saw

1
[ saw ]
See synonyms for saw on Thesaurus.com
noun
  1. 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),sawed, sawed or sawn, saw·ing.
  1. to cut or divide with a saw.

  2. to form by cutting with a saw.

  1. to make cutting motions as if using a saw: to saw the air with one's hands.

  2. to work (something) from side to side like a saw.

verb (used without object),sawed, sawed or sawn, saw·ing.
  1. to use a saw.

  2. to cut with or as if with a saw.

  1. to cut as a saw does.

Idioms about saw

  1. saw wood, Informal. to snore loudly while sleeping.

Origin of saw

1
First recorded before 1000; Middle English noun sau(e), soue, zaue, Old English saga, sagu; cognate with Dutch zaag, Old Norse sǫg, German Säge, all meaning “saw”; akin to Latin secāre “to cut,” Old English seax “short sword, knife, dagger”; the verb is derivative of the noun; see also sax2, section

Other words from saw

  • sawer, noun
  • sawlike, adjective

Other definitions for saw (2 of 3)

saw2
[ saw ]

verb
  1. simple past tense of see1.

Other definitions for saw (3 of 3)

saw3
[ saw ]

noun
  1. a sententious saying; maxim; proverb: He could muster an old saw for every occasion.

Origin of saw

3
First recorded before 950; Middle English sau(e), sauhe, sagh(e) “talk, words, something said,” Old English sagu “a saying, speech, narrative”; cognate with German Sage “legend, fable, myth, tradition,” Old Norse saga “statement, tale, story, history”; see also saga, say1

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use saw in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for saw (1 of 4)

saw1

/ (sɔː) /


noun
  1. any of various hand tools for cutting wood, metal, etc, having a blade with teeth along one edge

  2. any of various machines or devices for cutting by use of a toothed blade, such as a power-driven circular toothed wheel or toothed band of metal

verbsaws, sawing, sawed, sawed or sawn
  1. to cut with a saw

  2. to form by sawing

  1. to cut as if wielding a saw: to saw the air

  2. to move (an object) from side to side as if moving a saw

Origin of saw

1
Old English sagu; related to Old Norse sog, Old High German saga, Latin secāre to cut, secūris axe

Derived forms of saw

  • sawer, noun
  • sawlike, adjective

British Dictionary definitions for saw (2 of 4)

saw2

/ (sɔː) /


verb
  1. the past tense of see 1

British Dictionary definitions for saw (3 of 4)

saw3

/ (sɔː) /


noun
  1. a wise saying, maxim, or proverb

Origin of saw

3
Old English sagu a saying; related to saga

British Dictionary definitions for SAW (4 of 4)

SAW

abbreviation for
  1. surface acoustic wave

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Other Idioms and Phrases with saw

saw

see old saw.

The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.