raw

[raw]

adjective

rawer, rawest 

1. uncooked, as articles of food.

   a raw carrot.

2. not having undergone processes of preparing, dressing, finishing, refining, or manufacture.

   raw cotton.

   Synonyms: makeshift, rough, unprepared

3. unnaturally or painfully exposed, as flesh, by removal of the skin or natural integument.

4. painfully open, as a sore or wound.

5. crude in quality or character; not tempered or refined by art or taste.

   raw humor.

6. ignorant, inexperienced, or untrained.

   a raw recruit.

   Synonyms: unpracticed, unskilled, green, undisciplined

7. brutally or grossly frank.

   a raw portrayal of human passions.

8. brutally harsh or unfair.

   a raw deal; receiving raw treatment from his friends.

9. disagreeably damp and chilly, as the weather or air.

   a raw, foggy day at the beach.

   Synonyms: wet, cold

10. not diluted, as alcoholic spirits.

    raw whiskey.

    Synonyms: neat, straight

11. unprocessed or unevaluated.

    raw data.

noun

1. a sore or irritated place, as on the flesh.

2. unrefined sugar, oil, etc.

raw

/ rɔː /

adjective

1. (of food) not cooked

   raw onion

2. (prenominal) in an unfinished, natural, or unrefined state; not treated by manufacturing or other processes

   raw materials for making steel

   raw brick

3. (of an edge of material) unhemmed; liable to fray

4. (of the skin, a wound, etc) having the surface exposed or abraded, esp painfully

5. ignorant, inexperienced, or immature

   a raw recruit

6. (prenominal) not selected or modified

   raw statistics

7. frank or realistic

   a raw picture of the breakdown of a marriage

8. (of spirits) undiluted

9. coarse, vulgar, or obscene

10. recently done; fresh

    raw paintwork

11. (of the weather) harshly cold and damp

12. informal,  unfair; unjust (esp in the phrase a raw deal )

noun

1. informal,  a sensitive point

   his criticism touched me on the raw

2. 1. informal,  without clothes; naked

   2. in a natural or unmodified state

      life in the raw

Other Word Forms

• rawly adverb
• rawness noun
• rawish adjective
• rawishness noun
• half-raw adjective
• semiraw adjective
• semirawly adverb
• semirawness noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of raw¹

First recorded before 1000; Middle English; Old English hrēaw, hrǣw; cognate with Dutch rauw, German roh; akin to Latin crūdus “raw” ( crude ), cruor “blood,” Greek kréas “raw flesh” ( creatine )

Word History and Origins

Origin of raw¹

Old English hreaw ; related to Old High German hrao , Old Norse hrār raw, Latin cruor thick blood, Greek kreas meat

Idioms and Phrases

Idioms

1. in the raw,

   1. in the natural, uncultivated, or unrefined state.

      nature in the raw.

   2. Informal. in the nude; naked.

      sunbathing in the raw.

More idioms and phrases containing raw

• in the altogether (raw)

Synonym Study

Raw, crude, rude refer to something not in a finished or highly refined state. Raw applies particularly to material not yet changed by a process, by manufacture, or by preparation for consumption: raw cotton; raw leather. Crude refers to that which still needs refining: crude petroleum. Rude refers to what is still in a condition of rough simplicity or in a makeshift or roughly made form: rude agricultural implements; the rude bridge that arched the flood.

Example Sentences

During the inflation years of the early 1980s, sailors locked away for months on nuclear-missile submarines killed time talking up gold bullion and raw diamonds.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

As a pair of academics wrote recently in MIT Sloan Management Review, “The barrier to full automation isn’t raw capability—it’s a stack of human, legal and cultural constraints.”

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

These early films lack those characteristics and are therefore more inviting, raw in a welcoming way.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

During her club gigs, Ms. Smith introduced a sharper, original approach to rock that was raw and pithy, salted with hidden references to 1960s girl groups, R&B balladeers and garage-rock bands.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

Joy, confusion, fascination and despair take over her entire face instantaneously, turning Buckley’s performance into an acting exercise of being raw and present.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• basic 
• coarse 
• crude 
• fresh 
• natural 
• organic 
• rough 
• uncooked 
• undercooked www.thesaurus.com
• unprocessed 
• untreated 

When To Use

What does raw mean?

Raw describes something that hasn’t been cooked, as in The butcher put a pile of raw meat on the table.Raw can also describe something that hasn’t been processed or refined, as in Raw cotton must be cleaned of plant parts before it can be made into thread or fabric. Raw also refers to skin that was painfully removed, as in The uncomfortable pants rubbed my knees raw. As well, raw can refer to someone who lacks experience or training, as in The rookie detective was too raw to be of any help to the veteran investigator. Raw is rarely used as a noun. It is sometimes used in the idiom in the raw, meaning a natural, unprocessed state or, more informally, referring to something done while naked.Example: The diners became very ill after eating chicken that was more raw that cooked.