hew
1 of 2verb
ˈhyü 
hewed; hewed or hewn ˈhyün ; hewing
; hewing transitive verb
1
: to cut with blows of a heavy cutting instrument
roughly hewn logs
2
: to cut down by blows of an ax
hew a tree
3
: to give form or shape to with or as if with heavy cutting blows
hewed their farms from the wilderness
J. T. Shotwell
J. T. Shotwellintransitive verb
1
: to make cutting blows (as with an ax)
2
: conform, adhere
hew to tradition
—often used in the phrase hew to the line no pressure … on newspapers to hew to the official line — N.Y. Times Mag.
hewer noun
HEW
2 of 2abbreviation
Department of Health, Education, and Welfare
Synonyms
Verb
- chop (down)
- cut (down)
- fell
- mow
See all Synonyms & Antonyms 
Example Sentences
Verb They hewed logs to build a cabin. The walls are built of stones hewn by skilled craftsmen.
Recent Examples on the Web Cate Mcquaid, BostonGlobe.com, 28 July 2022 At the Freadom Festival, events will hew to a core tenet that books and reading should be inclusive and accessible. oregonlive, 31 May 2022 Trail runners flock to 51 miles of in-town trails, including miles of dirt paths that hew to the edge of the Deschutes River. Jen Rose Smith, Washington Post, 10 June 2022 Some producers hew closely to the strict model, while most others apply it in part. Ellen Bhang, BostonGlobe.com, 7 June 2022 Still, discovering a new style star among the men, where many still hew to a more classic black tie formula, feels like a rarer occurrence. Vogue, 25 Mar. 2022 The state court said the new maps should hew as closely as possible to the prior districts while complying with legal requirements. Jess Bravin, wsj.com, 23 Mar. 2022 While there are plenty of public health precautions in place, for most fans, the event will hew to familiar contours as 49 mushers traverse the northern route to Nome. Zachariah Hughes, Anchorage Daily News, 27 Feb. 2022 At first glance, the video seems to hew to her usual content template of promotions for her wellness workshops, or cozy carseat vlogs offering vaguely inspirational messages. Ej Dickson, Rolling Stone, 9 Feb. 2022 See More
Verb
Historic mansions that hew to their original interiors can seem sepulchral. Cate Mcquaid, BostonGlobe.com, 28 July 2022 At the Freadom Festival, events will hew to a core tenet that books and reading should be inclusive and accessible. oregonlive, 31 May 2022 Trail runners flock to 51 miles of in-town trails, including miles of dirt paths that hew to the edge of the Deschutes River. Jen Rose Smith, Washington Post, 10 June 2022 Some producers hew closely to the strict model, while most others apply it in part. Ellen Bhang, BostonGlobe.com, 7 June 2022 Still, discovering a new style star among the men, where many still hew to a more classic black tie formula, feels like a rarer occurrence. Vogue, 25 Mar. 2022 The state court said the new maps should hew as closely as possible to the prior districts while complying with legal requirements. Jess Bravin, wsj.com, 23 Mar. 2022 While there are plenty of public health precautions in place, for most fans, the event will hew to familiar contours as 49 mushers traverse the northern route to Nome. Zachariah Hughes, Anchorage Daily News, 27 Feb. 2022 At first glance, the video seems to hew to her usual content template of promotions for her wellness workshops, or cozy carseat vlogs offering vaguely inspirational messages. Ej Dickson, Rolling Stone, 9 Feb. 2022 See More Word History
Etymology
Verb
Middle English, from Old English hēawan; akin to Old High German houwan to hew, Lithuanian kauti to forge, Latin cudere to beat
First Known Use
Verb
before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1
Phrases Containing hew
Kids Definition
hew
verb
ˈhyü
hewed or hewn
ˈhyün
; hewing 1
: to chop down
hew trees
2
: to shape by cutting with an ax
hew logs
Medical Definition
HEW
abbreviation
Department of Health, Education, and Welfare
hewing
verb
1
as in mowing
to bring down by cutting laboriously hewed trees to build their rude log cabins Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
- mowing
- felling
- demolishing
- bulldozing
- flattening
- razing
- levelling
- cutting (down)
- leveling
- chopping (down)
- tearing down
2
as in adhering
to hold to something firmly as if by adhesion decided to hew to the original plan rather than change everything Synonyms & Similar Words
- adhering
- sticking
- clinging
- cleaving
- gluing
- glueing
- fusing
- cohering
- binding
- uniting
- fastening
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
- falling
- dropping
- loosening
- Court of Criminal Appeal
- court of delegates
- court of domestic relations
- court of dustyfoot
- court of errors
- Court of Exchequer
- court of first instance
- court of honor
- court of inquiry
- Court of King's Bench
- court of law
- court of love
- court of pie
- court of piepoudre
- court of piepowder
- court of queen's bench
- court of record
- court of requests
- court of review
- Court of Session
- court of sessions
- Court of St. James's
- Court of the Constable and Marshal
- Court of the Lord Lyon
- Court of Wards