Mow is a verb meaning to cut down or trim with a cutting tool, especially grass or crops, often in a broad, sweeping motion. It can also refer to cutting down plants in other contexts or to the action of moving over a surface in a way that removes or piles up material. The term emphasizes a repetitive, mechanical cutting action.
"He will mow the lawn this afternoon."
"Farmers mow the fields to harvest the hay."
"The landscaper mowed the tall weeds near the fence."
"She mowed the garden to keep the hedges neat."
Mow traces to Old English mowan, related to the German mahen and Dutch melden, with roots in the Proto-Germanic word *mawjan- meaning ‘to mow, cut down’. The verb appears in Old English in forms such as mowan, mowen, and mow; early senses centered on cutting or clipping vegetation. Through Middle English, the sense broadened to include cutting crops, grass, or hay, and also to laying waste or striking down, as in warfare or metaphorical usage. By the 16th–17th centuries, mow was well established in rural English to describe the act of cutting grasses and crops as part of land management and farming cycles. The noun mow (as in a manger) is from different origins and unrelated to mowing; the verb sense evolved alongside agricultural practices, remaining productive in agricultural and landscape contexts. Over time, ‘mow’ developed collocations such as mow the lawn, mow the field, and mowing season, while in American English it remains a staple verb across gardening and farming. The evolution reflects historical mowing technologies (scythes, sickles, later lawn mowers) and the cultural emphasis on orderly management of grass and crops. First known use as a verb in Old English appears in texts dating before the 12th century, with continued usage in Middle English and modern farming discourse.
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Words that rhyme with "Mow"
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Mow is pronounced with a long 'o' sound: IPA /moʊ/ in US and AU and /məʊ/ in UK. It is a monosyllable with a steady, elongated vowel (no stress shift). Your lips start rounded for the /o/ and then relax slightly toward a neutral ending; keep the nasal /m/ at the start and avoid adding an extra vowel after the /oʊ/. Listen to the 'o' glide and aim for a single, smooth vowel sound. Audio clue: think 'go' without the /g/.
Common mistakes include pronouncing it as a clipped short /m/ only, like 'mm,' or turning it into two syllables (mo-wuh). Some learners insert a schwa after the /oʊ/ as in /mɔːwə/ and some accidentally attach a /w/ release after the vowel. Correction: keep it as a single, tense /oʊ/ vowel after /m/, with no extra consonant after the vowel; practice with the mouth-position guide to avoid an unintended vowel after the vowel sound. Practice by saying 'mow' in a continuous stream, then attach to phrases like ‘mow the lawn.’
US and AU share /moʊ/ (or /moː/ in some dialects) with a clear long vowel; UK typically uses /məʊ/ with a slightly more centering toward /əʊ/ and less rhotic influence. In some Northern British dialects, the vowel may be shorter or closer to /ɒʊ/ depending on the region. Accent differences are mainly vowel quality and length, not consonant changes. You’ll hear the same initial /m/ and ending silent after the vowel, but the vowel’s exact tongue height and lip rounding vary by accent.
The difficulty lies in producing a clean, long diphthong /oʊ/ that smoothly transitions from bilabial /m/ without adding a second syllable or a schwa. Learners often shorten the vowel or insert an extra sound after it (‘mow-uh’). Achieve accuracy by focusing on the glide from /o/ to /ʊ/ in some accents, keeping the lips rounded and the jaw steady, and practicing the uninterrupted flow from the nasal onset to the vowel nucleus.
Does 'Mow' ever pronounce as 'mow' with a silent 'w' in certain contexts? No. In standard pronunciation, the spelling 'mow' represents the /m/ onset followed by the /oʊ/ (US/AU) or /əʊ/ (UK) nucleus. The 'w' is not a separate consonant but part of the vowel representation in the orthography. So you pronounce it as one syllable, with no trailing consonant sound after the diphthong. Practice by linking to phrases: ‘mow the lawn’ and ‘mowing the field.’
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