SOW DEFINITIONS - 15 definitions found
sow n 1: an adult female hog v 1: place (seeds) in or on the ground for future growth; "She sowed sunflower seeds" [syn: sow, seed] 2: introduce into an environment; "sow suspicion or beliefs" 3: place seeds in or on (the ground); "sow the ground with sunflower seeds" [syn: inseminate, sow, sow in] Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary, 11th Edition (2003) sow I. noun Etymology: Middle English sowe, from Old English sugu; akin to Old English & Old High German sū sow, Latin sus pig, swine, hog, Greek hys Date: before 12th century 1. an adult female swine; also the adult female of various other animals (as a bear) 2. a. a channel that conducts molten metal to molds b. a mass of metal solidified in such a mold ; ingot II. verb (sowed; sown or sowed; sowing) Etymology: Middle English, from Old English sāwan; akin to Old High German sāwen to sow, Latin serere, Lithuanian sėti Date: before 12th century intransitive verb 1. to plant seed for growth especially by scattering 2. to set something in motion ; begin an enterprise transitive verb 1. a. to scatter (as seed) upon the earth for growth; broadly plant 1a b. to strew with or as if with seed c. to introduce into a selected environment ; implant 2. to set in motion ; foment <sow suspicion> 3. to spread abroad ; disperse • sower noun Oxford English Reference Dictionary
Collins COBUILD Advanced Learner\'s English Dictionary sow I. VERB USES (sows, sowing, sowed, sown) 1. If you sow seeds or sow an area of land with seeds, you plant the seeds in the ground. Sow the seed in a warm place in February/March... Yesterday the field opposite was sown with maize. VERB: V n, be V-ed with n 2. If someone sows an undesirable feeling or situation, they cause it to begin and develop. He cleverly sowed doubts into the minds of his rivals... VERB: V n 3. If one thing sows the seeds of another, it starts the process which leads eventually to the other thing. Rich industrialised countries have sown the seeds of global warming. PHRASE: V inflects, PHR n II. NOUN USE (sows) A sow is an adult female pig. N-COUNT 1811 Dictionary of the Vulgar Tongue SOW A fat woman. He has got the wrong sow by the ear, he mistakes his man. Drunk as David's sow; see DAVID'S SOW. Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913) Sow \Sow\, v. t. [imp. Sowed; p. p. Sownor Sowed; p. pr. & vb. n. Sowing.] [OE. sowen, sawen, AS. s[=a]wan; akin to OFries. s?a, D. zaaijen, OS. & HG. s[=a]jan, G. s["a]en, Icel. s[=a], Sw. s[*a], Dan. saae, Goth. saian, Lith. s[=e]ti, Russ. sieiate, L. serere, sevi. Cf. Saturday, Season, Seed, Seminary.] 1. To scatter, as seed, upon the earth; to plant by strewing; as, to sow wheat. Also used figuratively: To spread abroad; to propagate. ``He would sow some difficulty.'' --Chaucer. A sower went forth to sow; and when he sowed, some seeds fell by the wayside. --Matt. xiii. 3, 4. And sow dissension in the hearts of brothers. --Addison. 2. To scatter seed upon, in, or over; to supply or stock, as land, with seeds. Also used figuratively: To scatter over; to besprinkle. The intellectual faculty is a goodly field, . . . and it is the worst husbandry in the world to sow it with trifles. --Sir M. Hale. [He] sowed with stars the heaven. --Milton. Now morn . . . sowed the earth with orient pearl. --Milton. Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913) Sow \Sow\, v. i. To sew. See Sew. [Obs.] --Chaucer. Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913) Sow \Sow\, n. [OE. sowe, suwe, AS. sugu, akin to s[=u], D. zog, zeug, OHG. s[=u], G. sau, Icel. s[=y]r, Dan. so, Sw. sugga, so, L. sus. Gr. "y^s, sy^s, Zend. hu boar; probably from the root seen in Skr. s[=u] to beget, to bear; the animal being named in allusion to its fecundity. [root]294. Cf. Hyena, Soil to stain, Son, Swine.] 1. (Zo["o]l.) The female of swine, or of the hog kind. 2. (Zo["o]l.) A sow bug. 3. (Metal.) (a) A channel or runner which receives the rows of molds in the pig bed. (b) The bar of metal which remains in such a runner. (c) A mass of solidified metal in a furnace hearth; a salamander. 4. (Mil.) A kind of covered shed, formerly used by besiegers in filling up and passing the ditch of a besieged place, sapping and mining the wall, or the like. --Craig. Sow bread. (Bot.) See Cyclamen. Sow bug, or Sowbug (Zo["o]l.), any one of numerous species of terrestrial Isopoda belonging to Oniscus, Porcellio, and allied genera of the family Oniscid[ae]. They feed chiefly on decaying vegetable substances. Sow thistle [AS. sugepistel] (Bot.), a composite plant ({Sonchus oleraceus}) said to be eaten by swine and some other animals. Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913) Sow \Sow\, v. i. To scatter seed for growth and the production of a crop; -- literally or figuratively. They that sow in tears shall reap in joi. --Ps. cxxvi. 5. International Standard Bible Encyclopedia SOW sou. See SWINE. SOW Soule\'s Dictionary of English Synonyms sow I. n. Hog (female), pig, swine. II. v. a. 1. Scatter, strew, spread. 2. Disseminate, disperse, propagate, spread abroad. 3. Plant, put seed in. 4. Besprinkle, scatter over. III. v. n. Plant, scatter seed, put in seed. English Explanatory Dictionary (Synonyms) sow ̈ɪsəu v. seed, disseminate, broadcast, plant: The grand vizier sowed the seeds of dissension amongst the subjects of the caliph. Moby Thesaurus II by Grady Ward, 1.0 100 Moby Thesaurus words for "sow": Partlet, barrow, bed, bestrew, biddy, bitch, boar, bossy, broadcast, brood mare, bullion, button, cast, casting, circumfuse, cow, deal out, dibble, diffract, diffuse, dispense, disperse, dispread, disseminate, distribute, diverge, doe, drill, ewe, ewe lamb, fan out, filly, forest, gate, gilt, guinea hen, gyp, heifer, hen, hind, hog, implant, ingot, inseminate, issue, jenny, lioness, mare, nanny, nanny goat, overscatter, oversow, overspread, peahen, pig, piggy, piglet, pigling, pitch, plant, porker, pot, propagate, publish, put in, radiate, razorback, reforest, regulus, reset, retail, retimber, roe, scatter, scatter seed, seed, seed down, seminate, set, she-bear, she-goat, she-lion, sheet metal, shoat, slut, sow broadcast, splay, spread, spread out, straw, strew, suckling pig, swine, tigress, toss, transplant, tusker, utter, vixen, wild boar |
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