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kowtow

 - 4 dictionary results

kow⋅tow

  [kou-tou, -tou, koh-]
–verb (used without object)
1. to act in an obsequious manner; show servile deference.
2. to touch the forehead to the ground while kneeling, as an act of worship, reverence, apology, etc., esp. in former Chinese custom.
–noun
3. the act of kowtowing.
Use kowtow in a Sentence
Also, kotow.

Origin:
1795–1805; < Chin kòutóu lit., knock (one's) head

Related forms:
kowtower, noun
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2010.
Cite This Source Link To kowtow
kow·tow   (kou-tou', kou'tou')   
intr.v.   kow·towed, kow·tow·ing, kow·tows

  1. To kneel and touch the forehead to the ground in expression of deep respect, worship, or submission, as formerly done in China.

  2. To show servile deference. See Synonyms at fawn1.

n.  

  1. The act of kneeling and touching the forehead to the ground.

  2. An obsequious act.


[From Chinese (Mandarin) kòu tóu, a kowtow : kòu, to knock + tóu, head.]
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Word Origin & History

kowtow 
1804 (n.), from Chinese k'o-t'ou custom of touching the ground with the forehead to show respect or submission, lit. "knock the head," from k'o "knock, bump" + t'ou "head." The verb in the fig. sense of "act in an obsequious manner" is from 1826.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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Encyclopedia

kowtow

in traditional China, the act of supplication made by an inferior to his superior by kneeling and knocking his head to the floor. This prostration ceremony was most commonly used in religious worship, by commoners who came to make a request of the local district magistrate, and by officials and representatives of foreign powers who came into the presence of the emperor. By the Ming period (1368-1644), the ritual, especially as made to the shrine of Confucius by the emperor and to the emperor by his officials and foreign envoys, involved "three kneelings and nine prostrations."

Learn more about kowtow with a free trial on Britannica.com.

Encyclopedia Britannica, 2008. Encyclopedia Britannica Online.
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