Background for bows

bows

/baʊz/

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noun

A firm branch of a tree.

Examples :

"When the bough breaks, the cradle will fall."

nature plant part

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noun

Examples :

"The historical record states that several men were hanged at the bows near the town square in 1788. "

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noun

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

Examples :

"The hunter carried two bows, one for deer and one for smaller animals. "

weapon military sport

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noun

A curved bend in a rod or planar surface, or in a linear formation such as a river (see oxbow).

Examples :

"The map showed several sharp bows in the river as it wound through the valley. "

nature geography structure

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noun

A rod with horsehair (or an artificial substitute) stretched between the ends, used for playing various stringed musical instruments.

Examples :

"The musician carefully tightened the horsehair on his bows before the string quartet began their performance. "

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noun

A stringed instrument (chordophone), consisting of a stick with a single taut cord stretched between the ends, most often played by plucking.

Examples :

"At the children's museum, there was a display of early instruments, including several simple bows with instructions on how to pluck the string to make a sound. "

music entertainment

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noun

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.

Examples :

"She tied bright pink bows on all the birthday presents. "

appearance style material item

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noun

Anything bent or curved, such as a rainbow.

Examples :

"After the rain, my daughter pointed at the sky and exclaimed, "Look, Mommy, two beautiful bows!" "

nature appearance

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noun

The U-shaped piece which goes around the neck of an ox and fastens it to the yoke.

Examples :

"The farmer carefully adjusted the bows on the oxen's necks before hitching them to the plow. "

agriculture animal utensil

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noun

Either of the arms of a pair of spectacles, running from the side of the lens to behind the wearer's ear.

Examples :

"My daughter broke the bows of her glasses while playing, so now she needs a new pair. "

appearance body part wear

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noun

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.

Examples :

"The hatter carefully used his bows to arrange the rabbit fur for the hat. "

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noun

A crude sort of quadrant formerly used for taking the sun's altitude at sea.

Examples :

"Before GPS, sailors relied on instruments like bows and sextants to navigate using the sun. "

nautical technology astronomy device sailing technical history

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noun

(saddlery) Two pieces of wood which form the arched forward part of a saddletree.

Examples :

"The saddler carefully shaped the bows before attaching them to the rest of the saddletree. "

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noun

The part of a key that is not inserted into the lock and that is used to turn the key.

Examples :

"She held the key by its bows and carefully inserted the bit into the lock. "

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verb

To play music on (a stringed) instrument using a bow.

Examples :

"The musician bowed his violin expertly."

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verb

To become bent or curved.

Examples :

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

appearance action

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verb

To make something bend or curve.

Examples :

"The strong wind bows the tall trees in the park. "

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verb

To exercise powerful or controlling influence over; to bend, figuratively; to turn; to incline.

Examples :

"The teacher bowed to the students' requests, agreeing to extend the deadline for the project. "

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verb

Examples :

"Cronenberg’s "Cosmopolis" bows in Cannes this week."

entertainment media culture

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noun

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

Examples :

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

culture ritual tradition sign action style

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verb

To bend oneself as a gesture of respect or deference.

Examples :

"That singer always bows towards her audience for some reason."

culture ritual action society

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verb

Examples :

"The new singer bows on television tonight. "

entertainment stage

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verb

To defer (to something).

Examples :

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

attitude action way

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verb

To give a direction, indication, or command to by bowing.

Examples :

"The dance instructor bows them towards center stage with a graceful nod. "

direction action communication sign

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noun

The front of a boat or ship.

Examples :

"The captain steered the boat carefully, keeping an eye on the shallows near the bows. "

nautical vehicle sailing ocean part

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noun

The rower that sits in the seat closest to the bow of the boat.

Examples :

"The coach yelled at the bows for not keeping time with the stroke. "

nautical sport sailing position person