maw
part of speech
noun (a maw, maws); (Scotland, informal) noun (maw = mum)
meaning for a pupil
1) A maw is the mouth, jaws or throat of a hungry or fierce animal. tree →
2) A maw is anything that seems to swallow things up, like a big dark hole: «the maw of the cave». tree →
3) (Scotland, informal) «Maw» means mum or mother; «Paw» is dad. tree →
sense in the lessons
In stories and poems, «maw» makes a monster or animal sound scary and greedy: «the dragon's gaping maw». In descriptive writing, it is a strong word for a dark opening. In Scottish speech, a child may call their mum «Maw». Phrases: «gaping maw», «into the maw of».
examples
- The crocodile opened its huge maw. tree →
- The ship sailed into the dark maw of the storm. tree →
- The dragon's maw was full of sharp teeth. tree →
- The cave's black maw frightened the explorers. tree →
- «Maw, can I go out to play?» asked the boy in Glasgow. tree →
- The whale's maw swallowed the tiny fish. tree →
- Now, just as the father pitched his younger son into the sea, a great whale-fish was coming along and swallowed him, and into its maw he went. tree →
note
Countable. Literary in its main sense; in everyday speech people say «mouth» or «jaws». The Scottish «Maw» (mum) is informal and regional. Rhymes with «saw».
Trees and pragmatics
Every meaning and example of «maw» parsed by Mova, each sentence with its dependency tree and frames.