[sin.ew] n [ME sinewe, fr. OE seono; akin to OHG senawa sinew, Skt syati he binds] (bef. 12c) 1: tendon; esp: one dressed for use as a cord or thread
2. obs: nerve 3 a: solid resilient strength: power "astonishing intellectual ~ and clarity --Reynolds Price" b: the chief supporting force: mainstay--usu. used in pl. "providing the ~s of better living --Sam Pollock"
[2]sinew vt (ca. 1614): to strengthen as if with sinews