blew

See also: Blew

English

Pronunciation

• enPR: bl(y)o͞o, IPA^(key): /bl(j)uː/
• (Wales) IPA^(key): /blɪu̯/

• Audio (US)

  (file)

• Rhymes: -uː
• Homophone: blue

Verb

blew

1. simple past of blow
2. (now colloquial) past participle of blow

Noun

blew (countable and uncountable, plural blews)

1. Obsolete form of blue.

Adjective

blew (comparative more blew, superlative most blew)

1. Obsolete form of blue.

Cornish

Etymology

Cognate with Breton blev and Welsh blew. Of uncertain ultimate origin and lacking Celtic cognates outside of Brythonic. Perhaps related to Ancient Greek φλόος (phlóos, “rind, bark”). Or, related to Lithuanian plùskos (“hair”) and Proto-West Germanic *fleus (“fleece”), from Proto-Indo-European *plews- (“to pull out, pluck”).

Noun

blew f (singulative blewen)

1. hair

Synonyms

• gols

Middle English

Adjective

blew

1. Alternative form of blewe

Welsh

Etymology

From Middle Welsh blew; cognate with Breton blev and Cornish blew. Of uncertain ultimate origin and lacking Celtic cognates outside of Brythonic. Perhaps related to Ancient Greek φλόος (phlóos, “rind, bark”). Or, related to Lithuanian plùskos (“hair”) and Proto-West Germanic *fleus (“fleece”), from Proto-Indo-European *plews- (“to pull out, pluck”).

Pronunciation

• (North Wales) IPA^(key): /ˈbleːu̯/
• (South Wales) IPA^(key): /ˈblɛu̯/

• Audio

  (file)

• Rhymes: -ɛu̯

Noun

blew m (collective, singulative blewyn)

1. hair, hairs

   Synonym: gwallt

2. bristles

   Synonym: gwrych

3. fur

   Synonyms: ffwr, manflew

4. blades of grass

   Synonyms: blew cae, blew glas

5. fishbones

Derived terms

• achub y blewyn a cholli’r bwrn (“to be penny-wise and pound-foolish, to falsely economise”)
• amranflew (“eyelash”)
• at y blewyn (“to a hair's breadth, precisely”)
• blew amrant (“eyelashes”)
• blew cae (“blades of grass”)
• blew glas (“blades of grass”)
• blew llygaid (“eyelashes”)
• blew Medi (“gossamer”)
• blew pen (“head hair”)
• blew pigog (“stingers of a nettle”)
• blewiach (“fine hairs, down”)
• blewog (“furry”)
• blew'r arffed (“pubic hair”)
• blew'r gên (“beard”)
• blewyn da ar (“in good condition”)
• brethyn blew (“haircloth”)
• bwrw blew (“to moult, to shed hair”)
• di-flewyn-ar-dafod (“straight-talking”)
• dim blewyn ar ei dafod (“straight-talking”)
• edau flew (“mohair”)
• ffolicl blewyn (“hair follicle”)
• goflew (“fine hair, down”)
• gweld blew ei lygaid (“to mistakenly believe one sees things”)
• heb blewyn ar ei dafod (“straight-talking, outspoken”)
• hel blew ceimion (“to wander around”)
• hollti blew (“to split hairs”)
• hollti blewyn yn bedwar ar ddeg (“to exaggerate, to lie”)
• i'r blewyn (“to a hair's breadth, precisely”)
• lled blewyn (“hair's breadth”)
• manflew (“fur, down”)
• sbort pen blewyn (“rushlight”)
• trwch blewyn (“hair's breadth”)
• tynnu blewyn cwta (“to draw lots”)
• tynnu blewyn o drwyn (“to provoke, to goad”)

 

Mutation

Welsh mutation
radical	soft	nasal	aspirate
blew	flew	mlew	unchanged
Note: Some of these forms may be hypothetical. Not every possible mutated form of every word actually occurs.