mowed
UK[məʊd]US[moʊd]
v
past tense and past participle of 'mow': to cut down grass or grain with a machine or a scythe.
Etymology
the verb 'mow' originates from the old english 'māwan', meaning to cut down grass or harvest with a scythe. this old english term is derived from the proto-germanic 'mēaną', which carries the same sense of cutting or reaping. this germanic root can be traced further back to the proto-indo-European root 'h₂meh₁-', meaning to mow or to cut, a root that also gave rise to the latin 'metere' (to reap, to harvest) and the ancient greek 'amáō' (to mow). the modern form 'mowed' represents the regular inflection of this ancient action verb, specifically marking the completed action of cutting grass.
Analysis
the word 'mowed' is the past tense and past participle form of the verb 'mow'. it is not productively segmented into smaller meaningful units in modern english. the base 'mow' is a simplex unit.
Examples
he mowed the lawn yesterday afternoon.
the fields had been mowed before the rain started.
we mowed down the tall weeds to clear a path.