throw

Etymology 1

From Middle English throwen, thrawen, from Old English þrāwan (“to turn, twist”), from Proto-West Germanic *þrāan, from Proto-Germanic *þrēaną (“to twist, turn”), from Proto-Indo-European *terh₁- (“to rub, rub by twisting, twist, turn”). Cognate with Scots thraw (“to twist, turn, throw”), West Frisian triuwe (“to push”), Dutch draaien (“to turn”), Low German draien, dreien (“to turn (in a lathe)”), German drehen (“to turn”). Displaced Middle English werpen.

verb

1. (transitive) To hurl; to release (an object) with some force from one's hands, an apparatus, etc. so that it moves rapidly through the air.
   throw a shoe; throw a javelin; the horse threw its rider
2. (transitive) To eject or cause to fall off.
3. (transitive) To move to another position or condition; to displace.
   throw the switch
4. (transitive, ceramics) To make (a pot) by shaping clay as it turns on a wheel.
   Through practice, you'll learn how to add the right amount of water as you throw a pot, and your fingers will feel when the pot has reached the proper thickness. 2009-01-19, Linda Franz, Basic Pottery Making: All the Skills and Tools You Need to Get Started, Stackpole Books
5. (transitive, cricket, of a bowler) To deliver (the ball) illegally by straightening the bowling arm during delivery.
6. (transitive, computing) To send (an error) to an exception-handling mechanism in order to interrupt normal processing.
   If the file is read-only, the method throws an invalid-operation exception.
7. (sports, video games) To intentionally lose a game.
   The tennis player was accused of taking bribes to throw the match.
   Four pairs of women's doubles badminton players, including the Chinese top seeds, have been ejected from the Olympic tournament for trying to throw matches in an effort to secure a more favourable quarter-final draw. August 1 2012, Peter Walker, Haroon Siddique, Eight Olympic badminton players disqualified for 'throwing games', Guardian Unlimited
8. (sports, transitive) (of a game where one's role is throwing something) to perform in a specified way in (a match).
   The pitcher threw a perfect game.
9. (transitive, informal) To confuse or mislead.
   The deliberate red herring threw me at first.
   "Jann, why does he hate me so much?" That question threw me. I was expecting a lunatic yelling profanities. 1999, Jan Blackstone-Ford, The Custody Solutions Sourcebook, page 196
10. (transitive, figurative) To send desperately.
    Their sergeant threw the troops into pitched battle.
    Stoke threw men forward in numbers as they attempted to find a way back into the game, and Mark Schwarzer was forced into a low save from Huth's close-range effort. December 28, 2010, Marc Vesty, “Stoke 0-2 Fulham”, in BBC
11. (transitive) To imprison.
    The magistrate ordered the suspect to be thrown into jail.
    The standard method of dealing with an addict was to arrest him, throw him into a cell, and leave him until the agonizing pangs of withdrawal were over. 1993, Margaret McKee, Fred Chisenhall, Beale black & blue: life and music on black America's main street, page 30
12. (transitive) To organize an event, especially a party.
    She was known for throwing the craziest parties in college.
    And now, Clevelanders hoping to bring the Rock Roll Hall of Fame to their city are throwing a bash to commemorate the 34th birthday of disc Jockey Alan Freed's "Moondog Coronation Ball". March 1, 1986, “Bash Planned”, in Evening News
    Should you be interested, for whatever reason, it will tell you how to throw a party for your 40-year-old husband or your 100-year-old great-grandmother. It also describes games that can be played at various kinds of parties[…] 1979 July, Working Mother, page 72
13. (transitive, intransitive) To roll (a die or dice).
    The kings came to the agreement between themselves that they would cast lots by the dice to determine who should have this property, and that he who threw the highest should have the district. The Swedish king threw two sixes, and said King Olaf need scarcely throw. 1844, Snorri Sturluson, translated by Samuel Laing, Heimskringla
14. (transitive) To cause a certain number on the die or dice to be shown after rolling it.
    The kings came to the agreement between themselves that they would cast lots by the dice to determine who should have this property, and that he who threw the highest should have the district. The Swedish king threw two sixes, and said King Olaf need scarcely throw. 1844, Snorri Sturluson, translated by Samuel Laing, Heimskringla
15. (transitive, bridge) To discard.
    Declarer threw his queen of spades on the high diamond. He then won the last three tricks with his ace, queen and nine of hearts behind East's jack third. January 4, 1990, “Sharp coup overcomes trump split”, in The Washington Times
16. (martial arts) To lift the opponent off the ground and bring him back down, especially into a position behind the thrower.
17. (transitive, said of one's voice) To change in order to give the illusion that the voice is that of someone else.
    “Then, when I throw my voice, when I speak as someone who's quite different from me, it starts to feel very authentic.” April 13, 2005, Leon Neyfakh, “BOOKENDS: Will the Real Jonathan Safran Foer Please Stand Up”, in Harvard Crimson
18. (transitive) To show sudden emotion, especially anger.
    Bill runs into the kitchen and tells Dad that Erik is throwing a tantrum. He tells Bill to go back and watch his program and to ignore his brother. Fifteen minutes later, Erik is still screaming[…] 1991, Janet L. Davies, Ellen Hastings Janosik, Mental health and psychiatric nursing: a caring approach
    In 1975, pregnant with the second of her three children, she threw a hissy fit to get on a trip to Boston for elected officials. 19 Aug 1996, “Entertaining Mrs Stone”, in New York Magazine, volume 29, number 32
19. (transitive) To project or send forth.
    Warwick left the undertaker's shop and retraced his steps until he had passed the lawyer's office, toward which he threw an affectionate glance. 1900, Charles W. Chesnutt, chapter I, in The House Behind the Cedars
    In other European cities the president visited this week, people waited for his motorcade to pass to throw insults at him, requiring the police to intervene with batons, water cannons and tear gas. June 11, 2007, Claude Salhani, “Analysis: Irony of Bush's European tour”, in UPI
20. To put on hastily; to spread carelessly.
    O'er his fair limbs a flowery vest he threw. 1726, Alexander, transl. Pope, “Book III”, in The Odyssey, translation of original by Homer, line 596; republished in The Complete Poetical Works of Alexander Pope, Boston, New York: Houghton, Mifflin and Company, 1902, page 543
21. To twist two or more filaments of (silk, etc.) so as to form one thread; to twist together, as singles, in a direction contrary to the twist of the singles themselves; sometimes applied to the whole class of operations by which silk is prepared for the weaver.
    A person named Crocket endeavoured to throw silk at Derby in the year 1702 ; but his machinery was imperfect 1829, Stephen Glover, Thomas Noble, The History of the County of Derby
22. (baseball, slang, of a team, a manager, etc.) To select (a pitcher); to assign a pitcher to a given role (such as starter or reliever).
    I have a minor quibble with Gleason's decision to throw Lefty Williams in Game Eight with the Series in the balance. 2009, Michael T. Lynch, Jr., It Ain't So: A Might-Have-Been History of the White Sox in 1919 and Beyond, page 63
23. (transitive) To install (a bridge).
    1860, Fredrika Bremer (trans. Mary Howitt), Life in the Old World, v. 1, p. 164. […] across the rapid smaragdus-green waters, pouring onward into the country, are thrown three bridges ...
24. (obsolete, Scotland, Northern England) To twist or turn.
    a thrown nail
25. (American football) Synonym of pass
26. (transitive, of a punch or boxing combination) To deliver.
    ···not only did I not want to throw a punch at him, I wanted to give him a solid silver token of thanks··· 1941, Newsweek, volume 18, page 54
27. (transitive, veterinary medicine) Of animals: to give birth to (young).
    At the end of the normal gestation period the cow threw two calf mummies as large as cats. 1916, Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association, volume 49
    They can kid twice a year if things are right, and they often throw twins and triplets. 2008, Monte Dwyer, Red In The Centre: The Australian Bush Through Urban Eyes, Monyer Pty Ltd, page 200

