WORD OF THE DAY: HEW
verb | HYOO
What It Means
Hew is commonly used with to mean “to conform to or adhere to (something).” Hew on its own has several meanings having to do with cutting or shaping with a sharp tool, such as an ax. Both hewed and hewn are past participles of hew.
// The senator has always hewed closely to the party line.
// The explorers hewed logs for building cabins.
Examples of HEW
“The play hewed closely to the original script, with a few splashes of local colour.” — Chelsea Edgar, The New Yorker, 31 Jan. 2025.
Did You Know?
Without context, the contrasting meanings of hew may seem arbitrary. What does shaping something with an ax have to do with conforming or adhering to something? If you’re not a lumberjack, that’s okay, we’ll explain. The connection lies in the woodworking phrase “hew to the line,” where line refers to the mark along the length of a log indicating where to chop in order to shape a beam. “Hewing to the line,” literally, is cutting along the mark—adhering to it—until the side of the log is squared. In the 1800s, “hew to the line” was used figuratively as half of the idiom “hew to the line, let the chips fall where they may,” to advise someone to stay true to a course of action, whatever the consequences may be. Over time the latter half of the phrase has been, well, hewn off.
Merriam-Webster Dictionary
