a tool or device for cutting, typically a thin blade of metal with a series of sharp teeth.
2.
any similar tool or device, as a rotating disk, in which a sharp continuous edge replaces the teeth.
–verb (used with object)
3.
to cut or divide with a saw.
4.
to form by cutting with a saw.
5.
to make cutting motions as if using a saw: to saw the air with one's hands.
6.
to work (something) from side to side like a saw.
–verb (used without object)
7.
to use a saw.
8.
to cut with or as if with a saw.
9.
to cut as a saw does.
—Idiom
10.
saw wood, Informal. to snore loudly while sleeping.
[Origin: bef. 1000; (n.) ME sawe, OE saga,*sagu; c. D zaag, ON sǫg; akin to G Säge saw, L secāre to cut (see section), OE seax knife, sax2; (v.) ME sawen, deriv. of the n.]
to view; visit or attend as a spectator: to see a play.
3.
to perceive by means of computer vision.
4.
to scan or view, esp. by electronic means: The satellite can see the entire southern half of the country.
5.
to perceive (things) mentally; discern; understand: to see the point of an argument.
6.
to construct a mental image of; visualize: He still saw his father as he was 25 years ago.
7.
to accept or imagine or suppose as acceptable: I can't see him as president.
8.
to be cognizant of; recognize: to see the good in others; to see where the mistake is.
9.
to foresee: He could see war ahead.
10.
to ascertain, learn, or find out: See who is at the door.
11.
to have knowledge or experience of: to see service in the foreign corps.
12.
to make sure: See that the work is done.
13.
to meet and converse with: Are you seeing her at lunch today?
14.
to receive as a visitor: The ambassador finally saw him.
15.
to visit: He's gone to see his aunt.
16.
to court, keep company with, or date frequently: They've been seeing each other for a long time.
17.
to provide aid or assistance to; take care of: He's seeing his brother through college.
18.
to attend or escort: to see someone home.
19.
Cards. to match (a bet) or match the bet of (a bettor) by staking an equal sum; call: I'll see your five and raise you five more.
20.
to prefer (someone or something) to be as indicated (usually used as a mild oath): I'll see you in hell before I sell you this house. He'll see the business fail before he admits he's wrong.
21.
to read or read about: I saw it in the newspaper.
–verb (used without object)
22.
to have the power of sight.
23.
to be capable of perceiving by means of computer vision.
24.
to understand intellectually or spiritually; have insight: Philosophy teaches us to see.
25.
to give attention or care: See, there it goes.
26.
to find out; make inquiry: Go and see for yourself.
27.
to consider; think; deliberate: Let me see, how does that song go?
28.
to look about; observe: They heard the noise and came out to see.
—Verb phrases
29.
see about,
a.
to investigate; inquire about.
b.
to turn one's attention to; take care of: He said he would see about getting the license plates.
30.
see after, to attend to; take care of: Will you please see after my plants while I'm away?
31.
see off, to take leave of someone setting out on a journey; accompany to the place of departure: I went to the airport to see them off.
32.
see out, to remain with (a task, project, etc.) until its completion: We decided to see it out, even if it meant another year.
33.
see through,
a.
to penetrate to the true nature of; comprehend; detect: He quickly saw through my story.
b.
to stay with to the end or until completion; persevere: to see a difficult situation through.
34.
see to, to take care of; be responsible for: I'll see to the theater tickets.
[Origin: bef. 900; ME seen, OE séon; c. D zien, G sehen, ON sjā, Goth saihwan]
n.
Any of various tools, either hand-operated or power-driven, having a thin metal blade or disk with a sharp, usually toothed edge, used for cutting wood, metal, or other hard materials.
v.
sawed, sawed or sawn (sôn), saw·ing, saws
v.
tr.
To cut or divide with a saw.
To produce or shape with a saw: sawed a hole in the board.
To make back-and-forth motions through or on: a speaker who saws the air with his arms.
v.
intr.
To use a saw: sawing along the chalk line.
To undergo cutting with a saw: Pine wood saws easily.
[Middle English sawe, from Old English sagu; see sek- in Indo-European roots.]
To detect by means analogous to use of the eye: an electronic surveillance camera that saw the activity in the embassy yard.
To visit socially; call on.
To visit for consultation: You ought to see your doctor more frequently.
To meet (a bet) in card games.
To meet the bet of (another player).
To have a mental image of; visualize: They could still see their hometown as it once was.
To understand; comprehend: I see your point.
To consider to be; regard: Many saw her as a world leader.
To believe possible; imagine: I don't see him as a teacher.
To foresee: I see great things for that child.
To know through firsthand experience; undergo: "He saw some service on the king's side"(Tucker Brooke).
To give rise to or be characterized by: "Her long reign saw the heyday of verbal humor"(Richard Kain)."The 1930s saw the development of sulfa drugs and penicillin"(Gregg Easterbrook).
