What does "harrow" mean?
A device consisting of a heavy framework having several disks or teeth in a row, which is dragged across ploughed land to smooth or break up the soil, to remove weeds or cover seeds; a harrow plow.
Harrow
/ˈhæɹoʊ/ intj, name, noun, verb
intj, name, noun, verb ·Common ·High school level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: A device consisting of a heavy framework having several disks or teeth in a row, which is dragged across ploughed land to smooth or break up the soil, to remove weeds or cover seeds; a harrow plow.
- Grammar: harrow is listed as intj, name, noun, verb.
- Nearest alternatives: afflict, agonize, agonized, ail.
- Useful contrasts: calm, comfort, compact.
- Usage evidence: The horses are pulling the harrow.
How to use "harrow"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "harrow" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
- Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.
Meaning check
- Does the word fit the sentence's grammar?
- Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
- Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
- Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?
Source and review context
This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "harrow" in a final draft.
If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.
Before you rely on this definition
Read the first definition as a starting point, then check the example, synonyms, and part of speech before treating "harrow" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "harrow" with a nearby alternative so the final choice matches both meaning and reader expectation.
Compare nearby meanings
- Use synonyms when you need a softer, stronger, simpler, or more specific word.
- Use antonyms to check the boundary of the meaning and avoid accidental contrast.
- Use the example sentence to confirm the word behaves naturally in context.
- Keep the original wording when a replacement adds complexity without improving precision.
Definition decision workflow
1. Identify the role
Check whether "harrow" is acting as intj, name, noun, verb in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.
2. Test the nearest option
Compare it with "afflict" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.
3. Confirm with context
Use the example sentence below as an evidence check, then read your own sentence out loud to catch tone or rhythm problems.
Review note: Definition pages are checked for source coverage, sentence evidence, synonym support, and editorial insight before they are treated as approval-ready pages. If the evidence is too thin, the page remains available to users but is kept out of the approval-facing indexed inventory.
Final meaning check
Before publishing a sentence with "harrow", ask whether the word helps the reader understand the idea faster. A precise word should reduce confusion, not simply make the sentence look more polished.
When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.
Definitions
Noun
- 1 A device consisting of a heavy framework having several disks or teeth in a row, which is dragged across ploughed land to smooth or break up the soil, to remove weeds or cover seeds; a harrow plow.
"He sent for the carpenter, who was under contract to be with the threshing-machine, but it turned out that he was mending the harrows, which should have been mended the week before Lent."
- 2 a cultivator that pulverizes or smooths the soil wordnet
- 3 An obstacle formed by turning an ordinary harrow upside down, the frame being buried.
Verb
- 1 To drag a harrow over; to break up with a harrow. transitive
"Will he harrow the valleys after thee?"
- 2 draw a harrow over (land) wordnet
- 3 To traumatize or disturb; to torment, distress or vex. transitive
"It harrows me with fear and wonder."
- 4 To break or tear, as if with a harrow; to wound; to lacerate. transitive
"my aged muscles harrow'd up with whips"
Intj
- 1 A call for help, or of distress, alarm etc. obsolete
"Harrow, the flames, which me consume (said hee) / Ne can be quencht, within my secret bowels bee."
Proper Noun
- 1 A town in northwestern Greater London, England, historically in the county of Middlesex.
- 2 A surname originating as an occupation for a harrower.
- 3 A London borough of Greater London, England.
- 4 A locality in the Shire of Southern Grampians and the Shire of West Wimmera, south western Victoria, Australia.
- 5 A prestigious public school for boys, in the town of Harrow.
Example
"The horses are pulling the harrow."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "harrow"?
Common synonyms include: afflict, agonize, agonized, ail, anguish, backset.
How do you use "harrow" in a sentence?
The horses are pulling the harrow.
How do you pronounce "harrow"?
Pronounced /ˈhæɹoʊ/.
Etymology
Etymology 1
From Middle English harwe, harow, from Old English *hearwa (perhaps ultimately cognate with harvest), or from Old Norse harfr/herfi; compare Danish harve (“harrow”), Dutch hark (“rake”). Akin to Latin carpere. According to the OED, the verb senses are partly derived from the noun sense, partly from a by-form of the verb harry, itself from Old English hergian.
Etymology 2
From Middle English harrow, harrowe, haro, from Old French haro, harou, harau, harol, from Frankish *harot, *hara (“here; hither”), from *hēr. Akin to Old Saxon herod, Old High German herot, Middle Dutch hare.
Etymology 3
From Old English hearg (“altar; grove, temple”), from Proto-Germanic *harugaz.
Etymology 4
From harrow.