raw Meaning, Definition & Usage

  1. noun informal terms for nakedness
    birthday suit; altogether.
    • in the raw
    • in the altogether
    • in his birthday suit
  2. adjective satellite (used especially of commodities) being unprocessed or manufactured using only simple or minimal processes
    natural; rude.
    • natural yogurt
    • natural produce
    • raw wool
    • raw sugar
    • bales of rude cotton
  3. adjective satellite having the surface exposed and painful
    • a raw wound
  4. adjective not treated with heat to prepare it for eating
  5. adjective satellite not processed or refined
    • raw sewage
  6. adjective satellite devoid of elaboration or diminution or concealment; bare and pure
    naked.
    • naked ambition
    • raw fury
    • you may kill someone someday with your raw power
  7. adjective satellite brutally unfair or harsh
    • received raw treatment from his friends
    • a raw deal
  8. adjective satellite not processed or subjected to analysis
    crude.
    • raw data
    • the raw cost of production
    • only the crude vital statistics
  9. adjective satellite untempered and unrefined
    • raw talent
    • raw beauty
  10. adjective satellite hurting
    sensitive; tender; sore.
    • the tender spot on his jaw
  11. adjective satellite unpleasantly cold and damp
    cutting; bleak.
    • bleak winds of the North Atlantic
  12. adjective satellite used of wood and furniture
    unsanded.
    • raw wood
  13. adjective satellite lacking training or experience
    new.
    • the new men were eager to fight
    • raw recruits
  14. adjective satellite (used informally) completely unclothed
    bare-assed; bare-ass; stark naked; naked as a jaybird; peeled; in the buff; in the altogether; in the raw.

WordNet

Raw adjective
Etymology
AS. hreáw; akin to D. raauw, LG. rau, G. roh, OHG. r&omac;, Icel. hrar, Dan. raa, Sw. rå, L. crudus, Gr. kre`as flesh, Skr. kravis raw flesh. Cf. Crude, Cruel.
Wordforms
comparative Rawer ; superlative Rawest
Definitions
  1. Not altered from its natural state; not prepared by the action of heat; as, raw sienna; specifically, not cooked; not changed by heat to a state suitable for eating; not done; as, raw meat.
  2. Hence: Unprepared for use or enjoyment; immature; unripe; unseasoned; inexperienced; unpracticed; untried; as, raw soldiers; a raw recruit.
    Approved himself to the raw judgment of the multitude. De Quincey.
  3. Not worked in due form; in the natural state; untouched by art; unwrought. Specifically: (a) Not distilled; as, raw water. Obs. Bacon. (b) Not spun or twisted; as, raw silk or cotton. (c) Not mixed or diluted; as, raw spirits. (d) Not tried; not melted and strained; as, raw tallow. (e) Not tanned; as, raw hides. (f) Not trimmed, covered, or folded under; as, the raw edge of a piece of metal or of cloth.
  4. Not covered; bare. Specifically: (a) Bald. Obs. "With scull all raw." Spencer (b) Deprived of skin; galled; as, a raw sore. (c) Sore, as if by being galled.
    And all his sinews waxen weak and raw Through long imprisonment. Spenser.
  5. Disagreeably damp or cold; chilly; as, a raw wind. "A raw and gusty day." Shak.
Raw noun
Definitions
  1. A raw, sore, or galled place; a sensitive spot; as, to touch one on the raw.
    Like savage hackney coachmen, they know where there is a raw. De Quincey.

Webster 1913