To find out; ascertain: Please see who's knocking.
To refer to; read: Persons interested in the book's history should see page one of the preface.
To take note of; recognize: She sees only the good aspects of the organization.
To meet or be in the company of: I saw all my aunts and uncles at the reunion.
To share the companionship of often or regularly: He's been seeing the same woman for eight years.
To visit socially; call on.
To visit for consultation: You ought to see your doctor more frequently.
To meet (a bet) in card games.
To meet the bet of (another player).
To admit or receive, as for consultation or a social visit: The doctor will see you now.
To attend; view: Let's see a movie.
To escort; attend: I'm seeing Nellie home.
To make sure; take care: See that it gets done right away.
Games
To meet (a bet) in card games.
To meet the bet of (another player).
v.
intr.
To have the power to perceive with or as if with the eye.
To understand; comprehend.
To consider: Let's see, which suitcase should we take?
To go and look: She had to see for herself and went into the garage.
To ascertain; find out: We probably can do it, but we'll have to see.
To have foresight: "No man can see to the end of time"(John F. Kennedy).
To take note.
To attend to.
To investigate.
To escort (a guest) to the door: Will you please see Ms. Smith out?
To work on (a project) until completion: Despite poor funding, we saw the project out.
To understand the true character or nature of: We saw through his superficial charm.
To provide support or cooperation to (a person) throughout a period of time: We'll see you through until you finish college.
To work on (a project) until completion.
Phrasal Verb(s): see about
To attend to.
To investigate.
see after
To take care of: Please see after the children while I'm gone. see off
To take leave of (someone): saw the guests off at the door; went to the airport to see us off. see out
To escort (a guest) to the door: Will you please see Ms. Smith out?
To work on (a project) until completion: Despite poor funding, we saw the project out.
see through
To understand the true character or nature of: We saw through his superficial charm.
To provide support or cooperation to (a person) throughout a period of time: We'll see you through until you finish college.
To work on (a project) until completion.
see to
To attend to: See to the chores, will you?
Idiom(s):
see red Informal
To be extremely angry.
Idiom(s):
see you later
Informal Used to express good-bye.
[Middle English sen, from Old English sēon; see sekw-2 in Indo-European roots.]
Synonyms: These verbs refer to being or becoming visually or mentally aware of something. See, the most general, can mean merely to use the faculty of sight but more often implies recognition, understanding, or appreciation: "If I have seen further (than ... Descartes) it is by standing upon the shoulders of Giants" (Isaac Newton).
Behold implies gazing at or looking intently upon what is seen: "My heart leaps up when I behold/A rainbow in the sky" (William Wordsworth).
Note, notice, and remark suggest close, detailed observation, and note in particular implies making a careful, systematic mental recording: Be careful to note that we turn left at the church. I notice that you're out of sorts."Their assemblies afforded me daily opportunities of remarking characters and manners" (Samuel Johnson).
Espy and descry both stress acuteness of sight that permits the detection of something distant or obscure: "espied the misspelled Latin word in [the] letter" (Los Angeles Times). "the lighthouse, which can be descried from a distance" (Michael Strauss).
Observe emphasizes careful, closely directed attention: "I saw the pots ... and observed that they did not crack at all" (Daniel Defoe).
Contemplate implies looking attentively and thoughtfully: "It is interesting to contemplate an entangled bank, clothed with many plants" (Charles Darwin).
Survey stresses comprehensive examination: "Strickland looked away and idly surveyed the ceiling" (W. Somerset Maugham).
View usually suggests examination with a particular purpose in mind or in a special way: The medical examiner viewed the victim's body. Perceive and discern both imply not only visual recognition but also mental comprehension; perceive is especially associated with insight, and discern, with the ability to distinguish, discriminate, and make judgments: "I plainly perceive [that] some objections remain" (Edmund Burke). "Your sense of humor would discern the hollowness beneath all the pomp and ceremony" (Edna Ferber).
"cutting tool," O.E. sagu, from P.Gmc. *sago "a cutting tool" (cf. O.E. seax "knife," O.N. sõg, Norw. sag, Dan. sav, M.Du. saghe, Du. zaag, O.H.G. saga, Ger. Säge "saw"), from PIE base *sak-/*sek- "to cut" (cf. L. secare "to cut," Rus. sech' "to cut;" see section). The verb is attested from c.1225; strong conjugation began 15c. on model of draw, etc. Sawbones "surgeon" is 1837 slang; sawdust is 1530; sawhorse recorded from 1778; sawfish first attested 1664. The personal name Sawyer is attested from c.1248 (cf. lawyer). Sawed-off "short, cut short" is attested 1887 of persons, 1898 of shotguns.
