meow

noun

me·​ow mē-ˈau̇ How to pronounce meow (audio)
variants chiefly US meow or British miaow
1
: the cry of a cat
2
: a spiteful or malicious remark
meow intransitive verb
(chiefly US) or British miaow

Examples of meow in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
These examples are automatically compiled from online sources to illustrate current usage. Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Then, eight days after the storm, Jonathon returned to their property to assess the damage and heard a meow. Meghan Overdeep, Southern Living, 18 Oct. 2024 Candice Bergen made her mark quickly and then punctuated it with a pointed meow. Ben Travers, IndieWire, 16 Sep. 2024 The cat meows at me and bird-watches by the window facing the street. R29 Team, refinery29.com, 5 Aug. 2024 These days every Fantasia screening begins with a cacophony of meows — timed by the audience to start and stop at black leader. Alison Foreman, IndieWire, 1 Aug. 2024 See all Example Sentences for meow 

Word History

Etymology

imitative

First Known Use

1582, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of meow was in 1582

Dictionary Entries Near meow

Cite this Entry

“Meow.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/meow. Accessed 13 Nov. 2024.

Kids Definition

meow

noun
me·​ow mē-ˈau̇ How to pronounce meow (audio)
: the characteristic sound of a cat
meow verb

More from Merriam-Webster on meow

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