bough
noun
ˈbau̇ 
: a branch of a tree
especially : a main branch
boughed
ˈbau̇d
adjective 
Synonyms
- branch
- limb
See all Synonyms & Antonyms 
Example Sentences
a tree bough fell on my car during the windstorm
Recent Examples on the Web To feed sparrows and finches, hang this Droll Yankees feeder up on a tree bough. 
Susan Cosier, WSJ, 29 July 2022 The leafy bough was followed a millisecond later by a squirrel. John Kelly, Washington Post, 30 May 2022 However, on the wall there is only an enormous and exceedingly bad painting, in a heavy wooden frame, done primarily in weary shades of brown, depicting a Tuscan landscape with dim saints and sentinel cypresses and an unidentifiable bird on a bough. John Banville, The New York Review of Books, 6 Apr. 2022 Christmas movies about lonely career women finding love under a snowy bough in their rural hometown are a part of it, sure, but not the only part. Gala Mukomolova, refinery29.com, 18 Dec. 2021 Given nationwide demand, mass retailers like Walmart, Lowe’s and the Home Depot have jumped on the bough bandwagon this year with their own tree delivery operations. Allison Duncan, WSJ, 9 Dec. 2020 This shelter is a great addition to a tarp hammock or strung up over a springy bough bed. Popular Science, 28 May 2020 As a morning sun filters through the live oak boughs overhanging the Forsyth Farmers’ Market, two lines quickly build to snap up Adam Mentzer’s bouquets of carrots and asparagus. Patrik Jonsson, The Christian Science Monitor, 2 Apr. 2020 Every year, the boughs bend with memories of you, the faithful audience. al, 1 Mar. 2020 See More
Susan Cosier, WSJ, 29 July 2022 The leafy bough was followed a millisecond later by a squirrel. John Kelly, Washington Post, 30 May 2022 However, on the wall there is only an enormous and exceedingly bad painting, in a heavy wooden frame, done primarily in weary shades of brown, depicting a Tuscan landscape with dim saints and sentinel cypresses and an unidentifiable bird on a bough. John Banville, The New York Review of Books, 6 Apr. 2022 Christmas movies about lonely career women finding love under a snowy bough in their rural hometown are a part of it, sure, but not the only part. Gala Mukomolova, refinery29.com, 18 Dec. 2021 Given nationwide demand, mass retailers like Walmart, Lowe’s and the Home Depot have jumped on the bough bandwagon this year with their own tree delivery operations. Allison Duncan, WSJ, 9 Dec. 2020 This shelter is a great addition to a tarp hammock or strung up over a springy bough bed. Popular Science, 28 May 2020 As a morning sun filters through the live oak boughs overhanging the Forsyth Farmers’ Market, two lines quickly build to snap up Adam Mentzer’s bouquets of carrots and asparagus. Patrik Jonsson, The Christian Science Monitor, 2 Apr. 2020 Every year, the boughs bend with memories of you, the faithful audience. al, 1 Mar. 2020 See More Word History
Etymology
Middle English, shoulder, bough, from Old English bōg; akin to Old High German buog shoulder, Greek pēchys forearm
First Known Use
before the 12th century, in the meaning defined above
Kids Definition
bough
noun
ˈbau̇
: a usually large or main branch of a tree
bough
noun
as in branch
a major outgrowth from the main stem of a woody plant a tree bough fell on my car during the windstorm Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
- branch
- limb
- twig
- branchlet
- sprig
- shoot
- offshoot
- spur
- outgrowth
- spray