Definitions

from The Century Dictionary.

  • noun A dialectal form of moss.
  • The royal stables in London, so called because built where the mews of the king's hawks were situated; hence, a place where carriage-horses are kept in large towns.
  • [Used as a singular.] An alley or court in which stables or mews are situated: as, he lives up a mews.

from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.

  • noun engraving An alley where there are stables; a narrow passage; a confined place.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • noun Plural form of mew.
  • noun UK An alley where there are stables; a narrow passage; a confined place.
  • noun falconry A place where birds of prey are housed.
  • verb Third-person singular simple present indicative form of mew.

from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.

  • noun street lined with buildings that were originally private stables but have been remodeled as dwellings

Etymologies

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License

Plural noun, see mew.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License

From Mewes, the name of the royal stables at Charing Cross.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License

See mew.

Support

Help support Wordnik (and make this page ad-free) by adopting the word mews.

Examples

  • I am living over a mews -- over a _mews_ with twelve pounds and a few shillings, and then _nothing_ -- nothing at all. "

    Once Aboard the Lugger 1925

  • The word mews dates back to Henry VIII's hawks, which were "mewed", or caged.

    Telegraph.co.uk - Telegraph online, Daily Telegraph and Sunday Telegraph 2011

  • Two hundred years later, bluff King Hal would turn out the hawks to make room for his horses; but as yet the word mews had its proper signification of a place where hawks were mewed or confined.

    The White Lady of Hazelwood A Tale of the Fourteenth Century Emily Sarah Holt 1864

  • Their little house sat secret and smug as a tomb, and the arched entrance to the mews was a black yawn beside it.

    More Work for the Undertaker Allingham, Margery, 1904-1966 1949

  • Their little house sat secret and smug as a tomb, and the arched entrance to the mews was a black yawn beside it.

    More Work for the Undertaker Allingham, Margery, 1904-1966 1949

  • This place was afterwards enlarged, and converted into stables for horses; but the old name remained, and now most stables in London are called mews, although the word is derived from falconry, and the hawks have long since flown away.

    Old English Sports 1892

  • The mews were the buildings where the hawks were kept when moulting, the word "mew" being a term used by falconers to signify to moult, or cast feathers; and the King's Mews, near Charing Cross, was the place where the royal hawks were kept.

    Old English Sports 1892

  • Pennant says that the royal stables in London were called mews from the fact that the buildings were formerly used for keeping the king's falcons.

    The Lady of the Lake Walter Scott 1801

  • Their mews were the loudest sound in the street at that moment, as there was little traffic, and the city was unusually quiet.

    Brits at their Best Cat 2010

  • His bird lives in a large cage he built called a mews and all aspects of the life of each bird, including capture, care and training, must be reported to state and federal agencies.

    Memphis Commercial Appeal Stories 2010

Comments

Log in or sign up to get involved in the conversation. It's quick and easy.