mews

mews
\ \ [14] In former times, a mew was a place where trained falcons were kept (etymologically the word means ‘moulting-place’; it came from Old French mue, a derivative of muermoult’, which was descended from Latin mūtārechange’). In the latter part of the 14th century the Royal Mews were built in London on the site of what is now Trafalgar Square, to house the royal hawks. By Henry VII’s time they were being used as stables, and from at least the early 17th century the term mews was used for ‘stabling around an open yard’. The modern application to a ‘street of former stables converted to human dwellings’ dates from the early 19th century.
\ \ Cf.MOULT, MUTATE

Word origins - 2ed. . 2005.

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  • mews — [myo͞oz] pl.n. 〚after the Mews, the royal stables in London, built on the site where royal hawks were mewed: see MEW1〛 [usually with sing. v.] Chiefly Brit. a) stables or carriage houses, now often converted into dwellings, grouped around a court …   Universalium

  • mews — meaning ‘a set of buildings around an open yard’, is usually called a mews and is treated as a singular noun. (The word is originally the plural of mew meaning ‘a cage for hawks’.) It is often used attributively (before a noun) to describe a… …   Modern English usage

  • Mews — Mews, n. sing. & pl. [Prop. pl. of mew. See {Mew} a cage.] An alley where there are stables; a narrow passage; a confined place. [Eng.] [1913 Webster] Mr. Turveydrop s great room . . . was built out into a mews at the back. Dickens. [1913… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • mews — [ mjuz ] (plural mews) noun count MAINLY BRITISH a small street with houses, especially one where there used to be STABLES (=buildings for horses) …   Usage of the words and phrases in modern English

  • mews — (n.) stables grouped around an open yard, 1630s, from Mewes, name of the royal stables at Charing Cross, built 1534 on the site of the former royal mews (attested from late 14c.), where the king s hawks were kept (see MEW (Cf. mew) (n.2)).… …   Etymology dictionary

  • mews — ► NOUN (pl. same) Brit. ▪ a row of houses or flats converted from stables in a small street or square. ORIGIN from MEW(Cf. ↑mew): first referring to the royal stables on the site of the hawk mews at Charing Cross, London …   English terms dictionary

  • mews — [myo͞oz] pl.n. [after the Mews, the royal stables in London, built on the site where royal hawks were mewed: see MEW1] [usually with sing. v.] Chiefly Brit. a) stables or carriage houses, now often converted into dwellings, grouped around a court …   English World dictionary

  • mews — [mju:z] n [plural] BrE [Date: 1800 1900; Origin: mew place where hawks are kept (14 20 centuries), from French mue, from muer to have the feathers fall out ] a small street or area surrounded by buildings in a city, where horses used to be kept,… …   Dictionary of contemporary English

  • Mews — For other uses, see Mew (disambiguation). Not to be confused with Muse. Dunworth Mews, a street of mews houses in Notting Hill, London Mews is a primarily British term formerly describing a row of stables, usually with carriage houses below and… …   Wikipedia

  • mews — [[t]mju͟ːz[/t]] N COUNT: oft in names (mews is both the singular and the plural form.) A mews is a street or small area surrounded by houses that were originally built as stables. [BRIT] The house is in a secluded mews. ...her London mews house …   English dictionary

  • mews — UK [mjuːz] / US [mjuz] noun [countable] Word forms mews : singular mews plural mews British a small street with houses, especially one where there used to be stables (= buildings for horses) …   English dictionary

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