noun

screw

skroo

noun

A metal fastener with a spiral thread, driven in with a twisting motion to hold materials together.

"He tightened the shelf with a few extra screws."

"The screw had rusted and wouldn't budge."

A ship's propeller.

"The vessel's single screw churned up the harbor water."

(slang) A prison guard.

"The inmates called the night-shift screw "Old Bill.""

verb

To attach or fasten something using a screw, or by twisting it into place.

"She screwed the light bulb into the socket."

"Screw the cap back on tightly."

(informal) To cheat, mistreat, or ruin things for someone.

"The contractor screwed him over on the final bill."

How to Use Screw

Learner’s notes

In plain EnglishMost commonly the metal fastener with a spiral groove, or the act of twisting something into place; informally it also means to cheat someone or to mess something up.

Common mistake

"Screw up" (mess up) and "screw someone over" (cheat them) are common phrasal uses — don't take them literally.

Common pairings

tighten a screw screw something in screw someone over a loose screw

Word Forms

screwed past tense, screwn past tense, screws plural, screws singular

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He tightened the shelf with a few extra _____.

Etymology

Traces back through Old French escroue ("nut, screw-socket") to a Latin word for a female pig — the corkscrew shape reminded people of a boar's anatomy, oddly enough. A separate Germanic strand meaning "to cut" likely blended in along the way.

Antonyms

unscrew

Related Words

unscrew

Rhymes for screw

crew brew Drew Grew shrew Hebrew Andrew unscrew corkscrew Pettigrew

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