What does trow mean?
Trow is an archaic and chiefly Scottish verb meaning “to believe,” “to think,” or “to know.” Its best-known use is in the expression “I trow,” which conveys a belief with a slight suggestion of uncertainty: the speaker thinks that something is true but may not know it for certain. The word can also appear in constructions such as “I trow that...” in older writing and in dialogue intended to sound traditional, literary, or regional. Because it is now unusual in ordinary contemporary English, trow often carries a deliberately antique flavor, though its use does not necessarily imply affection or humor. Historically, it belongs to the same Germanic family as true, trust, truth, and troth, words in which the sense of confidence or fidelity remains visible. Learning trow is useful not only for reading older English but also for recognizing why a character may say “I trow” rather than the modern “I think.”
verbTo think, believe, or suppose something to be true, often with a suggestion of uncertainty. It is especially familiar from the expression “I trow,” meaning “I think” or “I believe.”
- To think, believe, or suppose something to be true.
"I trow the road ahead is longer than we were told."
"I trow the road ahead is longer than we were told."
"The old sailor would trow that no storm could shake the boat."
The phrase “I trow” preserves an old Germanic idea of trust: trow is a cousin of true, trust, truth, and troth.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Where does trow come from?
The word comes through Middle English trowen, “to believe” or “trust,” from Old English trēon. Its roots lie in Proto-Germanic *trewōną, “to trust,” and in the wider family represented by true, trust, truth, and troth. In Scottish usage it developed the distinctive meaning “to think or believe,” and its use in the phrase “I trow” made it especially recognizable in older English.
How trow is actually used
Chiefly Scottish and now dated or literary. The word commonly conveys belief that is not entirely certain and is more evocative than the neutral modern “think.”
Easily confused with trow
Trow means to think or believe, whereas throw means to propel or hurl an object.