prown.¹

Brit.

/pruː/, U.S.

/pru/

Forms: Middle English perow (probably transmission error), Middle English prou, Middle English prov, Middle English prowȝ, Middle English prowh, Middle English 1900s– prow, Middle English–1500s prowe; Scottish pre-1700 prov, pre-1700 prow, pre-1700 prowe.

Origin: A borrowing from French. Etymons: French prowe, prou.

Etymology: < Anglo-Norman prowe, Anglo-Norman and Old French pro, prou, pru, etc., profit, advantage (12th cent. in Old French; earlier as proud (c1000 in Old French), prod (c1100 in Anglo-Norman)), use as noun of prou prow adj. Compare Old Occitan pro (13th cent.; c1025 as prod ), Catalan prou (13th cent.; also as pro (13th cent.)), Spanish pro (1207; also as prod (1219)), Portuguese pró (14th cent.), Italian prode (1193; now archaic). Compare later prew n., and also prow adj.Earlier borrowing of the Old French word is perhaps implied by the nickname and surname Littleprot (1066).

Now rare (archaic and poetic in later use).

Advantage, profit; benefit, good, ‘weal’. Cf. prow adj.

ΘΚΠ

the world > action or operation > advantage > [noun]

fremea700

redeeOE

noteeOE

goodOE

goodnessOE

framec1175

winc1175

bihevec1230

behoofc1275

advantagec1300

prowc1300

wellc1300

wainc1315

profita1325

bewaynec1375

vantagec1380

goodshipc1390

prewa1400

steada1400

benefice1426

vailc1430

utilityc1440

of availc1450

prevaila1460

fordeal1470

winning1477

encherishingc1480

benefit1512

booty1581

emolument1633

handhold1655

withgate1825

cui bono1836

c1300 St. Thomas Becket (Laud) 358 in C. Horstmann Early S.-Eng. Legendary (1887) 116 Þe bishopriches fullen boþe In-to þe kingus hond, For-to onder-fonge al þe prov þare-of.

a1325 St. Augustine of Canterbury (Corpus Cambr.) 28 in C. D'Evelyn & A. J. Mill S. Eng. Legendary (1956) 215 An hei man icome To do him a message..Þat ssolde, world wiþoute ende, to him and to al is londe To gret prou & richesse beo.

c1390 G. Chaucer Pardoner's Tale 300 That yiftes of fortune and of nature..Of bothe..Men han ful ofte moore for harm than prow.

?a1400 (a1338) R. Mannyng Chron. (Petyt) ii. 278 (MED) For þe comon prow, To France suld he go..to procure an aliance.

a1450 York Plays (1885) 391 (MED) Þis poynte is playnly for oure prowe.

?1577 F. T. Debate Pride & Lowlines sig. Cvi Syr..gladlye would I doon ye prowe, If in this matter I had halfe the skyll.

1586 in W. A. Craigie Maitland Quarto MS (1920) lxxi. 35 Pertlie I pretend & preis aganis the prow & ay intend That way to wend.

a1600 ( W. Stewart tr. H. Boece Bk. Cron. Scotl. (1858) II. 144 Dissaitfullie..he gart him trow, That he wrocht ay for his plesour and prow.

1930 W. H. Auden Poems 42 Your shutting up the house and taking prow To go into the wilderness to pray.

This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, September 2007; most recently modified version published online March 2022).

prown.²

Brit.

/praʊ/, U.S.

/praʊ/

Forms: 1500s (1900s– Scottish) proo, 1500s–1700s prowe, 1600s pro, 1600s proe, 1600s prou, 1600s proue, 1600s– prow.

Origin: Apparently a borrowing from French. Etymon: French proue.

Etymology: Apparently < Middle French, French proue, †proue (c1320 as proue ; 1246 as proe in a shipping contract with the city of Genoa; apparently not recorded after 1506 in form proe ), probably < Italian regional (Genoa) proa (13th cent.), ultimately < classical Latin prōra prora n. Compare Old Occitan proa (c1300; 1248 in a Latin text), Catalan proa (14th cent.), Spanish proa (1384 or earlier), Portuguese proa (14th cent.), Italian prua (15th cent. or earlier; compare also proda prow, river bank (1250)). Compare earlier prore n. and later prora n. 1.The early spellings proo , pro , and proe suggest a pronunciation with the reflex of Middle English open ō (perhaps suggesting that, in spite of the apparent gap in the chronology, Middle French proe was the donor form), although the other spellings could all also indicate the reflex of Middle English ū (perhaps compare the spelling variation shown in the same period by mow n.²). Rhyming evidence suggests that both pronunciations were found in the early modern period, since in the 17th cent. the word is found rhymed (from at least the 1620s) with e.g. blow, go, slow, foe, as well as with e.g. how, now, plough, disavow. Pronunciations of both types are found in pronunciation dictionaries and other sources from the 18th and 19th centuries. The pronunciation rhyming with how comes to predominate by the second half of the 19th cent., although the pronunciation rhyming with glow is found as late as 1860.

a. The pointed front part of a boat or ship, immediately about the stem; the bow. Cf. bow n.³ 1, foreship n. Now chiefly literary and in non-technical contexts.

