DictionaryAI

harrow

SayHA-roh/ˈhæɹoʊ/UK/ˈhæɹəʊ/

Verbharrows, harrowing, harrowed

Noun pluralharrows

6 meanings of harrow

Practice

  1. 1
    deeply upsetverbtransitive
    To make someone very upset, scared, or troubled.

    Stories about the war still harrow my grandfather.

    She was harrowed by the thought that she could have saved him.

    UsagePeople usually say harrowing: a harrowing story.

    Similardistress, torment, trouble, plague, afflict

    Oppositecomfort, soothe, console

    Note
  2. 2
    farm toolnouncountable
    A heavy farm tool with teeth or disks, pulled over a plowed field to break up the soil.

    The farmer hitched the harrow to the tractor.

    Old harrows lay rusting behind the barn.

    Note
  3. 3
    break up soilverbtransitive
    To pull a harrow over a field to break up the soil.

    Dad will harrow the field before we plant the corn.

    They harrowed the garden twice to get rid of the lumps.

    Note

Less common meanings

  1. 4
    interjectionobsolete
    Used as a shout for help, or to show fear or alarm.
    Harrow, the flames, which me consume (said hee) / Ne can be quencht, within my secret bowels bee.
    1590, Edmund Spenser, The Faerie QueeneHere, Harrow is a cry for help or of pain and alarm.
    Note
  2. 5
    verbarchaic
    To tear or wound something badly, as a farm tool with sharp teeth would.
    my aged muscles harrow'd up with whips
    1707, Nicholas Rowe, The Royal Convert
  3. 6
    noun
    In war, a farm harrow turned upside down with its frame buried, used to stop the enemy.

Practice

Can you tell the meanings of harrow apart? Answer 4 quick questions from this page, or write your own sentence and AI will check it.

Origins

Meanings 1–3

From a Middle English word harwe, the name of the farm tool. Some of the verb meanings also come from the word harry.

Meaning 4

From Old French haro, a cry for help, from a Frankish word meaning “here”.

Checked 31 Oct 2026 · 3 facts