See Also: throe(medicine)
throe(dictionary)

throe (iou)



throe noun & verb. Also (earlier) throw, throwe. ME.
[Perh. rel. to Old English Trea, Trawu threat, calamity, infl. by Trowian suffer.]
A. noun (now usu. in pl.).
A violent physical spasm or pang, esp. in the pain and struggle of childbirth or death. Also, a spasm of feeling; mental agony; anguish. ME.
Sir W. Scott The throes of a mortal and painful disorder. C. Sangster Tumultuous throes Of some vast grief.
transf. & fig. An intense or violent struggle, esp. preceding or accompanying the production or creation of something. L17.
J. P. Stern Winter's last throes before spring sets in.
Phrases: in the throes of struggling with the task of, in the painful and violent process of.
b. verb.
verb trans. Cause to suffer throes, agonize. rare. Only in 17.
verb intrans. Suffer throes, struggle painfully. E17.