ΘΚΠ

society > travel > travel by water > vessel, ship, or boat > parts of vessels > body of vessel > fore part of vessel > [noun]

foreshipc1000

stam1336

bilynge?a1400

forestam?a1400

boat-head1485

head1485

prore1489

forecastle1490

steven1512

forepart1526

nose1538

prow1555

stem1555

forebow1569

beak-head1579

galion1604

bow1626

fore-beaka1656

forebudding1811

prora1847

snout1853

forward1892

sharp end1948

1555 R. Eden Disc. Vyage rounde Worlde in tr. Peter Martyr of Angleria Decades of Newe Worlde f. 231^v They had a west and north weste wynd in the proos of theyr shyppe.

1610 P. Holland tr. W. Camden Brit. i. 244 He used the Helme of a ship for a seale..like as Pompeie [had] the stemme or Pro thereof in his coines.

c1645 W. Atkins Relation of Journey (1994) 228 They returne the prou round and once againe for Spaine.

1697 J. Dryden tr. Virgil Æneis v, in tr. Virgil Wks. 383 The brushing Oars, and brazen prow [rhymes below] Dash up the sandy Waves.

1726 J. Swift Gulliver I. i. vii. 131 I seized a large Man of War, ty'd a Cable to the Prow, and..drawing it after me,..arrived at the Royal Port of Blefuscu.

1761 tr. C. Batteux Course Belles Lettres II. ii. xiii. 128 Achilles, from the prow of his own vessel, stands spectator of the fight.

1824 J. R. Jewitt in T. McFeat Indians of N. Pacific Coast (1987) 14 A canoe in pursuit of a whale, with the harpooner standing in the prow prepared to strike.

1853 H. Douglas Ess. Mil. Bridges (ed. 3) iii. 172 From this part it tapers in plan, and rises in section, to the prow and stern.

1882 Cent. Mag. July 350/1 The pointed prow was sheered off and a bowsprit and cut-water were added.

1927 Travel Nov. 8/3 The calendar seemed literally reversed when the ship sliced through the ocean, its prow equatorward.

1968 B. England Figures in Landscape 145 Using the oar as a tiller, MacConnachie pointed the prow of the boat towards the opposite shore.

1996 Holiday Which? Jan. 50/2 A line of shaded cafés with cane-and-cushion seats faces the waggling prows of wooden boats.

†b. prow and poop: the whole ship; (figurative) the whole of something. Obsolete. [After classical Latin prōra et puppis ( Cicero Epist. ad Familiares 16. 24. 1 in mihi prora et puppis, ut Graecorum proverbium est ; frequently quoted in post-classical Latin contexts, e.g. 1559 in the passage translated in quot. 1561); the underlying Greek proverb has not been traced, but ancient Greek πρῷρα was often used figuratively.]

ΘΚΠ

the world > relative properties > wholeness > the whole or all > [noun] > the whole quantity, number, or amount > the whole lot

every whita1450

every stitch?a1500

the devil and all1543

prow and poop1561

Christ-cross-row1579

every snip1598

thread and thrum1600

boodle1625

hair and hoof1705

rag-tag (also rag, tag) and bob-tail1725

tutti quanti1772

lot1791

lock, stock, and barrel1824

stock and fluke1825

the whole boiling1837

box and dice1839

the whole caboodlea1848

sub-cheese1859

the whole kit and boiling (boodle, caboodle, cargo)1859

the whole jingbang1866

the whole hypothec1871

the whole ball of wax1882

the whole (entire) shoot1884

(at) every whip-stitch1888

work1899

issue1919

guntz1958

full monty1979

1561 T. Norton tr. J. Calvin Inst. Christian Relig. iv. xvii. f. 133^v As if the enclosyng of Christ vnder bread were (as the prouerbe is) the prowe and poupe of godlinesse [L. prora & puppis (vt aiunt) pietatis].

1632 in W. Lithgow Totall Disc. Trav. vii. 328 Both Proue and puppe, do answere to the Helme.

†c. The fore gun-deck holding the bow-guns; (hence) a discharge of shot from these (rare). Cf. chase n.¹ 6. Obsolete.

ΘΚΠ

society > armed hostility > hostilities at sea > operations or manoeuvres > [noun] > firing of guns > type of shot

broadside1589

prow1600

a shot between wind and water1695

water-liner1898

society > armed hostility > military equipment > operation and use of weapons > action of propelling missile > discharge of firearms > management of artillery > [noun] > an artillery shot > at sea

prow1600

a shot between wind and water1695

water-liner1898

society > travel > travel by water > vessel, ship, or boat > parts of vessels > part of vessel above water > [noun] > deck > gun deck > at bow

prow1600

1600 in R. Hakluyt Princ. Navigations (new ed.) III. 566 They..came vpon our quarter star-boord: and giuing vs fiue cast pieces out of her prowe, they sought to lay vs aboord.

1627 J. Smith Sea Gram. xiii. 60 Giue him..your prow and broad side as before.

1704 J. Harris Lexicon Technicum I Prow of a Ship, is that part of her Fore-castle which is aloft, and not in the Hold; and is properly that which is between the Chase and the Loofe.

d. Chiefly poetic. A ship. Cf. keel n.¹ 2a.

ΘΚΠ

society > travel > travel by water > vessel, ship, or boat > [noun]

shipc725

beamOE

boardOE

bargea1300

steera1300

vessela1300

treea1382

loomc1400

man1473

ark1477

bottom1490

keela1547

riverboat1565

craft1578

pine1592

class1596

flood-bickerer1599

pitchboard1599

stern-bearer1599

wooden horse1599

wooden isle1603

water treader?1615

water house1616

watercraft1618

machine1637

prore1642

lightman1666

embarkation1690

bark1756

prowa1771

Mudian1813

bastiment1823

hooker1823

nymph1876

M.F.V.1948

a1771 T. Gray Imit. Propertius in Wks. (1814) II. 88 Prows, that late in fierce encounter mett.

