From Longman Dictionary of Contemporary Englishmawmaw /mɔː $ mɒː/ noun [countable] 1 formalTAKE something FROM somebody something which seems to swallow or use up things completelymaw of Millions of dollars were poured into the maw of defense spending.2 literaryHBA an animal’s mouth or throat
Examples from the Corpus
maw• A roaring, dripping maw yawned with monstrous hunger.• Hicks waited until the last Dumpster was almost full and then personally conveyed two cardboard barrels of bakery refuse to its maw.• He had twisted in that grip, tried to bring the gun round to bear on that monstrous maw.• Jaq noted how wistfully Grimm regarded what he rated as gourmet ambrosia disappearing into the monster's maw remorselessly.• They were about to enter the maw of the criminal justice system.• Hands vanished around the room, yanked from the maws of a closing trap.• The lumber collected behind a boom, from which it was lifted by crane into the maw of the mill.Origin maw Old English maga 