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

Wedding dress bustles easily hem a train after the ceremony so a bride can seamlessly move among guests and dance into the night.

— Shelby Wax, Vogue, 23 Sep. 2026
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

Definition of hem

Verb

Much of the film plays out in close-up as Alex watches, plays, thinks, hesitates.

— Bilge Ebiri, Vulture, 5 Oct. 2026
But the clearest lesson from Iowa is that states that engage early and set smart terms come out ahead, while those that hesitate watch the investment head elsewhere.

— Jeff Danielson, Chicago Tribune, 3 Oct. 2026

Definition of hesitate

Verb

The thieves arrived with two trucks, and the bottles were ripe for the taking as they were already packed and waiting to get shipped to Antinori’s export markets.

— Catherina Gioino, Fortune, 9 Oct. 2026
In emergency medicine, waiting for absolute certainty is not always the safer choice.

— Dara Kass, Washington Post, 9 Oct. 2026

Definition of wait

Verb

The strength came as oil prices continued to vacillate because of uncertainty about when the war with Iran will allow the global energy industry to return to normal.

— Stan Choe, Los Angeles Times, 9 Oct. 2026
OpenAI has vacillated between wanting to be the big consumer company and knowing that the revenue is in enterprise.

— Nilay Patel, The Verge, 8 Oct. 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 13 Oct. 2026.

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Synonyms of haw

verb

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