haw

Picture someone pausing, wavering, or trying not to answer directly: that is the most common sense of "haw." You will usually meet it in the phrase "hem and haw," which describes the sounds people make when they are unsure or delaying. It also has an older farming use. As a command to working animals such as horses or oxen, "haw!" means "turn left." In everyday English, the hesitation sense matters most, while the animal command appears mainly in historical or rural contexts.

The word "haw" lives in a few different corners of English. Its most common use is connected with hesitation in speech. To "haw" is to pause and make doubtful sounds while speaking, usually because you are unsure, nervous, or trying to avoid a clear answer. This is why it is so often paired with "hem" in the phrase "hem and haw." Together, the two words imitate the little throat-clearing and filler sounds people make when they cannot decide what to say next.

The word also has a specific meaning in traditional animal handling. Along with its partner "gee," it serves as a direction given to draft animals. "Gee" tells a horse or ox to turn right, while "haw" tells it to turn left. This sense comes from older farming life, though it still appears in some rural and specialized settings.

There are also noun senses. A "haw" can be the small red fruit of the hawthorn tree. In older or technical language, it can also mean the third eyelid, especially in animals. So the word may point to a speaker who is hesitating, a driver calling for a left turn, a berry on a thorny tree, or, more rarely, part of an animal's eye.