What does "haw" mean?
Fruit of the hawthorn.
Haw
/hɔː/ intj, name, noun, verb
intj, name, noun, verb ·Moderate ·High school level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: Fruit of the hawthorn.
- Grammar: haw is listed as intj, name, noun, verb.
- Nearest alternatives: avert, bear off, command, direct.
- Useful contrasts: geeing, gees, answer.
- Usage evidence: You think that song was good? Haw!
How to use "haw"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "haw" 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 "haw" 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 "haw" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "haw" 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 "haw" 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 "avert" 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 "haw", 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 Fruit of the hawthorn.
- 2 The third eyelid, or nictitating membrane. countable
- 3 the nictitating membrane of a horse wordnet
- 4 A hedge. historical
- 5 A disease of the nictitating membrane. uncountable
Show 2 more definitions
- 6 a spring-flowering shrub or small tree of the genus Crataegus wordnet
- 7 Something that has little value or importance; a whit or jot. obsolete
"wele not leaue a man of lawe, Nor a paper worth a hawe, And make him worſe than a dawe, That ſhall ſtand againſt Iacke Strawe."
Verb
- 1 To stop, in speaking, with a sound like haw; to speak with interruption and hesitation.
- 2 To turn towards the driver, typically to the left.
"This horse won't haw when I tell him to."
- 3 utter ‘haw’ wordnet
- 4 To cause (an animal) to turn left.
"You may have to go to the front of the pack and physically haw the lead dog."
Intj
- 1 An imitation of laughter, often used to express scorn or disbelief. Often doubled or tripled (haw haw or haw haw haw).
"You think that song was good? Haw!"
- 2 An instruction for a horse or other animal to turn towards the driver, typically left.
- 3 An intermission or hesitation of speech, with a sound somewhat like "haw"; the sound so made.
"Hums or haws."
Proper Noun
- 1 A topographic and patronymic surname transferred from the given name.
- 2 A river in the US state of North Carolina.
Synonyms
All synonymsExample
"You think that song was good? Haw!"
Common questions
What is a synonym for "haw"?
Common synonyms include: avert, bear off, command, direct, dither, draw aside.
How do you use "haw" in a sentence?
You think that song was good? Haw!
How do you pronounce "haw"?
Pronounced /hɔː/.
Etymology
Etymology 1
From Middle English ha (interjection). Compare Old Norse há (interjection), Middle Low German ha, hā (interjection), Old High German aha, hei (interjection).
Etymology 2
From Middle English hawe, from Old English haga (“enclosure, hedge”), from Proto-Germanic *hagô (compare West Frisian haach, Dutch haag, German Hag (“hedged farmland”), Norwegian Bokmål hage (“garden”)), from Proto-Indo-European *kagʰom (compare Welsh cae (“field”), Latin caulae (“sheepfold, enclosure”), cohum (“strap between plowbeam and yoke”), Russian кош (koš, “tent”), коша́ра (košára, “sheepfold”), Sanskrit कक्ष (kakṣa, “curtain wall”)), from *kagʰ- 'to catch, grasp' (compare Welsh cau (“to clasp”), Oscan kahad (“may he seize”).
Etymology 3
Assumed to be interjectory, but compare Old English hawian (“to observe, look”)
Etymology 4
Late Middle English (denoting a discharge from the eye), of uncertain origin. Perhaps related to Etymology 2 above, describing a berry.
Etymology 5
From Old English haga (“enclosure”). Also a back-formation from Middle English Hawkin, a diminutive of Harry or of a given name meaning "a hawk". Doublet of Haig.