different between pew vs pbw

English

Pronunciation

• (US, UK) IPA^(key): /pju?/
• Rhymes: -u?
• Homophone: Pugh

Etymology 1

From Middle English pewe, borrowed from Middle French puie (“balustrade”), from Latin podia, plural of podium (“parapet, podium”), from Ancient Greek ?????? (pódion, “little foot”), from ???? (poús, “foot”). Doublet of podium.

Noun

pew (plural pews)

1. One of the long benches in a church, seating several persons, usually fixed to the floor and facing the chancel.

2. An enclosed compartment in a church which provides seating for a group of people, often a prominent family.
   • 2006 September 11, Sheryl Gay Stolberg, "Bush Mourns 9/11 at Ground Zero as N.Y. Remembers", The New York Times [1]

     At St. Patrick’s Cathedral, firefighters in dress blues and white gloves escorted families to the pews for a memorial service, led by Mr. Bloomberg, to honor the 343 Fire Department employees killed on 9/11.

3. Any structure shaped like a church pew, such as a stall, formerly used by money lenders, etc.; a box in a theatre; or a pen or sheepfold.
   • 1659, John Milton, Considerations Touching the Likeliest Means to Remove Hirelings Out of the Church, London: L. Chapman,^[2]

     the sheep in their pews

4. (colloquial, humorous) A chair; a seat.

Derived terms

Translations

Verb

pew (third-person singular simple present pews, present participle pewing, simple past and past participle pewed)

1. To furnish with pews.

   (Can we find and add a quotation of Ash to this entry?)

Etymology 2

Possibly from French putois (“skunk”) or puer (“to stink”) or a clipping of putrid.

Alternative forms

• P U, P.U., peeyoo, phew

Interjection

pew

1. An expression of disgust in response to an unpleasant odor.

Translations

Etymology 3

Onomatopoeic.

Interjection

pew

1. Representative of the sound made by the firing of a gun.

References

• Webster's Seventh New Collegiate Dictionary, Springfield, Massachusetts, G.&C. Merriam Co., 1967

Anagrams

• EWP, WEP, wep

English

Noun

pbw

1. Initialism of parts by weight.

Anagrams

• PWB, WPB