also spelt heyggva, Sæm. (Kb.); pres. höggr, mod. also heggr; pl. höggum, mod. höggvum; pret. hjó, hjótt, hjó, mod. hjó, hjóst, hjó; pl. hjoggum and hjuggum, mod. only the latter form; a Norse pret. hjoggi = hjó, D. N. ii. 331; pret. subj. hjöggi and heyggi, mod. hjyggi; part. högginn, mod. but less correct, höggvinn, which also is freq. in the Editions; but in the MSS. usually abbreviated, högḡ, höggͭ, = högginn, höggit: [not recorded in Ulf.; A. S. heawan; Engl. hew, hack; Hel. hauwan; O. H. G. houwan; Germ. hauen; Dan. hugge; Swed. hugga]:—höggva denotes to strike with an edged tool, slá and drepa with a blunt one:

1. to strike, smite with a sharp weapon; höggr sá er hlífa skyldi, he strikes who ought to shield, a saying: to deal blows with a weapon, hann görði ymist hjó eða lagði, Nj. 8; hann hjó títt ok hart, passim; höggva báðum höndum, 29; h. sverði, öxi, strike with, i. e. to brandish, a sword, axe, Fms. v. 168, Gs. 6; h. til e-s, to deal a blow to one, smite, Grág. ii. 7, Al. 78; h. e-n bana-högg, to smite with a deathblow, Eg. 220: to cut down, destroy, þeir hjuggu drekann mjök, Fms. vii. 249: to maim, ef maðr höggr hund eða björn til háðungar manni, Grág. ii. 121; h. rauf á hjálmi, Al. 78: the phrases, h. sik í lends manns rétt, Fms. ix. 399: spec. phrases, höggðú allra manna armastr, nú hjóttu Noreg ór hendi mér! Ek þóttumk nú Noreg í hönd þér höggva, Ó. H. 184.

2. to put to death, behead, Fms. vii. 250, 251, xi. 148–152: to kill, högg þú hestinn, Nj. 92: to kill cattle, slaughter, h. bú, búfé, kýr, geitr, naut, Landn. 293, Eg. 532, Fms. vi. 95, xi. 123, Fb. i. 186: höggva strandhögg, Eg. 81.

3. to fell trees; höggva skög, Grág. ii. 294; h. keyrivönd, id.: absol., hann hefir höggit í skógi mínum, Nj. 98, passim: to cut grass (rarely), ef maðr höggr hey á hlut annars manns, N. G. L. ii. 112; upp höggvit gras, cut grass, Dipl. iv. 9, Jm. 7, (else always slá of mowing.)

4. to bite, of snakes (högg-ormr); Miðgarðsormr hjó hann til bana, Edda 155; naðran hjó fyrir flagbrjóskat, 76: of a wound from a boar’s tusk, ef svín höggr mann, Gþl. 190: the phrase, h. hest sporum, to prick a horse with the spur, Mag. 9.

II. with prepp.; höggva af, to hew or cut off; h. af kampa ok skegg, to cut off the beard, K. Þ. K.; h. af lim, Sks. 555; to kill, slaughter, h. af fé, Ld. 64; höggva af sér, to parry off, Fms. v. 13:—h. niðr, to cut down, i. 38; to kill, butcher, vii. 261, Orkn. 120; hjuggu þeir niðr mungát sitt (by cutting casks to pieces), Fms. vii. 249:—h. upp, to cut down a tree, Greg. 48, Matth. iii. 10; h. upp skip, to break a ship up, Fms. iii. 228, ix. 381; h. upp hús, to break a house up, viii. 166:—h. ór, to cut out, metaph. to make even; vóru margar greinir þær er ór þurfti at h. milli biskups ok leikmanna, Bs. i. 751; láta konung ok erkibiskup ór h. (smooth) sagðar greinir, 773.

III. reflex. to be cut, hacked; hjósk skjöldr Helga, Dropl. 24.

2. recipr. to exchange blows, fight; þeir hjuggusk nokkura stund, Háv. 56; þeir h. til í ákafa, Bret. 74.

3. metaph., höggvask í mitt mál, to begin abruptly, in the middle of a sentence; taka heldr at upphafi til, en höggvask í mitt mál, Landn. 275, v. l.; ef enn höggsk nokkurr í ok mælir svá, cuts in, objects, Skálda 168: þótti honum nú taka mjök um at höggvask, things looked hard, Grett. 142; þótti honum hart um höggvask, Bs. i. 423.