1819 Ld. Byron Don Juan: Canto II clxxiv. 206 At last her father's prows put out to sea.

1999 S. Heaney tr. Beowulf (2000) 60 Over the broad sea, whorled prows will bring presents and tokens.

2. figurative and in extended use. A point or pointed part projecting in front and resembling or suggestive of the prow of a ship.Formerly spec. in Zoology (quot. 1887): †= prora n. 2 (obsolete).

ΘΚΠ

the world > space > shape > unevenness > projection or prominence > sharp unevenness > [noun] > a sharp prominence

bill1382

pointa1387

tatter1402

beakc1440

spike1488

neb1578

prong1591

prow1601

taggera1687

tang1688

jog1715

nib1788

tusk1823

spur1872

1601 P. Holland tr. Pliny Hist. World I. 252 A shel-fish..fashioned with a keele like to a barge or barke, with a poupe embowed and turned vp: yea and armed as it were in the proe with a three-forked pike.

1647 J. Fletcher Bonduca i. i. 48 Penyus, seeing me steer thorow all these storms of danger, my helm still in my hand, my sword my prow.

1656 T. Blount Glossographia Prow,..Also a point advancing it self out of a building, as the Prow out of a Ship.

1669 J. Dryden Wild Gallant iv. 60 Now for a broad-side; turn your prow [sc. pregnant belly] to him Cousin.

1812 J. Playfair Outl. Nat. Philos. I. 201 If a prow, in the form of a wedge, be drawn through a fluid.

1820 P. B. Shelley Prometheus Unbound iv. i. 135 A guiding power directs the chariot's prow Over its wheeled clouds.

1887 W. J. Sollas in Encycl. Brit. XXII. 417/2 at Sponges The back of the ‘C’[-shaped spicule] is the keel or tropis; the points are the prows or proræ.

1962 Life 23 Feb. 111 (caption) Rafters shoot out to give roof [of a house] a boatlike prow.

1993 N.Y. Times 21 Nov. v. 8/5 A stroll through Cathedral Cove's soaring sandstone arch and its sea caves, a swim to an offshore rock prow.

Compounds

C1. General attributive.

prow gun n.

ΚΠ

1703 J. Stevens tr. D. F. Prudencio de Sandoval Hist. Charles Vth xxiii. 329 The Turks kept close under the Shore, and having fir'd all their prow Guns, run on violently with all the strength of their Oars.

1848 Southern Q. Rev. Oct. 278 The other (the largest) has two prow guns, 1 in the stern and only two small ones in her waist.

2000 St. Petersburg, Russia on Private Tour in rec.travel.cruises (Usenet newsgroup) 2 Apr. The blank shot of the prow gun of this ship heralded the October Revolution.

prow ornament n.

ΚΠ

1855 W. Smith Hist. Greece iv. xxxiii. 349 [Lysander] brought with him all the prow ornaments of the numerous ships he had taken.

1900 Jrnl. Anthropol. Instit. Great Brit. & Ireland 30 126 From the Solomon Islands come..prow ornaments.

1991 Washington Post (Nexis) 20 Apr. d1 That wide-eyed, red-tongued elephant, a painted prow ornament from Banjarmasin.

prow side n.

ΚΠ

1653 H. Cogan tr. F. M. Pinto Voy. & Adventures lxvi. 267 Rocks and shelves of sand, which were on the Prow side.

2000 Bellingham (Washington) Herald (Nexis) 6 Aug. b2 Visitors can stand on the prow side of the piece and view the waterfall through two holes, which are reminiscent of portholes.

C2.

† prow-decked adj. Obsolete rare. (of a ship) having an ornamental prow.

ΚΠ

?1614 G. Chapman tr. Homer Odysses ix. 131 Nor place the neighbour Cyclops their delights, In braue Vermilion prow-deckt ships.

† prow piece adj. Obsolete = prow gun n. at Compounds 1.

ΚΠ

1612 T. Best Jrnl. 30 Nov. in Voy. to E. Indies (1934) 36 He gave us one of his prow peeces.

1627 J. Smith Sea Gram. ii. 10 The Prow is the Decke abaft the Fore-castle, whereon lyeth the Prow peeces.

prow-shaped adj. of the shape of a ship's prow; having a projecting point or part at the front.

ΚΠ

1838 Civil Engineer & Architect's Jrnl. 1 394/2 High pressure steam, length of stroke, and prow-shaped bows..are not all necessary for speed.

1899 T. C. Allbutt et al. Syst. Med. VIII. 200 The small head, with narrow forehead presenting marked interfrontal ridge—the prow-shaped cranium—indicates the worst pathological type.

1992 N. Cohn Heart of World xvi. 233 The skyscraper's sharp profile and prow-shaped tip had the side effect of whipping up sudden gusts and windflaws liable to upend a maiden's skirt.

Derivatives

prowed adj. having a prow, esp. of a specified kind.

ΘΚΠ

society > travel > travel by water > vessel, ship, or boat > vessel of specific construction or shape > [adjective] > having a prow

prowed1788

1788 E. Gibbon Decline & Fall I. xliii. 387 The departure of Zabergan was hastened by the report, that double-prowed vessels were built on the Danube to intercept his passage.

1884 A. J. Evans in Archaeologia (1885) 49 46 A wooden bridge..supported on pillars..prowed so as to look like a row of vessels breasting the current.

