haw

IPA/hɔː/
KK[hˈɔ]IPA/hɔː/

haw — noun

1. A small red fruit that grows on hawthorn bushes, sometimes used in jams, jellies

1.nounC1
Definition

A small red fruit that grows on hawthorn bushes, sometimes used in jams, jellies, or traditional herbal remedies.

Example

Walid picked a handful of red haw berries from the hedge on his way home.

haw berry as a countable fruit

Amira used dried haw berries to make a soothing tea for her grandmother's cough.

Common collocations
  • dried haw berries
  • mashed haw berries
  • ripe haw berries
  • red haw berries
  • wild haw berries
Synonyms
  • hawthorn berry

    full name; 'haw' is the shortened form

  • mayberry

    dialectal name, mostly in British regional English

Grammar Patterns

haw berries (collective)

a haw (individual fruit)

Usage Note

Usually found in plural form (haw berries). The singular 'a haw' is less common outside of botanical writing.

Common Mistakes

I saw a hawk berry on the bush.
I saw a haw berry on the bush.
'haw' and 'hawk' are different words; a hawk is a bird of prey.

2. A thorny bush or small tree with clusters of white or pink flowers and small red

2.nounC1
Definition

A thorny bush or small tree with clusters of white or pink flowers and small red fruits, often grown as a hedge or for wildlife.

Example

A large haw grew beside the barn, its branches covered in white spring blossoms.

Reuben planted a line of haw bushes along the edge of his vegetable patch.

haw as a hedging plant

Common collocations
  • haw hedge
  • haw bush
  • haw tree
  • flowering haw
Synonyms
  • hawthorn

    more common name for the same plant

  • maythorn

    regional British name, especially for Crataegus monogyna

  • quickthorn

    another name used for hedging varieties

Usage Note

Can refer to any of several hundred species in the genus Crataegus. 'Haw' as a tree name is less common than 'hawthorn', though they mean the same plant.

Common Mistakes

The thorns on a haw are harmless.
The thorns on a haw are very sharp.
hawthorns have sharp thorns, not harmless ones.

3. A thin, transparent inner eyelid that moves sideways across the eye to clean and

3.nounC2
Definition

A thin, transparent inner eyelid that moves sideways across the eye to clean and protect it, most noticeable in horses and some other mammals.

Example

The horse's haw slid sideways across its eye when dust blew into the stable.

the haw as a protective eye structure

Dewi watched the mare's third eyelid flick across to clear a speck of dirt.

Common collocations
  • the haw slides across
  • show its haw
  • check the haw
  • swollen haw
Synonyms

Usage Note

Technically called the nictitating membrane. 'Haw' is the common term used by horse owners and veterinarians. Visible for longer than a brief moment may indicate illness or injury.

Common Mistakes

The horse blinked its haw.
The horse's haw slid across its eye.
the haw is the membrane itself, not a body part that blinks.

haw — verb

Word family

Synonym discussion

Sense: verb/1

All four words describe a delay in action or speech, but they differ in focus and register. 'Hesitate' is the broadest and most neutral term — it simply means a brief pause before acting ('She hesitated at the door before entering'). 'Hum and haw' (or the single verb 'haw') adds the idea of audible uncertainty, a drawn-out pause filled with throat-clearing sounds; it is informal and distinctly British. 'Equivocate' is more formal and implies a deliberate intention to avoid a clear answer, often for strategic or dishonest reasons ('The politician equivocated when pressed about the tax plan'). 'Waver' suggests changing one's mind back and forth rather than a simple delay ('He wavered between accepting and declining the offer'). 'Stall' focuses on intentionally delaying a decision or answer by making excuses or changing the subject ('Stop stalling and give us your answer'). For everyday uncertainty, use 'hesitate'; for aimless, audible delay, use 'hum and haw'; and for calculated evasiveness, choose 'equivocate'.

hesitate ↗equivocate ↗waver ↗stall ↗

Common collocations

Phrases

Prepositions

Etymology

Old EnglishEnglish

The noun 'haw' for the hawthorn berry and tree comes from Old English 'haga' meaning 'hedge' or 'enclosure', since hawthorn bushes were commonly planted as hedges around fields. The same root gave us 'hedge' and 'hawthorn' (literally 'hedge-thorn'). The use of 'haw' for the nictitating membrane of horses has a separate, uncertain origin — it may have come from an old sense meaning 'something that covers or veils', or from the shape of the membrane resembling a hawthorn leaf. The verb 'haw' (to hesitate) is thought to be imitative of the sound a person makes when pausing uncertainly — a short, throaty noise that became paired with 'hum' in the 15th or 16th century to describe drawn-out hesitation.