different between flex vs bow

English

Etymology

Latin flexus, past participle of flecto (“to bend”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /fl?ks/
• Rhymes: -?ks
• Homophone: flecks

Noun

flex (countable and uncountable, plural flexes)

1. (uncountable) Flexibility, pliancy.
2. (countable) The or an act of flexing.
   • 2002, Gary Noy, Red Dirt: A Journey of Discovery in the Landscape of Imagination, California's Gold Country, iUniverse (?ISBN), page 144:

     The hills become more rounded. The slopes are either the stooped shoulders of an aging colossus or the muscular flexes of a geologic youngster, but they are pleasant, comforting. This landscape is what most would think of […]

3. (uncountable, chiefly Britain) Any flexible insulated electrical wiring.
4. (uncountable) Flexible ductwork, typically flexible plastic over a metal wire coil to shape a tube.
   • 2010, Aaron Lubeck, Green Restorations: Sustainable Building and Historic Homes (page 221)

     Flex is quick and cheaper to install than metallic systems, but it yields higher pressure loss than other types of ducts and requires runs of less than 15 feet, minimal turns and elimination of kinks.

5. (countable, geometry) A point of inflection.
6. (countable, slang) The act of flaunting something; something one considers impressive.
   • 2017, "Mogul Bites", Black American Moguls, Fall 2017, page 6:

     Getting together with other power players at Masa is the ultimate flex of conspicuous consumption. […] A party of five or more requires a deposit of $200 per person at least one week prior to the reservation.

   • 2019, Seth Sommerfeld, "Worldwide Web", Inlander, 4 July 2019 - 10 July 2019, page 37:

     It's an achievement to stand out from other Marvel movies in terms of special effects, but this whole movie feels like a flex for those computer wizards.

   • 2020, Daniel Varghese, "Aesop's Hand Sanitizer Is a Flex for an Anxious Time", GQ, 6 March 2020
   • For more quotations using this term, see Citations:flex.

Translations

Verb

flex (third-person singular simple present flexes, present participle flexing, simple past and past participle flexed)

1. (transitive) To bend something.
2. (transitive) To repeatedly bend one of one's joints.
3. (transitive) To move part of the body using one's muscles.
4. (intransitive) To tighten the muscles for display of size or strength.
5. (intransitive, slang, by extension) To flaunt one's superiority.

Translations

Related terms

• flexibility
• flexible
• flexing
• flexion

Anagrams

• XFEL

English

Etymology 1

From Middle English bowe, bo?e, from Old English boga, from Proto-West Germanic *bog?, from Proto-Germanic *bugô. Cognate with West Frisian boge, Dutch boog, German Bogen, Danish bue, Norwegian boge, bue, Swedish båge.

Pronunciation

• (Received Pronunciation) enPR: b?, IPA^(key): /b??/
• (US) enPR: b?, IPA^(key): /bo?/
• Rhymes: -??
• Homophone: beau

Noun

bow (plural bows)

1. A weapon made of a curved piece of wood or other flexible material whose ends are connected by a string, used for shooting arrows.
2. A curved bend in a rod or planar surface, or in a linear formation such as a river (see oxbow).
3. A rod with horsehair (or an artificial substitute) stretched between the ends, used for playing various stringed musical instruments.
4. A stringed instrument (chordophone), consisting of a stick with a single taut cord stretched between the ends, most often played by plucking.
5. 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.
6. Anything bent or curved, such as a rainbow.

   • I do set my bow in the cloud.

7. The U-shaped piece which goes around the neck of an ox and fastens it to the yoke.
8. Either of the arms of a pair of spectacles, running from the side of the lens to behind the wearer's ear.
9. 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.
10. (nautical) A crude sort of quadrant formerly used for taking the sun's altitude at sea.
11. (saddlery) Two pieces of wood which form the arched forward part of a saddletree.
12. The part of a key that is not inserted into the lock and that is used to turn the key.

    Coordinate term: blade

Synonyms

• (bow-shaped bend): arc, bend, curve
• (tool for playing stringed instruments): fiddlestick
• (a type of stringed instrument): musical bow

Derived terms

Translations

Verb

bow (third-person singular simple present bows, present participle bowing, simple past and past participle bowed)

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

   The musician bowed his violin expertly.