1920 Classical Rev. 34 183/1 One often wonders how they managed at all with the old broad prowed vessels with their clumsy hand steering-gear.

1975 J. Gores Hammett xix. 132 Sharp-prowed racing sloops..flashed dripping flanks at them.

2004 Independent 15 May (Review section) 9/1 High-prowed vessels powered by enormous outboard engines.

This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, September 2007; most recently modified version published online March 2022).

prowadj.

Brit.

/praʊ/, U.S.

/praʊ/

Forms: Middle English prous, Middle English– prow.

Origin: A borrowing from French. Etymons: French prou, pro.

Etymology: < Anglo-Norman and Middle French prou, prous, variants of pro (see proud adj.). Compare prew adj., prow n.¹It is uncertain whether earlier occurrences in surnames (e.g. Robertum le Pro (1256), Robert Prowe (1276)) reflect the Anglo-Norman or the Middle English word.

Now rare (archaic and poetic in later use).

Good, worthy; valiant, brave, gallant.Apparently obsolete from the 16th cent. (cf. prew adj.), but the superlative prowest was much used by Spenser, whence it came down in later poets, esp. in prowest knight (see quot. 1590¹). As a poetic term it was popular in the 19th cent., when some writers also revived the positive prow.

ΘΚΠ

the mind > goodness and badness > quality of being good > worth > [adjective]

dearc888

dearworthc888

worthlyeOE

oughtsOE

worthfulOE

aughtOE

richa1225

gildenc1225

of pricea1325

worthya1325

of (‥) valourc1330

prow1340

dearworthyc1374

of value1395

pricefula1400

presc1400

singularc1400

goldena1425

well-foundc1475

valiant1481

prized1487

prowousa1500

valuable1567

prizable1569

valorous1592

suit-worth1594

bully1600

estimable1600

treasurable1607

treasurous?1611

treasured1675

pearly1770

at a premium1828

keep-worthy1830

good value1842

the mind > emotion > courage > chivalry > gallantry > [adjective]

prow1340

prowousa1500

gallant1598

cavaliera1642

1340 Ayenbite (1866) 83 Zueche byeþ þe opnymynges þet me clepeþ prous [c1450 Bk. Vices & Virtues douȝty; Fr. preuz] and hardi ine þise wordle.

a1500 (?a1425) tr. Secreta Secret. (Lamb.) 115 (MED) He þat hauys a long nose rechinge to þe mouth, ys prow and hardy.

a1555 J. Philpot tr. C. S. Curione Def. Authority Christ's Church in R. Eden Exam. & Writings J. Philpot (1842) (modernized text) 360 Christ, our most prowest Master, keepeth silence of them.

1590 E. Spenser Faerie Queene i. iv. sig. D5^v The prowest knight, that euer field did fight.

1590 E. Spenser Faerie Queene iii. iii. sig. Ee2 Proofe of thy prow valiaunce Thou then shalt make.

1591 J. Harington tr. L. Ariosto Orlando Furioso xlvi. vii. 395 The noblest, stoutest, and the prowest knight.

1671 J. Milton Paradise Regain'd iii. 341 Angelica His daughter, sought by many Prowest Knights, Both Paynim, and the Peers of Charlemane.

1796 G. L. Way tr. P. J.-B. Legrand d'Aussy Fabliaux I. 135 Thee, the prowest knight. Full many a brave one, doom'd to sue the maid.

1818 H. Hallam View Europe Middle Ages I. i. 50 They might claim to be the prowest knights in Europe.

1851 C. L. Smith tr. T. Tasso Jerusalem Delivered iii. lix A man more wise of head or prow of hand.

1869 Ld. Tennyson Pelleas & Ettarre 342 From prime to vespers will I chant thy praise As prowest knight and truest lover.

1898 T. Hardy Wessex Poems 69 Carl Schwartzenberg was of the plot, And Blücher, prompt and prow.

a1907 F. Thompson Wks. (1913) II. 173 The other yet shall give a life to thee, Such as to gain, the prowest swords have striven.

This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, September 2007; most recently modified version published online March 2022).

† prowv.

Forms: Middle English prou, Middle English prowe.

Origin: Formed within English, by conversion. Etymon: prow n.¹

Etymology: < prow n.¹It is possible that the verbal use may have developed from misapprehension of uses of the noun such as the following:a1450 (a1338) R. Mannyng Chron. (Lamb.) (1887) i. 8820 When þe kyng herde of þer vertu, Þat þey myght falle þe folk to prw, He had longyng for þem to go..Þe stones to Bretaigne for to brynge.

Obsolete. rare.

intransitive. To be of advantage; to be profitable or beneficial. With to or indirect object.

ΘΚΠ

the world > action or operation > advantage > be advantageous or beneficial [verb (intransitive)]

dowc950

frameOE

fremeOE

helpc1000

gainc1175

holdc1175

vail1303

yainc1325

it is speedfulc1340

profit1340

speedc1380

prowa1400

bootc1400

prevailc1450

avail1489

mister1490

skill1528

stead1594

advantagea1616

conduce1624

a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Vesp.) 27127 And es he for a fule to trou, þat will noght do þat mai him prou.

?a1400 (a1338) R. Mannyng Chron. (Petyt) ii. 298 Þat no þing suld be left þat myght to Inglond prowe.

