Bow

/bəʊ/ intj, name, noun, verb

intj, name, noun, verb ·Very common ·Middle school level

Meaning at a glance

  • Primary sense: A weapon made of a curved piece of wood or other flexible material whose ends are connected by a string, used for shooting arrows.
  • Grammar: bow is listed as intj, name, noun, verb.
  • Nearest alternatives: prow, a string, accede, accede.
  • Useful contrasts: aft, midships, curtseys.
  • Usage evidence: People in this country make it a habit to bow when they meet.

How to use "bow"

  1. Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
  2. Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "bow" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
  3. Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.

Meaning check

  • Does the word fit the sentence's grammar?
  • Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
  • Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
  • Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?

Source and review context

This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "bow" in a final draft.

If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.

Before you rely on this definition

Read the first definition as a starting point, then check the example, synonyms, and part of speech before treating "bow" as the right word for your sentence.

If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "bow" with a nearby alternative so the final choice matches both meaning and reader expectation.

Compare nearby meanings

  • Use synonyms when you need a softer, stronger, simpler, or more specific word.
  • Use antonyms to check the boundary of the meaning and avoid accidental contrast.
  • Use the example sentence to confirm the word behaves naturally in context.
  • Keep the original wording when a replacement adds complexity without improving precision.

Definition decision workflow

1. Identify the role

Check whether "bow" is acting as intj, name, noun, verb in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.

2. Test the nearest option

Compare it with "prow" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.

3. Confirm with context

Use the example sentence below as an evidence check, then read your own sentence out loud to catch tone or rhythm problems.

Review note: Definition pages are checked for source coverage, sentence evidence, synonym support, and editorial insight before they are treated as approval-ready pages. If the evidence is too thin, the page remains available to users but is kept out of the approval-facing indexed inventory.

Final meaning check

Before publishing a sentence with "bow", ask whether the word helps the reader understand the idea faster. A precise word should reduce confusion, not simply make the sentence look more polished.

When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.

Definitions

Noun
  1. 1
    A weapon made of a curved piece of wood or other flexible material whose ends are connected by a string, used for shooting arrows.

    "Holonym: bow and arrow"

  2. 2
    A gesture, usually showing respect, made by inclining the head or bending forward at the waist; a reverence

    "He made a polite bow as he entered the room."

  3. 3
    The front of a boat or ship.

    "Holonyms: watercraft < vessel"

  4. 4
    Obsolete spelling of bough. alt-of, obsolete

    "Where the Bee ſucks, there ſuck I, / In a Cowſlips bell, I lie, / There I cowch when Owles doe crie, / On the Batts backe I doe flie / after Sommer merrily. / Merrily, merrily, ſhall I liue now / Vnder the bloſſom that hangs on the Bow."

  5. 5
    Alternative form of bao; any of several Chinese buns and breads alt-of, alternative
Show 25 more definitions
  1. 6
    Ellipsis of bow-wow abbreviation, alt-of, ellipsis
  2. 7
    Initialism of bag of words. abbreviation, alt-of, initialism

    "However, despite these shortcomings, due to its simplicity and ease of implementation, BoW is a commonly used text representation scheme, especially for text classification among other NLP problems."

  3. 8
    Alternative letter-case form of BOW. alt-of
  4. 9
    a stroke with a curved piece of wood with taut horsehair strands that is used in playing stringed instruments wordnet
  5. 10
    A curved bend in a rod or planar surface, or in a linear formation such as a river (see oxbow).
  6. 11
    The rower that sits in the seat closest to the bow of the boat.
  7. 12
    a slightly curved piece of resilient wood with taut horsehair strands; used in playing certain stringed instruments wordnet
  8. 13
    A rod with horsehair (or an artificial substitute) stretched between the ends, used for playing various stringed musical instruments.
  9. 14
    a weapon for shooting arrows, composed of a curved piece of resilient wood with a taut cord to propel the arrow wordnet
  10. 15
    A stringed instrument (chordophone), consisting of a stick with a single taut cord stretched between the ends, most often played by plucking.
  11. 16
    front part of a vessel or aircraft wordnet
  12. 17
    A type of knot with two loops, used to tie together two cords such as shoelaces or apron strings, and frequently used as decoration, such as in gift-wrapping.
  13. 18
    a knot with two loops and loose ends; used to tie shoelaces wordnet
  14. 19
    Anything bent or curved, such as a rainbow.