2. (intransitive) To become bent or curved.

   The shelf bowed under the weight of the books.
3. (transitive) To make something bend or curve.
   • 1843, William H. Prescott, The History of the Conquest of Mexico

     The whole nation […] bowed their necks to the worst kind of tyranny.

4. (transitive, figuratively) To exercise powerful or controlling influence over; to bend, figuratively; to turn; to incline.
   • 1625, Francis Bacon, Of Atheism

     Adversities do more bow men's minds to religion.

   • not to bow and bias their opinions

Derived terms

• bower
• diddley bower

Translations

Etymology 2

From Middle English bowen, buwen, bu?en, from Old English b?gan, from Proto-West Germanic *beugan, from Proto-Germanic *beugan?, from Proto-Indo-European *b??g?- (“to bend”). Cognate with Dutch buigen, German biegen, Danish bue.

Pronunciation

• enPR: bou, IPA^(key): /ba?/
• Rhymes: -a?
• Homophone: bough

Verb

bow (third-person singular simple present bows, present participle bowing, simple past and past participle bowed)

1. (intransitive) To bend oneself as a gesture of respect or deference.
   • 1900, L. Frank Baum, The Wonderful Wizard of Oz

     The soldier now blew upon a green whistle, and at once a young girl, dressed in a pretty green silk gown, entered the room. She had lovely green hair and green eyes, and she bowed low before Dorothy as she said, "Follow me and I will show you your room."

2. (transitive and intransitive) To debut.
   • 2010 (publication date), Kara Krekeler, "Rebuilding the opera house", West End Word, volume 39, number 26, December 22, 2010 – January 11, 2011, page 1:

     SCP recently announced that How the Grinch Stole Christmas! The Musical will bow on the newly renovated stage next December.

3. (intransitive) To defer (to something).

4. (transitive) To give a direction, indication, or command to by bowing.

Hypernyms

• (gesture): gesture; congee, congé, conge

Derived terms

Related terms

• buxom

Translations

Noun

bow (plural bows)

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

   He made a polite bow as he entered the room.

Hypernyms

• (gesture): gesture; congee, congé, conge

Translations

Etymology 3

From Middle English bowe, bowgh, a borrowing from Middle Low German bôch and/or Middle Dutch boech, from Proto-Germanic *b?guz, from Proto-Indo-European *b?eh???us (“arm”). Cognate with Dutch boeg (“bow”), Danish bov (“bow”), Swedish bog (“bow”). Doublet of bough.

Pronunciation

• enPR: bou, IPA^(key): /ba?/
• Rhymes: -a?
• Homophone: bough

Noun

bow (plural bows)

1. (nautical) The front of a boat or ship.
2. (rowing) The rower that sits in the seat closest to the bow of the boat.

Synonyms

• (of a ship): prow

Antonyms

• (of a ship): poop, stern

Derived terms

• bow rudder
• bow shock
• shot across the bow, shot across the bows

Usage notes

• Often used in the plural, the ship being considered to have starboard and port bows, meeting at the stern.

Translations

Etymology 4

Noun

bow (plural bows)

1. (obsolete) Alternative spelling of bough

   • Ariell:

     Where the Bee ?ucks, there ?uck I,

     In a Cowslips bell, I lie,

     There I cowch when Owles doe crie,

     On the Batts backe I doe flie

     ? after Sommer merrily.

     Merrily, merrily, ?hall I liue now

     Vnder the blo??om that hangs on the Bow.

See also

• coll'arco
• curtsy
• kowtow
• Wikipedia article on bows (weapons)
• Wikipedia article on bows used to play string instruments
• Wikipedia article on bows (the knots)
• Wikipedia article on musical bows
• Wikipedia article on bows, the gestures of respect
• Wikipedia article on the bows of ships
• Bow in the Encyclopædia Britannica (11th edition, 1911)

Anagrams

• WBO

Sranan Tongo

Etymology

From Dutch bouwen (“to build”).

Verb

bow

1. to build
2. (figuratively, with tapu) to trust, to depend on

Vilamovian

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /bo?f/

Noun

b?w f (plural bowa)

1. woman
2. wife