This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, September 2007; most recently modified version published online December 2020).

n.¹c1300

n.²1555

adj.1340

v.a1400

单词	prow
释义	prown.¹ Brit. /pruː/, U.S. /pru/ Forms: Middle English perow (probably transmission error), Middle English prou, Middle English prov, Middle English prowȝ, Middle English prowh, Middle English 1900s– prow, Middle English–1500s prowe; Scottish pre-1700 prov, pre-1700 prow, pre-1700 prowe. Origin: A borrowing from French. Etymons: French prowe, prou. Etymology: < Anglo-Norman prowe, Anglo-Norman and Old French pro, prou, pru, etc., profit, advantage (12th cent. in Old French; earlier as proud (c1000 in Old French), prod (c1100 in Anglo-Norman)), use as noun of prou prow adj. Compare Old Occitan pro (13th cent.; c1025 as prod ), Catalan prou (13th cent.; also as pro (13th cent.)), Spanish pro (1207; also as prod (1219)), Portuguese pró (14th cent.), Italian prode (1193; now archaic). Compare later prew n., and also prow adj.Earlier borrowing of the Old French word is perhaps implied by the nickname and surname Littleprot (1066). Now rare (archaic and poetic in later use). Advantage, profit; benefit, good, ‘weal’. Cf. prow adj. ΘΚΠ the world > action or operation > advantage > [noun] fremea700 redeeOE noteeOE goodOE goodnessOE framec1175 winc1175 bihevec1230 behoofc1275 advantagec1300 prowc1300 wellc1300 wainc1315 profita1325 bewaynec1375 vantagec1380 goodshipc1390 prewa1400 steada1400 benefice1426 vailc1430 utilityc1440 of availc1450 prevaila1460 fordeal1470 winning1477 encherishingc1480 benefit1512 booty1581 emolument1633 handhold1655 withgate1825 cui bono1836 c1300 St. Thomas Becket (Laud) 358 in C. Horstmann Early S.-Eng. Legendary (1887) 116 Þe bishopriches fullen boþe In-to þe kingus hond, For-to onder-fonge al þe prov þare-of. a1325 St. Augustine of Canterbury (Corpus Cambr.) 28 in C. D'Evelyn & A. J. Mill S. Eng. Legendary (1956) 215 An hei man icome To do him a message..Þat ssolde, world wiþoute ende, to him and to al is londe To gret prou & richesse beo. c1390 G. Chaucer Pardoner's Tale 300 That yiftes of fortune and of nature..Of bothe..Men han ful ofte moore for harm than prow. ?a1400 (a1338) R. Mannyng Chron. (Petyt) ii. 278 (MED) For þe comon prow, To France suld he go..to procure an aliance. a1450 York Plays (1885) 391 (MED) Þis poynte is playnly for oure prowe. ?1577 F. T. Debate Pride & Lowlines sig. Cvi Syr..gladlye would I doon ye prowe, If in this matter I had halfe the skyll. 1586 in W. A. Craigie Maitland Quarto MS (1920) lxxi. 35 Pertlie I pretend & preis aganis the prow & ay intend That way to wend. a1600 ( W. Stewart tr. H. Boece Bk. Cron. Scotl. (1858) II. 144 Dissaitfullie..he gart him trow, That he wrocht ay for his plesour and prow. 1930 W. H. Auden Poems 42 Your shutting up the house and taking prow To go into the wilderness to pray. This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, September 2007; most recently modified version published online March 2022). prown.² Brit. /praʊ/, U.S. /praʊ/ Forms: 1500s (1900s– Scottish) proo, 1500s–1700s prowe, 1600s pro, 1600s proe, 1600s prou, 1600s proue, 1600s– prow. Origin: Apparently a borrowing from French. Etymon: French proue. Etymology: Apparently < Middle French, French proue, †proue (c1320 as proue ; 1246 as proe in a shipping contract with the city of Genoa; apparently not recorded after 1506 in form proe ), probably < Italian regional (Genoa) proa (13th cent.), ultimately < classical Latin prōra prora n. Compare Old Occitan proa (c1300; 1248 in a Latin text), Catalan proa (14th cent.), Spanish proa (1384 or earlier), Portuguese proa (14th cent.), Italian prua (15th cent. or earlier; compare also proda prow, river bank (1250)). Compare earlier prore n. and later prora n. 1.The early spellings proo , pro , and proe suggest a pronunciation with the reflex of Middle English open ō (perhaps suggesting that, in spite of the apparent gap in the chronology, Middle French proe was the donor form), although the other spellings could all also indicate the reflex of Middle English ū (perhaps compare the spelling variation shown in the same period by mow n.²). Rhyming evidence suggests that both pronunciations were found in the early modern period, since in the 17th cent. the word is found rhymed (from at least the 1620s) with e.g. blow, go, slow, foe, as well as with e.g. how, now, plough, disavow. Pronunciations of both types are found in pronunciation dictionaries and other sources from the 18th and 19th centuries. The pronunciation rhyming with how comes to predominate by the second half of the 19th cent., although the pronunciation rhyming with glow is found as late as 1860. 1. a. The pointed front part of a boat or ship, immediately about the stem; the bow. Cf. bow n.