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
pawed; pawing; paws
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
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
Deborah Sontag, New York Times, 25 Mar. 2024
According to Japanese news outlet Asahi Shimbun, a trail of yellowish-brown paw prints leading away from the tank was discovered Monday morning by an employee at Nomura Plating Fukuyama Factory.
—Andee Capellan, NBC News, 13 Mar. 2024
Initially, Frannie couldn’t even stand on her own legs, so Bram helped her by placing her atop a container and teaching her how to put weight on her paws.
—Sydney Page, Washington Post, 2 Mar. 2024
From funny Easter bunny antics and paw print cookies to a hip-hoppity trail, these clever Easter Bunny ideas are sure to make your little bunny's Easter extra special.
—Laura Fenton, Parents, 21 Mar. 2024
The cat can inspire the human by knocking over the paint and walking on the canvas, getting paw prints all over it.
—Gieson Cacho, The Mercury News, 21 Mar. 2024
On Sunday night, a Nomura Plating factory worker uncovered a trail of yellow-brown paw prints that were traced back to the toxic container.
—Charna Flam, Peoplemag, 14 Mar. 2024
As was our car on the drive back — despite the probable frostbite in our hands (and paws).
—Travis M. Andrews, Washington Post, 12 Mar. 2024
Both have eyes and snouts, tails and paws, four legs and fur.
—Jaron Lanier, The New Yorker, 1 Mar. 2024
Rachel Treisman, NPR, 5 Apr. 2024
Its magnetic closure is one of the easiest for anyone with limited mobility and dexterity to fasten, and its straps adjust in the front (no need to paw around on your back).
—Malia Griggs, Glamour, 28 Feb. 2024
Boasting an all-star cast including Taraji P. Henson, Kristen Bell, Chris Rock, Serena Williams, and Kim Kardashian and her two kids North and Saint West, the film pawed its way to $23 million domestically, as per Comscore.
—Lester Fabian Brathwaite, EW.com, 1 Oct. 2023
The video — which has over 2 million likes — featured the cats passing by the Eiffel Tower, seeing Amsterdam, riding on a gondola in Venice, Italy, and pawing around London.
—Zoey Lyttle, Peoplemag, 25 Jan. 2024
On stage alongside Shepherd pawing at various vintage keyboards, analog synths, and tape echo machines were Dan Snaith (aka Caribou), Kieran Hebden (aka Four Tet), Kara-Lis Coverdale, Hinako Omori, and more, offering a final eulogy to the saxophone colossus.
—Pitchfork, 20 Dec. 2023
In a video of the incident, originally shared on Instagram by resident Maddie Church, the bear is shown outside a sliding glass door pawing at the handle.
—Kirsty Hatcher, Peoplemag, 29 Nov. 2023
Gathered in a corner of the square, a small group of teenagers paw the ground.
—Pino Gagliardi, The Hollywood Reporter, 22 Sep. 2023
Chance and White completed therapy pet training through Love on a Leash, and soon, the pooch was pawing through the halls of Shriners Children's Lexington as a certified therapy dog, visiting kids with limb differences like him.
—Kelli Bender, Peoplemag, 5 Sep. 2023
Noun
Purple paw prints, awards for class contributions, proliferated on the refrigerator.
—Deborah Sontag, New York Times, 25 Mar. 2024
According to Japanese news outlet Asahi Shimbun, a trail of yellowish-brown paw prints leading away from the tank was discovered Monday morning by an employee at Nomura Plating Fukuyama Factory.
—Andee Capellan, NBC News, 13 Mar. 2024
Initially, Frannie couldn’t even stand on her own legs, so Bram helped her by placing her atop a container and teaching her how to put weight on her paws.
—Sydney Page, Washington Post, 2 Mar. 2024
From funny Easter bunny antics and paw print cookies to a hip-hoppity trail, these clever Easter Bunny ideas are sure to make your little bunny's Easter extra special.
—Laura Fenton, Parents, 21 Mar. 2024
The cat can inspire the human by knocking over the paint and walking on the canvas, getting paw prints all over it.
—Gieson Cacho, The Mercury News, 21 Mar. 2024
On Sunday night, a Nomura Plating factory worker uncovered a trail of yellow-brown paw prints that were traced back to the toxic container.
—Charna Flam, Peoplemag, 14 Mar. 2024
As was our car on the drive back — despite the probable frostbite in our hands (and paws).
—Travis M. Andrews, Washington Post, 12 Mar. 2024
Both have eyes and snouts, tails and paws, four legs and fur.
—Jaron Lanier, The New Yorker, 1 Mar. 2024
Verb
Symptoms of eye damage include squinting, closing one eye or pawing at their eyes, redness, inflammation or cloudiness and watery eyes or discharge.
—Rachel Treisman, NPR, 5 Apr. 2024
Its magnetic closure is one of the easiest for anyone with limited mobility and dexterity to fasten, and its straps adjust in the front (no need to paw around on your back).
—Malia Griggs, Glamour, 28 Feb. 2024
Boasting an all-star cast including Taraji P. Henson, Kristen Bell, Chris Rock, Serena Williams, and Kim Kardashian and her two kids North and Saint West, the film pawed its way to $23 million domestically, as per Comscore.
—Lester Fabian Brathwaite, EW.com, 1 Oct. 2023
The video — which has over 2 million likes — featured the cats passing by the Eiffel Tower, seeing Amsterdam, riding on a gondola in Venice, Italy, and pawing around London.
—Zoey Lyttle, Peoplemag, 25 Jan. 2024
On stage alongside Shepherd pawing at various vintage keyboards, analog synths, and tape echo machines were Dan Snaith (aka Caribou), Kieran Hebden (aka Four Tet), Kara-Lis Coverdale, Hinako Omori, and more, offering a final eulogy to the saxophone colossus.
—Pitchfork, 20 Dec. 2023
In a video of the incident, originally shared on Instagram by resident Maddie Church, the bear is shown outside a sliding glass door pawing at the handle.
—Kirsty Hatcher, Peoplemag, 29 Nov. 2023
Gathered in a corner of the square, a small group of teenagers paw the ground.
—Pino Gagliardi, The Hollywood Reporter, 22 Sep. 2023
Chance and White completed therapy pet training through Love on a Leash, and soon, the pooch was pawing through the halls of Shriners Children's Lexington as a certified therapy dog, visiting kids with limb differences like him.
—Kelli Bender, Peoplemag, 5 Sep. 2023
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'paw.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
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
Phrases Containing paw
Dictionary Entries Near paw
Cite this Entry
“Paw.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/paw. Accessed 18 Apr. 2024.
Copy Citation
Kids Definition
paw
1 of 2 noun1
: 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 verb1
: 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
Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for paw
Nglish: Translation of paw for Spanish Speakers
Britannica English: Translation of paw for Arabic Speakers
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Merriam-Webster unabridged
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