    "I do set my bow in the cloud."

  15. 20
    a decorative interlacing of ribbons wordnet
  16. 21
    The U-shaped piece which goes around the neck of an ox and fastens it to the yoke.
  17. 22
    an appearance by actors or performers at the end of the concert or play in order to acknowledge the applause of the audience wordnet
  18. 23
    Either of the arms of a pair of spectacles, running from the side of the lens to behind the wearer's ear.

    "[…] she kept toying with a pair of old sunglasses which lay beside her on the kitchen table. One of the bows had been mended with adhesive tape, and one of the lenses was cracked."

  19. 24
    bending the head or body or knee as a sign of reverence or submission or shame or greeting wordnet
  20. 25
    Any instrument consisting of an elastic rod, with ends connected by a string, employed for giving reciprocating motion to a drill, or for preparing and arranging hair, fur, etc., used by hatters.
  21. 26
    something curved in shape wordnet
  22. 27
    A crude sort of quadrant formerly used for taking the sun's altitude at sea.
  23. 28
    Two pieces of wood which form the arched forward part of a saddle tree.
  24. 29
    The part of a key that is not inserted into the lock and that is used to turn the key.
  25. 30
    Either of the two handles of a pair of scissors.
Verb
  1. 1
    To play music on (a stringed) instrument using a bow.

    "The musician bowed his violin expertly."

  2. 2
    To bend oneself as a gesture of respect or deference. intransitive

    "The soldier now blew upon a green whistle, and at once a young girl, dressed in a pretty green silk gown, entered the room. She had lovely green hair and green eyes, and she bowed low before Dorothy as she said, "Follow me and I will show you your room.""

  3. 3
    about to auxiliary
  4. 4
    Ellipsis of bow-wow abbreviation, alt-of, ellipsis
  5. 5
    yield to another's wish or opinion wordnet
Show 9 more definitions
  1. 6
    To bend or curve, particularly downward. ergative

    "The shelf bowed under the weight of the books."

  2. 7
    To debut. intransitive, transitive

    "The show bowed in the first week of December, 1951. Dinah was ready, and so were the technicians who put on her makeup […]"

  3. 8
    bend one's knee or body, or lower one's head wordnet
  4. 9
    To exercise powerful or controlling influence over; to bend or incline, figuratively; to humble or subdue. figuratively, transitive

    "Adversities do more bow men's minds to religion."

  5. 10
    To defer (to something). intransitive

    "I bow to your better judgement in the matter."

  6. 11
    play on a stringed instrument with a bow wordnet
  7. 12
    To give a direction, indication, or command to by bowing. transitive

    "“This way, monsieur,” he said, and led the way up the broad, marble staircase. In another moment he had opened a door, and, drawing aside a heavy curtain, obsequiously bowed Tarzan into a dimly lighted apartment. Then Jacques vanished."