³ 1, foreship n. Now chiefly literary and in non-technical contexts. ΘΚΠ society > travel > travel by water > vessel, ship, or boat > parts of vessels > body of vessel > fore part of vessel > [noun] foreshipc1000 stam1336 bilynge?a1400 forestam?a1400 boat-head1485 head1485 prore1489 forecastle1490 steven1512 forepart1526 nose1538 prow1555 stem1555 forebow1569 beak-head1579 galion1604 bow1626 fore-beaka1656 forebudding1811 prora1847 snout1853 forward1892 sharp end1948 1555 R. Eden Disc. Vyage rounde Worlde in tr. Peter Martyr of Angleria Decades of Newe Worlde f. 231^v They had a west and north weste wynd in the proos of theyr shyppe. 1610 P. Holland tr. W. Camden Brit. i. 244 He used the Helme of a ship for a seale..like as Pompeie [had] the stemme or Pro thereof in his coines. c1645 W. Atkins Relation of Journey (1994) 228 They returne the prou round and once againe for Spaine. 1697 J. Dryden tr. Virgil Æneis v, in tr. Virgil Wks. 383 The brushing Oars, and brazen prow [rhymes below] Dash up the sandy Waves. 1726 J. Swift Gulliver I. i. vii. 131 I seized a large Man of War, ty'd a Cable to the Prow, and..drawing it after me,..arrived at the Royal Port of Blefuscu. 1761 tr. C. Batteux Course Belles Lettres II. ii. xiii. 128 Achilles, from the prow of his own vessel, stands spectator of the fight. 1824 J. R. Jewitt in T. McFeat Indians of N. Pacific Coast (1987) 14 A canoe in pursuit of a whale, with the harpooner standing in the prow prepared to strike. 1853 H. Douglas Ess. Mil. Bridges (ed. 3) iii. 172 From this part it tapers in plan, and rises in section, to the prow and stern. 1882 Cent. Mag. July 350/1 The pointed prow was sheered off and a bowsprit and cut-water were added. 1927 Travel Nov. 8/3 The calendar seemed literally reversed when the ship sliced through the ocean, its prow equatorward. 1968 B. England Figures in Landscape 145 Using the oar as a tiller, MacConnachie pointed the prow of the boat towards the opposite shore. 1996 Holiday Which? Jan. 50/2 A line of shaded cafés with cane-and-cushion seats faces the waggling prows of wooden boats. †b. prow and poop: the whole ship; (figurative) the whole of something. Obsolete. [After classical Latin prōra et puppis ( Cicero Epist. ad Familiares 16. 24. 1 in mihi prora et puppis, ut Graecorum proverbium est ; frequently quoted in post-classical Latin contexts, e.g. 1559 in the passage translated in quot. 1561); the underlying Greek proverb has not been traced, but ancient Greek πρῷρα was often used figuratively.] ΘΚΠ the world > relative properties > wholeness > the whole or all > [noun] > the whole quantity, number, or amount > the whole lot every whita1450 every stitch?a1500 the devil and all1543 prow and poop1561 Christ-cross-row1579 every snip1598 thread and thrum1600 boodle1625 hair and hoof1705 rag-tag (also rag, tag) and bob-tail1725 tutti quanti1772 lot1791 lock, stock, and barrel1824 stock and fluke1825 the whole boiling1837 box and dice1839 the whole caboodlea1848 sub-cheese1859 the whole kit and boiling (boodle, caboodle, cargo)1859 the whole jingbang1866 the whole hypothec1871 the whole ball of wax1882 the whole (entire) shoot1884 (at) every whip-stitch1888 work1899 issue1919 guntz1958 full monty1979 1561 T. Norton tr. J. Calvin Inst. Christian Relig. iv. xvii. f. 133^v As if the enclosyng of Christ vnder bread were (as the prouerbe is) the prowe and poupe of godlinesse [L. prora & puppis (vt aiunt) pietatis]. 1632 in W. Lithgow Totall Disc. Trav. vii. 328 Both Proue and puppe, do answere to the Helme. †c. The fore gun-deck holding the bow-guns; (hence) a discharge of shot from these (rare). Cf. chase n.¹ 6. Obsolete. ΘΚΠ society > armed hostility > hostilities at sea > operations or manoeuvres > [noun] > firing of guns > type of shot broadside1589 prow1600 a shot between wind and water1695 water-liner1898 society > armed hostility > military equipment > operation and use of weapons > action of propelling missile > discharge of firearms > management of artillery > [noun] > an artillery shot > at sea prow1600 a shot between wind and water1695 water-liner1898 society > travel > travel by water > vessel, ship, or boat > parts of vessels > part of vessel above water > [noun] > deck > gun deck > at bow prow1600 1600 in R. Hakluyt Princ. Navigations (new ed.) III. 566 They..came vpon our quarter star-boord: and giuing vs fiue cast pieces out of her prowe, they sought to lay vs aboord. 1627 J. Smith Sea Gram. xiii. 60 Giue him..your prow and broad side as before. 1704 J. Harris Lexicon Technicum I Prow of a Ship, is that part of her Fore-castle which is aloft, and not in the Hold; and is properly that which is between the Chase and the Loofe. d. Chiefly poetic. A ship. Cf. keel n.¹ 2a. ΘΚΠ society > travel > travel by water > vessel, ship, or boat > [noun] shipc725 beamOE boardOE bargea1300 steera1300 vessela1300 treea1382 loomc1400 man1473 ark1477 bottom1490 keela1547 riverboat1565 craft1578 pine1592 class1596 flood-bickerer1599 pitchboard1599 stern-bearer1599 wooden horse1599 wooden isle1603 water treader?1615 water house1616 watercraft1618 machine1637 prore1642 lightman1666 embarkation1690 bark1756 prowa1771 Mudian1813 bastiment1823 hooker1823 nymph1876 M.F.V.1948 a1771 T. Gray Imit. Propertius in Wks. (1814) II. 88 Prows, that late in fierce encounter mett. 1819 Ld. Byron Don Juan: Canto II clxxiv. 