What does chawer mean?
Chawer is a chiefly Scottish noun denoting the jaw, particularly the lower jaw, and by extension a person’s jaw or chin. Its best-known use is in older Scottish writing and dialect, where it describes the strongly recognizable lower part of the face: a heavy jaw, a square chin, or the place where someone might be struck. In modern usage the word is uncommon and has a regional or archaic flavor, so jaw and chin are usually more natural choices for most speakers. Although chawer superficially resembles the unrelated verbs chaw and chower, its grammatical role and basic meaning are different: it names an anatomical feature rather than an act of chewing or a person performing that act. The term is consequently useful as an example of how regional vocabulary can preserve a distinction that standard English handles with several separate words.
nounA chiefly Scottish noun for the jaw, especially the lower jaw; it can also refer to a person’s jaw or chin.
- The jaw, especially the lower jaw.
- A person’s jaw or chin.
"The old man had a broad, square chawer."
"He struck the fellow squarely on the chawer."
"The sculptor gave the portrait a firm, prominent chawer."
The regular plural is chawers, though the word is chiefly Scottish and uncommon in contemporary usage.
"The portraits are notable for their heavy chawers."
Chawer preserves an older Scots sense of “jaw,” a word now much more familiar than the local term that replaced it.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Where does chawer come from?
Chawer comes from Scots usage and has the same broad Germanic ancestry as jaw. Its form reflects the northern British development of Middle English chaver, a word related to the jaw and ultimately connected with Old English terms for the jaw or cheek. Parallel forms survive in other Germanic languages, including German Kiefer, which likewise refers to the jawbone or jaw.
How chawer is actually used
Chawer is chiefly Scottish and uncommon in modern general English. It may sound literary, archaic, or dialectal, and most contemporary speakers will use jaw or chin instead.
Easily confused with chawer
A chaw is something chewed or a bite of food, whereas a chawer is the jaw or chin.
A chower is a person who chews, while a chawer names the jaw or chin.