Emily Dickinson Lexicon

BOWL, n. [Sax. bolla. In Latin, vola is the hollow of the hand.]

1. A concave vessel to hold liquors, rather wide than deep, and thus distinguished from a cup, which is rather deep than wide.
2. The hollow part of any thing; as, the bowl of a spoon.
3. A basin; a fountain. – Bacon.

BOWL, v.i.

To play with bowls, or at bowling.

BOWL, v.t.

To roll as a bowl; also, to pelt with any thing rolled. – Shak.

BOWL'DER, n. [from bowl.]

A small stone of a roundish form, and of no determinate size, found on the sea shore, and on the banks or in the channels of rivers, &c., worn smooth or rounded by the action of water; a pebble. – Johnson. Encyc. The term bowlder is now used in geology for rounded masses of any rock, found out of place, and apparently transported from their original bed by water. Bowlders of granite, often of great size, are very common on the surface of the most recent formations.

BOWL'DER-STONE, n.

See BOWLDER.

BOWL'DER-WALL, n.

A wall constructed of pebbles or bowlders of flint or other silicious stones, which have been rounded by the action of water. – Builder's Dict.

BOW'LEG-GED, a. [bow and leg.]

Having crooked legs. – Johnson.

BOWL'ER, n.

One who plays at bowls.

BOW'LESS, a.

Destitute of a bow.

BOW'LINE, n. [Sp. and Port. bolina; Arm. bouline, “voile de biais pour recevoir le vent de côté,” a slanting sail to receive a side wind, Gregoire; Fr. bouline, a tack; bouliner, to tack, to turn one way and the other, to dodge or shift. But in Danish it is bougline, the line of the bow or bend.]

A rope fastened near the middle of the leech or perpendicular edge of the square sails, by subordinate parts, called bridles, and used to keep the weather edge of the sail tight forward, when the ship is close hauled. – Mar. Dict. Bowline-bridles, are the ropes by which the bowline is fastened to the leech of the sail.

BOWL'ING, n.

The act of throwing bowls. – Burton.

BOWL'ING, ppr.

Playing at bowls.

BOWL'ING-GREEN, n. [bowl and green.]

1. A level piece of ground kept smooth for bowling.
2. In gardening, a parterre in a grove, laid with fine turf, with compartments of divers figures, with dwarf trees and other decorations. It may be used for bowling; but the French and Italians have such greens for ornament. – Encyc.

BOW'MAN, n.

The man who rows the foremost oar in a boat. – Mar. Dict.

BOW'MAN, n. [bow and man.]

A man who uses a bow; an archer. – Jerem. iv. 29.

BOW'NET, n. [bow and net.]

An engine for catching lobsters and crawfish, called also bow-wheel. It is made of two round wicker baskets, pointed at the end, one of which is thrust into the other, and at the mouth is a little rim bent inward. – Encyc.

BOW'-PIECE, n. [bow and piece.]

A piece of ordnance carried at the bow of a ship. – Encyc.

BOWSE, v.i.

In seamen's language, to pull or haul; as, to bowse upon a tack; to bowse away, to pull all together. – Encyc.

BOW'SHOT, n. [bow and shot.]

The space which an arrow may pass when shot from a bow. – Gen. xxi. 16. Boyle.

BOW'SPRIT, n. [bow and sprit; D. boegspriet; Dan. bougsprid; G. bugspriet. See Spirit.]

A large boom or spar, which projects over the stem of a ship or other vessel, to carry sail forward. [This is probably Ow true orthography.] – Mar. Dict.

BOWSS'EN, v.t.

To drink; to drench. [Not used.] Qu. bouse.

BOW'-STRING, n. [bow and string.]

The string of a bow.

BOW'-STRING-ED, a.

Furnished with bow strings.

BOW'-WIN-DOW, n.

See BAY-WINDOW.

BOW'YER, n. [from bow, a corruption of bower, like sawyer.]

An archer; one who uses a bow; one who makes bows. [Little used.] – Johnson.