thew
English
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thew¹
- /θjuː/ UK
- /θ(j)u/ US
Rhymes with -uː
Where it comes from
From Middle English theu, thew (“way of behaving towards others, bearing, manners; habit, practice; good manners, courtesy; characteristic act; characteristic, trait; custom, tradition; established rule, ordinance; injunction; moral character; (in the plural) set of moral principles, morals; moral quality, virtue or vice; might, power, strength”) [and other forms] (often in the plural form theus, thewes), from Old English þēaw (“general practice of a community, custom, usage; mode of conduct, behaviour, manner; (in the plural) customs, virtue”) [and other forms], from Proto-West Germanic *þauw, from Proto-Germanic *þawwaz (“custom; habit”); further etymology uncertain, tentatively identified by the Etymologisches Wörterbuch des Althochdeutschen (Etymological Dictionary of Old High German) as a reflex of an s-less variant of Proto-Indo-European *(s)tāu-, *(s)te- (“to stand; to place”), from *steh₂- (“to stand (up)”).
Cognates
* Old Frisian thāw
* Old High German dau, thau (“coercion; discipline; tuition”)
* Old Saxon thau (“custom, usage; habit”)
noun thews
- An attractive physical attribute; also, physical, mental, or moral strength or vigour. I felt the thews of Anakim, / The pulses of a Titan's heart.
- An aspect of the body which indicates physical strength; hence, muscle and/or sinew; muscular development. [C]are I for the limbe, the thevves, the ſtature, bulke and big aſſemblance of a man: giue me the ſpirit […]
- A way of behaving; hence, a characteristic, a trait. He with good thevves and ſpeaches vvell applyde, / Did mollifie, and calme her raging heat.
- A good characteristic or habit; a virtue. This poeticall licence is a ſhrewde fellow, and couereth many faults in a verſe, […] and to conclude it turkeneth all things at pleaſure, for example, ydone for done, adowne for downe, orecome for ouercome, tane for taken, power for powre, heauen for heavn, thewes for good partes or good qualities,
thew²
- /θjuː/ UK
- /θ(j)u/ US
Rhymes with -uː
Where it comes from
From Middle English theuen, thewe (“to instruct in morals or values; to teach, train”) [and other forms], from theu, thew (noun) (see etymology 1) + -en (suffix forming the infinitives of verbs).
verb thews · thewing · thewed
- To instruct (someone) in morals or values; also (more generally) to chastise or discipline (someone); to teach or train (someone).
Thew³
Where it comes from
From Middle English thew (“thrall, slave”).
proper noun Thews
- A surname from Middle English.
Talk about this word "thew." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/thew. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026. thew. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/thew "thew." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/thew.Cite this
@misc{thew_2026,
title = {thew},
howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
year = {2026},
url = {https://micwyn.com/word/thew},
urldate = {2026-11-06}
}