206 At last her father's prows put out to sea. 1999 S. Heaney tr. Beowulf (2000) 60 Over the broad sea, whorled prows will bring presents and tokens. 2. figurative and in extended use. A point or pointed part projecting in front and resembling or suggestive of the prow of a ship.Formerly spec. in Zoology (quot. 1887): †= prora n. 2 (obsolete). ΘΚΠ the world > space > shape > unevenness > projection or prominence > sharp unevenness > [noun] > a sharp prominence bill1382 pointa1387 tatter1402 beakc1440 spike1488 neb1578 prong1591 prow1601 taggera1687 tang1688 jog1715 nib1788 tusk1823 spur1872 1601 P. Holland tr. Pliny Hist. World I. 252 A shel-fish..fashioned with a keele like to a barge or barke, with a poupe embowed and turned vp: yea and armed as it were in the proe with a three-forked pike. 1647 J. Fletcher Bonduca i. i. 48 Penyus, seeing me steer thorow all these storms of danger, my helm still in my hand, my sword my prow. 1656 T. Blount Glossographia Prow,..Also a point advancing it self out of a building, as the Prow out of a Ship. 1669 J. Dryden Wild Gallant iv. 60 Now for a broad-side; turn your prow [sc. pregnant belly] to him Cousin. 1812 J. Playfair Outl. Nat. Philos. I. 201 If a prow, in the form of a wedge, be drawn through a fluid. 1820 P. B. Shelley Prometheus Unbound iv. i. 135 A guiding power directs the chariot's prow Over its wheeled clouds. 1887 W. J. Sollas in Encycl. Brit. XXII. 417/2 at Sponges The back of the ‘C’[-shaped spicule] is the keel or tropis; the points are the prows or proræ. 1962 Life 23 Feb. 111 (caption) Rafters shoot out to give roof [of a house] a boatlike prow. 1993 N.Y. Times 21 Nov. v. 8/5 A stroll through Cathedral Cove's soaring sandstone arch and its sea caves, a swim to an offshore rock prow. Compounds C1. General attributive. prow gun n. ΚΠ 1703 J. Stevens tr. D. F. Prudencio de Sandoval Hist. Charles Vth xxiii. 329 The Turks kept close under the Shore, and having fir'd all their prow Guns, run on violently with all the strength of their Oars. 1848 Southern Q. Rev. Oct. 278 The other (the largest) has two prow guns, 1 in the stern and only two small ones in her waist. 2000 St. Petersburg, Russia on Private Tour in rec.travel.cruises (Usenet newsgroup) 2 Apr. The blank shot of the prow gun of this ship heralded the October Revolution. prow ornament n. ΚΠ 1855 W. Smith Hist. Greece iv. xxxiii. 349 [Lysander] brought with him all the prow ornaments of the numerous ships he had taken. 1900 Jrnl. Anthropol. Instit. Great Brit. & Ireland 30 126 From the Solomon Islands come..prow ornaments. 1991 Washington Post (Nexis) 20 Apr. d1 That wide-eyed, red-tongued elephant, a painted prow ornament from Banjarmasin. prow side n. ΚΠ 1653 H. Cogan tr. F. M. Pinto Voy. & Adventures lxvi. 267 Rocks and shelves of sand, which were on the Prow side. 2000 Bellingham (Washington) Herald (Nexis) 6 Aug. b2 Visitors can stand on the prow side of the piece and view the waterfall through two holes, which are reminiscent of portholes. C2. † prow-decked adj. Obsolete rare. (of a ship) having an ornamental prow. ΚΠ ?1614 G. Chapman tr. Homer Odysses ix. 131 Nor place the neighbour Cyclops their delights, In braue Vermilion prow-deckt ships. † prow piece adj. Obsolete = prow gun n. at Compounds 1. ΚΠ 1612 T. Best Jrnl. 30 Nov. in Voy. to E. Indies (1934) 36 He gave us one of his prow peeces. 1627 J. Smith Sea Gram. ii. 10 The Prow is the Decke abaft the Fore-castle, whereon lyeth the Prow peeces. prow-shaped adj. of the shape of a ship's prow; having a projecting point or part at the front. ΚΠ 1838 Civil Engineer & Architect's Jrnl. 1 394/2 High pressure steam, length of stroke, and prow-shaped bows..are not all necessary for speed. 1899 T. C. Allbutt et al. Syst. Med. VIII. 200 The small head, with narrow forehead presenting marked interfrontal ridge—the prow-shaped cranium—indicates the worst pathological type. 1992 N. Cohn Heart of World xvi. 233 The skyscraper's sharp profile and prow-shaped tip had the side effect of whipping up sudden gusts and windflaws liable to upend a maiden's skirt. Derivatives prowed adj. having a prow, esp. of a specified kind. ΘΚΠ society > travel > travel by water > vessel, ship, or boat > vessel of specific construction or shape > [adjective] > having a prow prowed1788 1788 E. Gibbon Decline & Fall I. xliii. 387 The departure of Zabergan was hastened by the report, that double-prowed vessels were built on the Danube to intercept his passage. 1884 A. J. Evans in Archaeologia (1885) 49 46 A wooden bridge..supported on pillars..prowed so as to look like a row of vessels breasting the current. 