noun

1. The flight of a thrown object.
   What a great throw by the quarterback!
2. The act of throwing something.
   With an accurate throw, he lassoed the cow.
   The gambler staked everything on one throw of the dice.
   If the expression is a throw, we unwind the stack seeking a handler expression. 2006, Hans-Wolfgang Loidl, Trends in Functional Programming, volume 5, page 62
3. One's ability to throw.
   He's got a girl's throw.
   He's always had a pretty decent throw.
4. A distance travelled; displacement.
   the throw of the piston
   The visibility of the screen image is affected by the length of throw of the projector, the type of projector, the intensity of the projector lamp, and the type of the screen. 1947, James Jerome Gibson, Motion Picture Testing and Research, number 7, page 49
5. A piece of fabric used to cover a bed, sofa or other soft furnishing.
6. A single instance, occurrence, venture, or chance.
   Football tickets are expensive at fifty bucks a throw.
7. (veterinary medicine) The act of giving birth in animals, especially in cows.

Etymology 2

From Middle English, from Old English þrāh, þrāg (“space of time, period, while”). Of uncertain origin. Perhaps related to Gothic 𐌸𐍂𐌰𐌲𐌾𐌰𐌽 (þragjan, “to run”).

noun

1. (obsolete) A moment, time, occasion.
2. (obsolete) A period of time; a while.

Etymology 3

See throe.

noun

1. Obsolete spelling of throe
   [W]e never know the full force of parental affection till our children are about to be taken from us. It is then that we discover how strongly they have entwined themselves round our hearts; when we behold the fixed eye, the pale lips, the convulsive throws of death distorting the countenance; or when with aching and throbbing hearts we deposit those who are a part of ourselves in the cold and silent grave. 1806 October, J. H. K., “Hints on the Manner in which Christian Parents should Improve the Death of Children”, in The Evangelical Magazine, volume XIV, London: […] [G. Auld] for Williams and Smith,[…], →OCLC, page 441

verb

1. Obsolete spelling of throe