 mūwa; compare Old Norse mūgr heap, Greek mukōn

British Dictionary definitions for mow down (4 of 4)

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

Idioms and Phrases with mow down

mow down
1

Destroy in great numbers, especially in battle, as in The machine gun mowed them down as they advanced. [Late 1500s]

2

Overwhelm, as in He mowed down the opposition with his arguments. This usage, like the first, alludes to mowing, the cutting of grass with a scythe or other implement.

The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.