1920 Classical Rev. 34 183/1 One often wonders how they managed at all with the old broad prowed vessels with their clumsy hand steering-gear. 1975 J. Gores Hammett xix. 132 Sharp-prowed racing sloops..flashed dripping flanks at them. 2004 Independent 15 May (Review section) 9/1 High-prowed vessels powered by enormous outboard engines. This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, September 2007; most recently modified version published online March 2022). prowadj. Brit. /praʊ/, U.S. /praʊ/ Forms: Middle English prous, Middle English– prow. Origin: A borrowing from French. Etymons: French prou, pro. Etymology: < Anglo-Norman and Middle French prou, prous, variants of pro (see proud adj.). Compare prew adj., prow n.¹It is uncertain whether earlier occurrences in surnames (e.g. Robertum le Pro (1256), Robert Prowe (1276)) reflect the Anglo-Norman or the Middle English word. Now rare (archaic and poetic in later use). Good, worthy; valiant, brave, gallant.Apparently obsolete from the 16th cent. (cf. prew adj.), but the superlative prowest was much used by Spenser, whence it came down in later poets, esp. in prowest knight (see quot. 1590¹). As a poetic term it was popular in the 19th cent., when some writers also revived the positive prow. ΘΚΠ the mind > goodness and badness > quality of being good > worth > [adjective] dearc888 dearworthc888 worthlyeOE oughtsOE worthfulOE aughtOE richa1225 gildenc1225 of pricea1325 worthya1325 of (‥) valourc1330 prow1340 dearworthyc1374 of value1395 pricefula1400 presc1400 singularc1400 goldena1425 well-foundc1475 valiant1481 prized1487 prowousa1500 valuable1567 prizable1569 valorous1592 suit-worth1594 bully1600 estimable1600 treasurable1607 treasurous?1611 treasured1675 pearly1770 at a premium1828 keep-worthy1830 good value1842 the mind > emotion > courage > chivalry > gallantry > [adjective] prow1340 prowousa1500 gallant1598 cavaliera1642 1340 Ayenbite (1866) 83 Zueche byeþ þe opnymynges þet me clepeþ prous [c1450 Bk. Vices & Virtues douȝty; Fr. preuz] and hardi ine þise wordle. a1500 (?a1425) tr. Secreta Secret. (Lamb.) 115 (MED) He þat hauys a long nose rechinge to þe mouth, ys prow and hardy. a1555 J. Philpot tr. C. S. Curione Def. Authority Christ's Church in R. Eden Exam. & Writings J. Philpot (1842) (modernized text) 360 Christ, our most prowest Master, keepeth silence of them. 1590 E. Spenser Faerie Queene i. iv. sig. D5^v The prowest knight, that euer field did fight. 1590 E. Spenser Faerie Queene iii. iii. sig. Ee2 Proofe of thy prow valiaunce Thou then shalt make. 1591 J. Harington tr. L. Ariosto Orlando Furioso xlvi. vii. 395 The noblest, stoutest, and the prowest knight. 1671 J. Milton Paradise Regain'd iii. 341 Angelica His daughter, sought by many Prowest Knights, Both Paynim, and the Peers of Charlemane. View more context for this quotation 1796 G. L. Way tr. P. J.-B. Legrand d'Aussy Fabliaux I. 135 Thee, the prowest knight. Full many a brave one, doom'd to sue the maid. 1818 H. Hallam View Europe Middle Ages I. i. 50 They might claim to be the prowest knights in Europe. 1851 C. L. Smith tr. T. Tasso Jerusalem Delivered iii. lix A man more wise of head or prow of hand. 1869 Ld. Tennyson Pelleas & Ettarre 342 From prime to vespers will I chant thy praise As prowest knight and truest lover. 1898 T. Hardy Wessex Poems 69 Carl Schwartzenberg was of the plot, And Blücher, prompt and prow. a1907 F. Thompson Wks. (1913) II. 173 The other yet shall give a life to thee, Such as to gain, the prowest swords have striven. This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, September 2007; most recently modified version published online March 2022). † prowv. Forms: Middle English prou, Middle English prowe. Origin: Formed within English, by conversion. Etymon: prow n.¹ Etymology: < prow n.¹It is possible that the verbal use may have developed from misapprehension of uses of the noun such as the following:a1450 (a1338) R. Mannyng Chron. (Lamb.) (1887) i. 8820 When þe kyng herde of þer vertu, Þat þey myght falle þe folk to prw, He had longyng for þem to go..Þe stones to Bretaigne for to brynge. Obsolete. rare. intransitive. To be of advantage; to be profitable or beneficial. With to or indirect object. ΘΚΠ the world > action or operation > advantage > be advantageous or beneficial [verb (intransitive)] dowc950 frameOE fremeOE helpc1000 gainc1175 holdc1175 vail1303 yainc1325 it is speedfulc1340 profit1340 speedc1380 prowa1400 bootc1400 prevailc1450 avail1489 mister1490 skill1528 stead1594 advantagea1616 conduce1624 a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Vesp.) 27127 And es he for a fule to trou, þat will noght do þat mai him prou. ?a1400 (a1338) R. Mannyng Chron. (Petyt) ii. 298 Þat no þing suld be left þat myght to Inglond prowe. This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, September 2007; most recently modified version published online December 2020). < n.¹c1300n.²1555adj.1340v.a1400
随便看	disrated disrates disrating disrationate disray disrealize disreason disreasonable disreckon disrecommend disrecommendation disregard disregardable disregardant disregarded disregardedness disregarder disregarders disregardful disregardfully disregardfulness disregardfulnesses disregarding disregards disregular

prown.1

prown.2

Compounds

Derivatives

prowadj.

† prowv.

prown.¹

prown.²