sow

noun

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\ ˈsau̇

Definition of sow

(Entry 1 of 2)

1 : an adult female swine also : the adult female of various other animals (such as a bear)

2a : a channel that conducts molten metal to molds

b : a mass of metal solidified in such a mold : ingot

sow

verb

\ ˈsō

sowed; sown\ ˈsōn

\ or sowed; sowing

Definition of sow (Entry 2 of 2)

intransitive verb

1 : to plant seed for growth especially by scattering

2 : to set something in motion : begin an enterprise

transitive verb

1a : to scatter (seed) upon the earth for growth broadly : plant sense 1a

b : to strew with or as if with seed

c : to introduce into a selected environment : implant

2 : to set in motion : foment sow suspicion

3 : to spread abroad : disperse

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Examples of sow in a Sentence

Verb Every year we sow corn. Farmers sowed the fields with corn. We'll sow in the early spring.

Recent Examples on the Web: Noun For cool-season color, sow and plant alyssum, bachelor’s button, calendula, coreopsis, delphinium, hollyhock, and poppy. — Thad Orr, Sunset Magazine, "Your Essential Winter Gardening To-Do List," 10 Feb. 2020 If everyone’s going to put on Joker makeup and sow bedlam in the streets, how does that isolate Trump? — Kyle Smith, National Review, "Trump Wins Again," 5 Feb. 2020 Within them are covered almost every external function of a modern economy, from flying planes to America and trading sows with Iceland to fishing in far-flung seas. — Karla Adam, Washington Post, "What changes after Brexit Day on Jan. 31?," 28 Jan. 2020 Pork prices tend to go down in the fall because sows tend to have larger litters in cooler weather, so there are more pigs reaching market weight in the fall (there's a 10-month lag between breeding and slaughter). — Laura Reiley, chicagotribune.com, "Ham for the holidays: Your Thanksgiving is safe despite a global pork shortage," 26 Nov. 2019 Before the epidemic, however, many pigs sold for $250 or more apiece, particularly breeding sows, according to government data. — Keith Bradsher, New York Times, "China Responds Slowly, and a Pig Disease Becomes a Lethal Epidemic," 17 Dec. 2019 The state police’s fish and wildlife division reported that someone killed a black bear sow and left its body off a forest service road near Waldport. — oregonlive, "State police searching for person who killed black bear, abandoned carcass," 17 Dec. 2019 That is harder now because the population of breeding sows has collapsed. — The Economist, "Soaring pork prices hog headlines and sow discontent in China," 12 Sep. 2019 Hog houses for 15 sows stank as did a pile of cow manure accumulated over a winter, at least once disturbed. — Edward Lotterman, Twin Cities, "Real World Economics: Making the best of a stinky situation," 17 Nov. 2019 Recent Examples on the Web: Verb But the new policy has already sowed fear and confusion, leading some people on temporary visas to eschew services they are entitled to, such as campus health care for students. — Carolyn Said, SFChronicle.com, "Worker, student visa renewals add questions about using public benefits," 18 Feb. 2020 The success of the Vaporfly shoes has sown frustration at competing sportswear brands. — Khadeeja Safdar, WSJ, "Nike Vaporfly Shoes Won’t Be Banned From Olympics," 31 Jan. 2020 The Bass and Nellee Hooper, all of whom were sowing the seeds of what would be labeled trip-hop by the mid-90s. — Ron Hart, Billboard, "Neneh Cherry Looks Back on Boundary-Busting 'Raw Like Sushi' Album," 30 Jan. 2020 Having a President running for re-election with a pending impeachment may sow politically damaging doubts among voters. — Philip Elliott, Time, "Democrats Hit Pause on Moving Impeachment to Senate, Citing Concerns Over Fair Trial," 19 Dec. 2019 Pseudo-scientific blogs sow distrust of science and medicine. — Krista Kafer, The Denver Post, "Kafer: The internet has changed our lives for the better too," 25 Oct. 2019 Those accounts sought to sow discord within the United States, and rarely made mention of Russia. — Donie O'sullivan, CNN, "Iran has online disinformation operations, too," 8 Jan. 2020 America's intelligence agencies agree: Russian President Vladimir Putin's government meddled in the 2016 presidential election, aiming to sow social discord and boost Trump's anti-establishment candidacy. — NBC News, "The biggest stories of the decade — according to you," 26 Dec. 2019 Pakistan has continued to use militant proxies to sow discord and dissension. — Ved Nanda, The Denver Post, "Nanda: Narendra Modi’s hearty welcome in Houston should be echoed in Kashmir," 27 Sep. 2019

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'sow.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

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Last Updated

21 Feb 2020

Cite this Entry

“Sow.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/sow. Accessed 29 Feb. 2020.

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More Definitions for sow

sow

noun

English Language Learners Definition of sow

(Entry 1 of 2)

: a fully grown female pig

sow

verb

English Language Learners Definition of sow (Entry 2 of 2)

: to plant seeds in an area of ground

: to cause (fear, doubt, etc.) to affect many people

See the full definition for sow in the English Language Learners Dictionary

sow

noun

\ ˈsau̇

Kids Definition of sow

(Entry 1 of 2)

: an adult female pig

sow

verb

\ ˈsō

sowed; sown\ ˈsōn \ or sowed; sowing

Kids Definition of sow (Entry 2 of 2)

1 : to plant or scatter (as seed) for growing We sow corn every spring.

2 : to cover with or as if with scattered seed for growing The farmer sowed a field with oats.

3 : to set in motion : cause to exist Both groups are sowing bad feelings.

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sow

Definition of sow

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