What does "hew" mean?
Destruction by cutting down or hewing.
Hew
/hjuː/ name, noun, verb
name, noun, verb ·Common ·High school level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: Destruction by cutting down or hewing.
- Grammar: hew is listed as name, noun, verb.
- Nearest alternatives: adhere to, adze, adzes, amputate.
- Useful contrasts: contravene, deviate from, disobey.
- Usage evidence: With this faith, we will be able to hew out of the mountain of despair a stone of hope. With this faith, we will be able to transform the jangling discords of our nation into a beautiful symphony of brotherhood. With this faith, we will be able to work together, to pray together, to struggle together, to go to jail together, to stand up for freedom together, knowing that we will be free one day.
How to use "hew"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "hew" 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 "hew" 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 "hew" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "hew" 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 "hew" is acting as 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 "adhere to" 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 "hew", 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 Destruction by cutting down or hewing. countable, obsolete, uncountable
"Of whom he makes such hauocke and such hew, / That swarmes of damned soules to hell he sends"
- 2 Hue; colour. countable, obsolete, uncountable
"[…] while the youthful hew Sits on thy skin like morning dew"
- 3 Shape; form. countable, obsolete, uncountable
"He taught to imitate that Lady trew, Whose semblance she did carrie under feigned hew."
Verb
- 1 To chop away at; to whittle down; to mow down. ambitransitive
"Hew them to pieces, hack their bones asunder[…]"
- 2 strike with an axe; cut down, strike wordnet
- 3 To shape; to form. transitive
"to hew out a sepulchre"
- 4 make or shape as with an axe wordnet
- 5 To act according to, to conform to; usually construed with to. US, transitive
"Few men measured up to his standard of righteousness; he hewed to the line."
Proper Noun
- 1 A surname originating as a patronymic.
- 2 Initialism of (US Department of) Health, Education, and Welfare, now HHS. US, abbreviation, alt-of, historical, initialism
Antonyms
Example
"With this faith, we will be able to hew out of the mountain of despair a stone of hope. With this faith, we will be able to transform the jangling discords of our nation into a beautiful symphony of brotherhood. With this faith, we will be able to work together, to pray together, to struggle together, to go to jail together, to stand up for freedom together, knowing that we will be free one day."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "hew"?
Common synonyms include: adhere to, adze, adzes, amputate, ax, axe.
How do you use "hew" in a sentence?
With this faith, we will be able to hew out of the mountain of despair a stone of hope. With this faith, we will be able to transform the jangling discords of our nation into a beautiful symphony of brotherhood. With this faith, we will be able to work together, to pray together, to struggle together, to go to jail together, to stand up for freedom together, knowing that we will be free one day.
How do you pronounce "hew"?
Pronounced /hjuː/.
Etymology
Etymology 1
From Middle English hewen, from Old English hēawan, from Proto-West Germanic *hauwan, from Proto-Germanic *hawwaną, from Proto-Indo-European *kewh₂- (“to strike, hew, forge”). Cognate to West Frisian houwe (“to hew”), Cimbrian hauan (“to dig”), Dutch houwen (“to hew”), German hauen (“to hew”), Luxembourgish haen (“to chop”), Danish hugge (“to hew”), Faroese høgga (“to hew”), Icelandic höggva (“to hew”), Norwegian Bokmål hogge, hugge (“to hew”), Norwegian Nynorsk hogga (“to hew”), Swedish hugga (“to hew”). Sense 3 derives from the phrase hew to the line (literally “cut evenly with an axe or saw”).
Etymology 2
See hue.
Etymology 3
Variant of Hugh.