saw

saw

saw¹ [sô]

n.

[ME sawe < OE sagu, akin to Ger säge, Du zaag < IE base * sek-, to cut, > L secare, to cut, OE seax, knife]

1.

a) a cutting tool, of various shapes and sizes and worked by hand or machinery, consisting essentially of a thin blade or disk of metal, usually steel, the edge of which is a series of sharp teeth

b) any of various tools or devices somewhat like this but with a sharp edge instead of teeth

2. a machine for operating a saw or saws

vt.

sawed, sawed or Chiefly Brit. sawn, sawing

1. to cut or divide with a saw

2. to shape or form with a saw

3. to make sawlike cutting motions through (the air, etc.)

4. to operate or produce with a to-and-fro motion suggestive of that used in working a saw [to saw a knife through meat, to saw a tune on a fiddle]

vi.

1. to cut with or as with a saw or as a saw does

2. to be cut with a saw [wood that saws easily]

3. to make sawlike cutting motions

——————

☆ saw wood

Slang to snore or sleep

sawer

n.

saw² [sô]

n.

[ME sawe < OE sagu: see SAY]

an old saying, often repeated; maxim; proverb

SYN.- SAYING

saw³ [sô]

vt., vi.

pt. of SEE¹