Main Entry: 2saw Pronunciation: 'so Function: noun : a hand or power tool used to cut hard material (as bone) and equipped usually with a toothed
blade or disk
Cir"cu*lar\, a. [L. circularis, fr. circulus circle: cf. F. circulaire. See Circle.]1. In the form of, or bounded by, a circle; round. 2. repeating itself; ending in itself; reverting to the point of beginning; hence, illogical; inconclusive; as, circular reasoning. 3. Adhering to a fixed circle of legends; cyclic; hence, mean; inferior. See Cyclic poets, under Cyclic. Had Virgil been a circular poet, and closely adhered to history, how could the Romans have had Dido? --Dennis. 4. Addressed to a circle, or to a number of persons having a common interest; circulated, or intended for circulation; as, a circular letter. A proclamation of Henry III., . . . doubtless circular throughout England. --Hallam. 5. Perfect; complete. [Obs.] A man so absolute and circular In all those wished-for rarities that may take A virgin captive. --Massinger. Circular are, any portion of the circumference of a circle. Circular cubics (Math.), curves of the third order which are imagined to pass through the two circular points at infinity. Circular functions. (Math.) See under Function. Circular instruments, mathematical instruments employed for measuring angles, in which the graduation extends round the whole circumference of a circle, or 360[deg]. Circular lines, straight lines pertaining to the circle, as sines, tangents, secants, etc. Circularnote or letter. (a) (Com.) See under Credit. (b) (Diplomacy) A letter addressed in identical terms to a number of persons. Circular numbers (Arith.), those whose powers terminate in the same digits as the roots themselves; as 5 and 6, whose squares are 25 and 36. --Bailey. --Barlow. Circular points at infinity (Geom.), two imaginary points at infinite distance through which every circle in the plane is, in the theory of curves, imagined to pass. Circular polarization. (Min.) See under Polarization. Circular or Globularsailing (Naut.), the method of sailing by the arc of a great circle. Circular saw. See under Saw.
Sa"ga\ (s[=a]"g[.a]), n.; pl. Sagas (-g[.a]z). [Icel., akin to E. saw a saying. See Say, and cf. Saw.] A Scandinavian legend, or heroic or mythic tradition, among the Norsemen and kindred people; a northern European popular historical or religious tale of olden time. And then the blue-eyed Norseman told A saga of the days of old. --Longfellow.
Saw\, n. [OE. sawe, AS. sagu; akin to secgan to say. See Say, v. t. and cf. Saga.]1. Something said; speech; discourse. [Obs.] "To hearken all his sawe." --Chaucer. 2. A saying; a proverb; a maxim. His champions are the prophets and apostles, His weapons holy saws of sacred writ. --Shak. 3. Dictate; command; decree. [Obs.] [Love] rules the creatures by his powerful saw. --Spenser.
Saw\, n. [OE. sawe, AS. sage; akin to D. zaag, G. s["a]ge, OHG. sega, saga, Dan. sav, Sw. s[*a]g, Icel. s["o]g, L. secare to cut, securis ax, secula sickle. Cf. Scythe, Sickle, Section, Sedge.] An instrument for cutting or dividing substances, as wood, iron, etc., consisting of a thin blade, or plate, of steel, with a series of sharp teeth on the edge, which remove successive portions of the material by cutting and tearing. Note: Saw is frequently used adjectively, or as the first part of a compound. Band saw, Crosscut saw, etc. See under Band, Crosscut, etc. Circular saw, a disk of steel with saw teeth upon its periphery, and revolved on an arbor. Saw bench, a bench or table with a flat top for for sawing, especially with a circular saw which projects above the table. Saw file, a three-cornered file, such as is used for sharpening saw teeth. Saw frame, the frame or sash in a sawmill, in which the saw, or gang of saws, is held. Saw gate, a saw frame. Saw gin, the form of cotton gin invented by Eli Whitney, in which the cotton fibers are drawn, by the teeth of a set of revolving circular saws, through a wire grating which is too fine for the seeds to pass. Saw grass (Bot.), any one of certain cyperaceous plants having the edges of the leaves set with minute sharp teeth, especially the Cladium Mariscus of Europe, and the Cladium effusum of the Southern United States. Cf. Razor grass, under Razor. Saw log, a log of suitable size for sawing into lumber. Saw mandrel, a mandrel on which a circular saw is fastened for running. Saw pit, a pit over which timbor is sawed by two men, one standing below the timber and the other above. --Mortimer. Saw sharpener (Zo["o]l.), the great titmouse; -- so named from its harsh call note. [Prov. Eng.] Saw whetter (Zo["o]l.), the marsh titmouse (Parus palustris); -- so named from its call note. [Prov. Eng.] Scroll saw, a ribbon of steel with saw teeth upon one edge, stretched in a frame and adapted for sawing curved outlines; also, a machine in which such a saw is worked by foot or power.
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Audio Help [saw] Pronunciation Key noun, verb, sawed, sawed or sawn, saw·ing. 
