sinew

American  

[sin-yoo] / ˈsɪn yu /

noun

1. a tendon.

2. Often sinews. the source of strength, power, or vigor.

   the sinews of the nation.

3. strength; power; resilience.

   a man of great moral sinew.

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verb (used with object)

1. to furnish with sinews; strengthen, as by sinews.

sinew British  

/ ˈsɪnjuː /

noun

1. anatomy another name for tendon

2. (often plural)

   1. a source of strength or power

   2. a literary word for muscle

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Other Word Forms

• sinewless adjective
• unsinewed adjective
• unsinewing adjective

Etymology

Origin of sinew

before 900; Middle English; Old English sinu (nominative), sinuwe (genitive); cognate with Dutch zenuw, German Sehne, Old Norse sin; akin to Sanskrit snāva sinew

Example Sentences

I would grip my father's hand tight as the butcher's blade sliced through the lamb's neck like butter, wincing at the blood and sinew.

From Salon

Roberto Mancini’s Italy has illuminated this tournament at every turn: through the verve and panache with which it swept through the group stage, and the grit and sinew with which it reached the final.

From New York Times

Her works have a curious tension, full of taut sinews, often seeming to stretch and reach, or sag and droop, in ways eerily and powerfully reminiscent of the human form.

From Washington Post

Yoon then goes at the beef with a knife, making long, deep slashes across the grain to break up the sinews.

From New York Times

They were young and thin — and for much of the 20th century, they got progressively thinner until they were little more than stick figures with blood and sinew.

From Washington Post

Related Words

• tendon