The cry a cat makes, or to make that sound; historically, to confine or shut up.
From Old English and Old French miaul, mimicking cat sounds. Separately, mew (to confine) comes from Old French muer (to moult), from Latin mutare (to change), referring to hawks shedding feathers in confined spaces.
Mew is two completely different words that sound identical—one is the cat sound (onomatopoeia), and one comes from hawks molting in cages, so when a cat cries, it's using the voice of a prisoner.
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