Whew vs Thew - What's the difference?
whew | thew |
An expressive sound made indicating the release of one's inner tension; the release of breath; an expression of relief.
An expression of amazement or surprise.
* 1981 , , revised edition, chapter 1,
(UK, Scotland, dialect) To whistle with a shrill pipe, like a plover.
English onomatopoeias
Muscle or sinew.
* 1927 , , Arrow, 2008, page 247
* 1960 , , Low-Lands
A good quality or habit; virtue.
An attractive physical attribute, especially muscle; mental or moral vigour.
As verbs the difference between whew and thew
is that whew is to whistle with a shrill pipe, like a plover while thew is to oppress; enslave.As an interjection whew
is an expressive sound made indicating the release of one's inner tension; the release of breath; an expression of relief.As a noun thew is
a bondman; a slave.As an adjective thew is
bond; servile.whew
English
Interjection
(en interjection)- (from strenuous labour) Whew! That box weighs a ton!
- (from intense concern) Whew! Thank goodness you?re safe! I thought something terrible had happened to you!
- (from fear of being seen) Whew! That cop didn?t see me! That was a close call!
- "...Now I must be off. Whew , it's as cold as the North Pole. Which way is the wind blowing?"
Synonyms
* (expressing relief of tension) fyew, phew, (chiefly UK) lumme * (expressing surprise) wowVerb
(en verb)thew
English
Etymology 1
From (etyl) (m), (m), from (etyl) . See (l), (l).Etymology 2
From (etyl) thewen, from (etyl) .Etymology 3
From (etyl) thew, theaw (often in plural thewes), from (etyl) .Noun
(en noun)- As a rule, the Purple Chicken catered for the intelligentsia of the neighbourhood, and these did not run to thews and sinews. On most nights in the week you would find the tables occupied by wispy poets and slender futurist painters...
- Fortune’s elf child and disinherited darling, young and randy and more a Jolly Jack Tar than anyone human could conceivably be; thews and chin taut against a sixty-knot gale with a well-broken-in briar clenched in the bright defiant teeth