Meaning & use
mewing
Last updated
Meanings
noununcountableinformal
The practice of resting the tongue against the roof of the mouth to try to improve the shape of the jaw and face.
Grammar: Used without 'a' or 'the' when talking about the activity in general: 'Mewing is popular online.'
Patterns
- the practice of mewing
- mewing techniques
- try mewing
Some teenagers spend hours mewing in front of the mirror, hoping for a sharper jawline.
The video explains the basics of mewing and how to position your tongue.
Many dentists say mewing has not been proven to change bone structure in adults.
verbintransitiveinformal
Present participle of 'mew': to rest the tongue on the roof of the mouth as a supposed way to reshape the jaw.
Grammar: No object; often used in progressive tenses: 'He is mewing.'
Patterns
- be mewing
- start mewing
- mewing for hours
He sits in class mewing instead of paying attention.
She has been mewing every day for a month, but sees no difference.
Stop mewing and just smile for the photo.
Common combinations
- mewing trend
- The mewing trend has spread quickly on TikTok.
- practice mewing
- He practices mewing for twenty minutes each morning.
- mewing technique
- Her mewing technique involves pressing the whole tongue up.
- results of mewing
- The results of mewing are debated among experts.
Word family
- mew verb
- The base verb meaning to do this tongue posture.
- mewer noun
- A person who practices mewing.
Commonly confused: mewing or meowing?
mewing vs meowing
The sound a cat makes. 'Mewing' is about tongue posture, not cat sounds.
Practice
What does 'mewing' refer to in online discussions?
Choose one answer.
The correct answer is B because mewing is the practice of resting the tongue on the roof of the mouth to try to improve facial appearance. Option C is wrong because that is 'meowing', a sound made by cats.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “mewing”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.