mew

Meanings

1. 1
   noun

   a short, high-pitched cry made by a cat or similar animal

   A faint mew came from the kitten beneath the porch.

2. 2
   verb

   to make a short, high-pitched cry like a cat

   The hungry kitten began to mew at the kitchen door.

3. 3
   noun

   a gull, especially the common gull of Eurasia and northern North America

   A solitary mew circled above the fishing boat.

The cat cry is imitative, like meow. The separate bird name descends from Middle English mewe and Old English mǣw, 'gull,' from a Germanic bird name. The two senses therefore have different histories despite sharing one spelling.

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