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noun
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Bowing
is always a great word to know.
So is ninnyhammer. Does it mean:
| an arrangement of five objects, as trees, in a square or rectangle, one at each corner and one in the middle. |
| a fool or simpleton; ninny. |
Dictionary.com Unabridged
verb (used without object)
1.
to bend the knee or body or incline the head, as in reverence, submission, salutation, recognition, or acknowledgment.
2.
to yield; submit: to bow to the inevitable.
3.
to bend or curve downward; stoop: the pines bowed low.
verb (used with object)
4.
to bend or incline (the knee, body, or head) in worship, submission, respect, civility, agreement, etc.: He bowed his head to the crowd.
5.
to cause to submit; subdue; crush.
6.
to cause to stoop or incline: Age had bowed his head.
7.
to express by a bow: to bow one's thanks.
8.
EXPANDto usher (someone) with a bow (usually followed by in, out, etc.): They were bowed in by the footman.
9.
COLLAPSEto cause to bend; make curved or crooked.
noun
Verb phrase10.
an inclination of the head or body in salutation, assent, thanks, reverence, respect, submission, etc.
11.
Idiomsbow out, to resign a position or withdraw from a job, competition, obligation, etc.: He bowed out after two terms as governor.
12.
bow and scrape, to be excessively polite or deferential.
13.
make one's bow, to appear publicly for the first time, as a performer, politician, etc.: The young pianist made her bow last night to an appreciative audience.
14.
take a bow, to step forward or stand up in order to receive recognition, applause, etc.: The conductor had the soloists take a bow.
Origin:
before 900; Middle English bowen (v.), Old English būgan; cognate with Dutch buigen; akin to German biegen, Gothic biugan, Old Norse buga, etc.
before 900; Middle English bowen (v.), Old English būgan; cognate with Dutch buigen; akin to German biegen, Gothic biugan, Old Norse buga, etc.
Related forms
bowed·ness, noun
bow·ing·ly, adverb
noun
1.
a flexible strip of wood or other material, bent by a string stretched between its ends, for shooting arrows: He drew the bow and sent the arrow to its target.
2.
an instrument resembling this, used for various purposes, as rotating a drill or spindle, or loosening entangled or matted fibers.
3.
a bend or curve.
4.
Also called bowknot. a looped knot composed of two or more loops and two ends, as for tying together the ends of a ribbon or string.
5.
EXPANDany separate piece of looped, knotted, or shaped gathering of ribbon, cloth, paper, etc., used as a decoration, as on a package, dress, or the like.
6.
a long rod, originally curved but now nearly straight, with horsehairs stretched from one end to the other, used for playing on a musical instrument of the violin and viol families.
7.
a single movement of such a device over the strings of a violin, viol, or the like.
8.
9.
something curved or arc-shaped.
10.
a saddlebow.
11.
an archer; bowman: He is the best bow in the county.
12.
temple2 (def. 3).
13.
a U-shaped piece for placing under an animal's neck to hold a yoke.
14.
Building Trades. a flexible rod used for laying out large curves.
15.
the part of a key grasped by the fingers.
16.
the loop on the stem of a watch by which the watch is attached to a chain or the like.
17.
COLLAPSEa rainbow.
adjective
18.
curved outward at the center; bent: bow legs.
Origin:
before 1000; Middle English bowe (noun), Old English boga; cognate with Dutch boog, German Bogen, Old Norse bogi; akin to bow1
before 1000; Middle English bowe (noun), Old English boga; cognate with Dutch boog, German Bogen, Old Norse bogi; akin to bow1
Related forms
bowed·ness, noun
bow·less, adjective
bow·like, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2012.
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Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2012.
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Link To bowing
Collins
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
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2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
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Etymonline
Word Origin & History
bow
"front of a ship," mid-14c., from O.N. bogr or M.Du. boech "bow of a ship," lit. "shoulder (of an animal)," the connecting notion being "the shoulders of the ship." See bough.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
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Easton
Bible Dictionary
Bowing definition
a mode of showing respect. Abraham "bowed himself to the people of the land" (Gen. 23:7); so Jacob to Esau (Gen. 33:3); and the brethren of Joseph before him as the governor of the land (Gen. 43:28). Bowing is also frequently mentioned as an act of adoration to idols (Josh. 23:7; 2 Kings 5:18; Judg. 2:19; Isa. 44:15), and to God (Josh. 5:14; Ps. 22:29; 72:9; Micah 6:6; Ps. 95:6; Eph. 3:14).
Easton's 1897 Bible Dictionary
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