paw

1 of 2

noun

1
: the foot of a quadruped (such as a lion or dog) that has claws
broadly : the foot of an animal
2
: a human hand especially when large or clumsy

paw

2 of 2

verb

pawed; pawing; paws

transitive verb

1
: to touch or strike at with a paw
2
: to feel or touch clumsily, rudely, or sexually
3
: to scrape or beat with or as if with a hoof
4
: to flail at or grab for wildly

intransitive verb

1
: to beat or scrape something with or as if with a hoof
2
: to touch or strike with a paw
3
: to feel or touch someone or something clumsily, rudely, or sexually
4
: to flail or grab wildly
5
: to search especially carelessly or roughly
pawed through the box of discount items

Examples of paw in a Sentence

Noun The dog injured his paw. Verb The bull was pawing the dirt. The celebrity couple was pawed by a mob of adoring fans. She claims that her boss got drunk and tried to paw her at the company Christmas party. A crowd of customers was pawing over the remaining sales items. She pawed through her purse to find her cell phone.
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Noun
Reggie's mouth appeared to be close to the size of Pearl's entire body and his paws close to the size of Pearl's head. Alexandra Koch, FOXNews.com, 4 May 2025 In the footage, Lola bats her new sibling with her paw, leading the pup to lose balance and fall over. Lydia Patrick, MSNBC Newsweek, 1 May 2025
Verb
In the clip, Mees opens the door for the yowling Crush, who quickly paws inside and jumps up on a side table next to Cora's crib. Kelli Bender, People.com, 21 Mar. 2025 The results, which were shared in a study, proved that there are enough unique DNA similarities between the two for there to be royal descendants of ancient Egyptian cats among the domestic felines pawing around the U.S. today. Kelli Bender, People.com, 3 Apr. 2025 See All Example Sentences for paw

Word History

Etymology

Noun

Middle English, from Anglo-French powe, poe

First Known Use

Noun

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Verb

15th century, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of paw was in the 14th century

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Paw.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/paw. Accessed 16 May. 2025.

Kids Definition

paw

1 of 2 noun
1
: the foot of a four-footed animal (as a lion or dog) having claws
also : the foot of an animal
2
: a human hand especially when large or clumsy

paw

2 of 2 verb
1
: to touch or strike with a paw
2
: to touch or handle clumsily or rudely
pawed the merchandise
3
: to scrape or beat with or as if with a hoof
4
: to grab at wildly
5
: to search especially carelessly or roughly
pawed through the box of letters

More from Merriam-Webster on paw

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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