Library / English Dictionary

PAW

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

 I. (noun) 

Sense 1

Meaning:

A clawed foot of an animal especially a quadruped

Classified under:

Nouns denoting animals

Hypernyms ("paw" is a kind of...):

animal foot; foot (the pedal extremity of vertebrates other than human beings)

Meronyms (parts of "paw"):

pad (the fleshy cushion-like underside of an animal's foot or of a human's finger)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "paw"):

forepaw (front paw; analogous to the human hand)

Holonyms ("paw" is a part of...):

canid; canine (any of various fissiped mammals with nonretractile claws and typically long muzzles)

felid; feline (any of various lithe-bodied roundheaded fissiped mammals, many with retractile claws)

Derivation:

paw (scrape with the paws)

Sense 2

Meaning:

The (prehensile) extremity of the superior limb

Example:

he extended his mitt

Synonyms:

hand; manus; mitt; paw

Classified under:

Nouns denoting body parts

Hypernyms ("paw" is a kind of...):

extremity (that part of a limb that is farthest from the torso)

Meronyms (parts of "paw"):

metacarpal vein; vena metacarpus (dorsal and palmar veins of the hand)

intercapitular vein; vena intercapitalis (veins connecting the dorsal and palmar veins of the hand or the dorsal and plantar veins of the foot)

arteria metacarpea; metacarpal artery (dorsal and palmar arteries of the hand)

arteria digitalis; digital arteries (arteries in the hand and foot that supply the fingers and toes)

palm; thenar (the inner surface of the hand from the wrist to the base of the fingers)

finger (any of the terminal members of the hand (sometimes excepting the thumb))

ball (a more or less rounded anatomical body or mass)

metacarpus (the part of the hand between the carpus and phalanges)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "paw"):

clenched fist; fist (a hand with the fingers clenched in the palm (as for hitting))

hooks; maulers; meat hooks (large strong hand (as of a fighter))

right; right hand (the hand that is on the right side of the body)

left; left hand (the hand that is on the left side of the body)

Holonyms ("paw" is a part of...):

homo; human; human being; man (any living or extinct member of the family Hominidae characterized by superior intelligence, articulate speech, and erect carriage)

arm (a human limb; technically the part of the superior limb between the shoulder and the elbow but commonly used to refer to the whole superior limb)

Derivation:

paw (touch clumsily)

 II. (verb) 

Sense 1

Meaning:

Touch clumsily

Example:

The man tried to paw her

Classified under:

Verbs of touching, hitting, tying, digging

Hypernyms (to "paw" is one way to...):

caress; fondle (touch or stroke lightly in a loving or endearing manner)

"Paw" entails doing...:

touch (make physical contact with, come in contact with)

Sentence frames:

Somebody ----s something
Somebody ----s somebody

Derivation:

paw (the (prehensile) extremity of the superior limb)

pawer (a person who handles or caresses in a clumsy or overfamiliar manner)

Sense 2

Meaning:

Scrape with the paws

Example:

The bear pawed the door

Classified under:

Verbs of touching, hitting, tying, digging

Hypernyms (to "paw" is one way to...):

grate; scrape (scratch repeatedly)

Sentence frame:

Somebody ----s something

Derivation:

paw (a clawed foot of an animal especially a quadruped)

Credits

 Context examples: 

The paws are small and tight with thick pads.

(Norwegian Elkhound, NCI Thesaurus)

Injured rats treated with morphine were sensitive for longer and to a higher degree; lighter touches caused them to withdraw their paws from the stimulus more often than saline-treated animals.

(Opioid Pain Relievers May Prolong Pain, NIH)

Buck, as was his custom, was lying in a corner, head on paws, watching his master’s every action.

(The Call of the Wild, by Jack London)

The white of the throat and paws and the spots over the eyes was dirty because of the persistent and ineradicable brown, while the eyes themselves were twin topazes, golden and brown.

(Love of Life and Other Stories, by Jack London)

The paw contains claws or nails and pads composed of a thick keratinized dermis covering collagenous adipose tissue.

(Paw, NCI Thesaurus)

“Now,” said Hands, “look there; there's a pet bit for to beach a ship in. Fine flat sand, never a cat's paw, trees all around of it, and flowers a-blowing like a garding on that old ship.”

(Treasure Island, by Robert Louis Stevenson)

The air was so clear and pleasant, and the horse seemed to like the idea of the ride so much himself, as he stood snorting and pawing at the garden-gate, that I had a great desire to go.

(David Copperfield, by Charles Dickens)

The handsome brute, just subdued, stood arching his neck under the tightly drawn rein, with one foot impatiently pawing the ground, and ears pricked up as if listening for the voice that had mastered him.

(Little Women, by Louisa May Alcott)

She was perched by his side, looking very smart in a flowered bonnet and grey travelling-dress, while in front of them the four splendid coal-black horses, with a flickering touch of gold upon their powerful, well-curved quarters, were pawing the dust in their eagerness to be off.

(Rodney Stone, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

We'd turn the laser on and they'd jump on an object, hold it with their paws and intensively bite it as if they were trying to capture and kill it, says lead investigator and Yale Associated Professor of Psychiatry Ivan de Araujo.

(Geneticists produce laser-activated killer mice, Wikinews)