HAW Synonyms: 42 Similar and Opposite Words

haw

verb

Definition of haw

as in to hem

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Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Recent Examples of haw In the midst of it all, young children decked out in Algerian gear hemmed and hawed at their idols. — Shreyas Laddha, Kansas City Star, 12 June 2026 Still, this is 10 straight minutes of absolute peppering, and 10 minutes of hemming and hawing from Schefter. — Zach Dean Outkick, FOXNews.com, 10 Apr. 2026 People with an instinct for action are those who jump in and tackle things head-on, rather than hemming and hawing about it. — Kate Morgan, Forbes.com, 11 Mar. 2026 Capable partners are good partners, unlike so many of our traditional allies, who wring their hands and clutch their pearls, hemming and hawing about the use of force. — Efrat Lachter, FOXNews.com, 2 Mar. 2026 Barring America losing a war or experiencing a crushing economic depression, one imagines that even the anti-Trump candidates will again be doing the hemming and hawing that made so many of the 2024 versions so ineffective. — Chris Stirewalt, The Hill, 18 Mar. 2025

Recent Examples of Synonyms for haw

Verb

Rather than chasing one elusive number at a time, mathematicians study how these Ramsey numbers grow as the graphs become larger—and how to hem them in.

— Sam Macdonald, Scientific American, 15 July 2026
Analysts say Burnham's policies, like Starmer's, could be hemmed in by bond market investors opposed to any additional borrowing.

— Kim Hjelmgaard, USA Today, 22 June 2026

Definition of hem

Verb

Surrounded by hundreds of butterflies fluttering between tropical plants inside the Powell Gardens Conservatory, Heidi Boehm watched as visitors stopped, looked upward and waited for one to land nearby.

— Sophia Buonpane, Kansas City Star, 1 Aug. 2026
Attending immigration court in Harlingen, Texas, on days where there are mega master hearings can mean waiting outside in the hot, crowded entrance for over an hour until the lobby can accommodate the next wave of people.

— ABC News, ABC News, 1 Aug. 2026

Definition of wait

Verb

This is someone who vacillates between different ways of being.

— Hunter Ingram, Variety, 1 Aug. 2026
Then, as Bowman contemplated his future throughout the season, vacillating between retiring at the end of this season or next, the notion that Zilisch could replace him picked up steady traction through the summer.

— Jordan Bianchi, New York Times, 23 July 2026

Definition of vacillate

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havocs

haw

hawed

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“Haw.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/haw. Accessed 3 Aug. 2026.

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Synonyms of haw

verb

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