  8. 13
    bend the head or the upper part of the body in a gesture of respect or greeting wordnet
  9. 14
    bend one's back forward from the waist on down wordnet
Intj
  1. 1
    Ellipsis of bow-wow abbreviation, alt-of, ellipsis
Proper Noun
  1. 1
    A surname. countable, uncountable
  2. 2
    A place name:; A place in the United Kingdom; A suburb of eastern London in the borough of Tower Hamlets, Greater London, England (OS grid ref TQ3782). countable, uncountable
  3. 3
    A place name:; A place in the United Kingdom; A village and civil parish in Mid Devon district, Devon, England (OS grid ref SS7201). countable, uncountable
  4. 4
    A place name:; A place in the United Kingdom; A hamlet in Ashprington parish, South Hams district, Devon (OS grid ref SX8156). countable, uncountable
  5. 5
    A place name:; A place in the United Kingdom; A hamlet in Stanford in the Vale parish, Vale of White Horse district, Oxfordshire, England (OS grid ref SU3494). countable, uncountable
Show 5 more definitions
  1. 6
    A place name:; A place in the United States; An unincorporated community in Cumberland County, Kentucky. countable, uncountable
  2. 7
    A place name:; A place in the United States; A town in Merrimack County, New Hampshire. countable, uncountable
  3. 8
    A place name:; A place in the United States; An unincorporated commmunity in Skagit County, Washington. countable, uncountable
  4. 9
    A place name:; Ellipsis of Bow Creek abbreviation, alt-of, countable, ellipsis, uncountable
  5. 10
    A place name:; Ellipsis of Bow Street abbreviation, alt-of, countable, ellipsis, uncountable

Synonyms

All synonyms
prowa stringaccedeaccedeacceptaccommodate

Example

"People in this country make it a habit to bow when they meet."

Common questions

What does "bow" mean?

A weapon made of a curved piece of wood or other flexible material whose ends are connected by a string, used for shooting arrows.

What is a synonym for "bow"?

Common synonyms include: prow, a string, accede, accede, accept, accommodate.

How do you use "bow" in a sentence?

People in this country make it a habit to bow when they meet.

How do you pronounce "bow"?

Pronounced /bəʊ/.

Etymology

Etymology 1

From Middle English bowe, from Old English boga, Proto-West Germanic *bogō, from Proto-Germanic *bugô. Cognates Cognate with Saterland Frisian Booge (“arch, bow, curve”), West Frisian bôge (“arc, arch, bow”), Dutch boog (“arc, arch, bow”), German Bogen (“arc, arch, bow, curve”), Luxembourgish Bou (“arc, arch, bow, curve”), Vilamovian böga (“arc, arch, bend, bow, curve”), Yiddish בויגן (boygn, “arc, arch, bow, curve”), Danish bue (“arc, arch, bow, curve”), Faroese, Icelandic bogi (“arch, bow, vault”), Jamtish buga (“bow”), Norwegian Bokmål bue (“arc, arch, bow”), Norwegian Nynorsk boge (“arc, arch, bow”), Swedish båge (“bow”), Crimean Gothic boga (“bow”).

Etymology 2

From Middle English bowen, buwen, buȝen, from Old English būgan, from Proto-West Germanic *beugan, from Proto-Germanic *beuganą, from Proto-Indo-European *bʰewgʰ- (“to bend”). Cognates Cognate with Scots boo, bou (“to bend, bow”), Dutch buigen (“to bow”), German biegen (“to bow”), Low German bugen (“to bow”), Luxembourgish béien (“to bow”), Danish bue (“to curve, arch”), Swedish buga (“to bow”), Gothic 𐌱𐌹𐌿𐌲𐌰𐌽 (biugan, “to bend, bow”).

Etymology 3

PIE word *bʰeh₂ǵʰús From Middle English bowe, bowgh, a borrowing from Middle Low German bôch and/or Middle Dutch boech, from Proto-Germanic *bōguz, from Proto-Indo-European *bʰeh₂ǵʰus (“arm”). Doublet of bough. Cognates Cognate with Dutch boeg (“bow”), German Bug (“bow, prow (of a ship); shoulder joint (of an animal)”), Luxembourgish Buch, Bou (“shoulder joint (of an animal)”), Danish bov (“bow”), Icelandic bógur (“bow”), Norwegian Bokmål baug (“bow”), Norwegian Bokmål, Norwegian Nynorsk and Swedish bog (“bow; shoulder (of an animal)”).

Etymology 4

See bough.

Etymology 5

Borrowed from Mandarin 包 (bāo) or Cantonese 包 (baau1).

Etymology 6

Clipping of boutta, itself a contraction of about to.

Etymology 7

Clipping of bow-wow

More for "bow"

Synonyms

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