as in to veer
to depart abruptly from a straight line or course
the ship yawed hard to the right when the rogue wave hit it broadside
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Recent Examples of yaw
Every other car feels solid, locked-in, makes downforce in a straight line, rather than yawed out.
—
Jeff Gluck, The Athletic, 3 July 2024
The plane yawed left and right, dipped and climbed to avoid the flocks, churning my stomach like a roller coaster.
—Smithsonian Magazine, 10 July 2023
The vertical stabilizer or rudder enables sideways yawing movement (and helps counter-act such movement from crosswinds) while horizontal stabilizers help pitch the aircraft up or down.
—Sebastien Roblin, Popular Mechanics, 16 Feb. 2023
Combining that data with a simple wind model, the algorithm projected that yawing each of the five upstream turbines about 20 degrees to the north would maximize the group's generation from the northwest winds.
—IEEE Spectrum, 1 July 2019
See All Example Sentences for yaw
Jeff Gluck, The Athletic, 3 July 2024
The plane yawed left and right, dipped and climbed to avoid the flocks, churning my stomach like a roller coaster.
—Smithsonian Magazine, 10 July 2023
The vertical stabilizer or rudder enables sideways yawing movement (and helps counter-act such movement from crosswinds) while horizontal stabilizers help pitch the aircraft up or down.
—Sebastien Roblin, Popular Mechanics, 16 Feb. 2023
Combining that data with a simple wind model, the algorithm projected that yawing each of the five upstream turbines about 20 degrees to the north would maximize the group's generation from the northwest winds.
—IEEE Spectrum, 1 July 2019
See All Example Sentences for yaw
Recent Examples of Synonyms for yaw
Verb
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Other fits have been hateful, veering into racist and antisemitic diatribes.—
Taijuan Moorman,
USA Today,
23 Oct. 2025
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In the first batch of episodes, only a handful of choices can meaningfully veer the story’s trajectory.—
Christopher Cruz,
Rolling Stone,
22 Oct. 2025
Verb
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But on closer inspection, modern details emerge—the flush sundeck a top the boat, curved windows on the main deck and helm area, and, almost impossibly, a fold-out beach club at the stern.—
Michael Verdon,
Robb Report,
22 Oct. 2025
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The ethereal structure comprises 297 stainless steel panels that had to be carefully fitted together and integrated with the curving staircases, whose wood elements evoke a ship’s deck.—
Blane Bachelor,
AFAR Media,
20 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Yaw.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/yaw. Accessed 30 Oct. 2025.
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