bough
Plural: boughs
Noun
- A large branch of a tree.
- any of the larger branches of a tree
- A tree-branch, usually a primary one directly attached to the trunk.
- A gallows.
Examples
- Extending BOUGH across the board felt like growing a tree of points.
- When the bough breaks, the cradle will fall. (Rock-a-bye Baby)
Origin / Etymology
PIE word
*bʰeh₂ǵʰús
From Middle English bough (“branch of a bush or tree, especially a main branch; limb of an animal or person; something resembling a branch (such as a plant root or branch of a nerve); (figuratively) Christian cross; descendant, offspring”) [and other forms], from Old English bōg, bōh (“tree bough or branch; arm; shoulder”), from Proto-West Germanic *bōgu, from Proto-Germanic *bōguz (“shoulder; upper arm”), from Proto-Indo-European *bʰeh₂ǵʰús (“arm”).
Cognate with Saterland Frisian Bouch, West Frisian boech, Dutch boeg, German Low German Boog, German Bug, Danish bov, Icelandic bógur, and distantly with Ancient Greek πῆχυς (pêkhus, “forearm, cubit, etc.”). Doublet of bow ("front of a ship, prow").
Scrabble Score: 11
bough: valid Scrabble (US) TWL Wordbough: valid Scrabble Word in Merriam-Webster MW Dictionary
bough: valid Scrabble Word in International Collins CSW Dictionary