mew

1
[ myoo ]
/ myu /
SEE SYNONYMS FOR mew 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.

Origin of mew

1
1275–1325; Middle English meuen; imitative

WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH mew

mews muse

Words nearby mew

meursault, meurthe-et-moselle, meuse, mev, mevrou, mew, mewar, mewl, mews, mex, mex.

Definition for mews (2 of 4)

mew 2
[ myoo ]
/ myu /

noun

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

Origin of mew

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

Definition for mews (3 of 4)

mew 3
[ 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
1325–75; Middle English mue < Middle French, akin to muer to molt. See mew4

Definition for mews (4 of 4)

mew 4
[ myoo ]
/ myu /

verb (used with or without object)

to shed (feathers); to molt.

Origin of mew

4
1325–75; Middle English mewen < Old French muer to molt < Latin mūtāre to change

OTHER WORDS FROM mew

mew·er, noun

Words related to mews

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 mews

British Dictionary definitions for mews (1 of 5)

mews
/ (mjuːz) /

noun (functioning as singular or plural) mainly British

a yard or street lined by buildings originally used as stables but now often converted into dwellings
the buildings around a mews
informal an individual residence in a mews

Word Origin for mews

C14: pl of mew ³, originally referring to royal stables built on the site of hawks' mews at Charing Cross in London

British Dictionary definitions for mews (2 of 5)

mew 1
/ (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 mews (3 of 5)

mew 2
/ (mjuː) /

noun

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

Word Origin for mew

Old English mǣw; compare Old Saxon mēu, Middle Dutch mēwe

British Dictionary definitions for mews (4 of 5)

mew 3
/ (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 mews (5 of 5)

mew 4
/ (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