bough

[ bou ]

See synonyms for bough on Thesaurus.com

noun

a branch of a tree, especially one of the larger or main branches.

Origin of bough

First recorded before 1000; Middle English bogh, Old English bōg, bōh “shoulder, bough”; cognate with Old Norse bōgr, Dutch boeg, German Bug; akin to Greek pêchys, Sanskrit bāhu

synonym study For bough

See branch.

Other words from bough

boughless, adjective
un·der·bough, noun

Words that may be confused with bough

bough , bow

Words Nearby bough

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use bough in a sentence

There are many different ways to make snowshoes, and the crudest and quickest method is to strap a bundle of evergreen boughs underneath each foot—though it’s a cumbersome task that does little to improve traction.
How to build snowshoes on the fly—and 4 other tips for surviving deep snow | By Tim MacWelch/Outdoor Life | January 5, 2021 | Popular-Science
In the event the snow won’t hold together to build solid building blocks or you are caught without tools, you can still dig out a trench and cover it with a flat roof of poles, tree boughs, and an insulating layer of snow.
Winter survival shelters you should know how to build | By Tim MacWelch/Outdoor Life | December 21, 2020 | Popular-Science
Since a fire would melt the snow covered boughs overhead, your best bet for warmth is packing the well with insulating materials.
Winter survival shelters you should know how to build | By Tim MacWelch/Outdoor Life | December 21, 2020 | Popular-Science
To make a bough bed, you can use leaves, grass, evergreen boughs, or other plant material for insulation.
Winter survival shelters you should know how to build | By Tim MacWelch/Outdoor Life | December 21, 2020 | Popular-Science
Add a bough bedWhile this is not a shelter by itself, a thick bough bed makes an outstanding addition to any type of shelter large enough to accommodate it.
Winter survival shelters you should know how to build | By Tim MacWelch/Outdoor Life | December 21, 2020 | Popular-Science

A couple of innocuous paragraphs are all that appeared in the privately printed book, The Fruitful bough.
Inside the Kennedy Death Threats | Adam Clymer | June 14, 2010 | THE DAILY BEAST
No man should regard the subject of religion as decided for him until he has read The Golden bough.
God and my Neighbour | Robert Blatchford
Outside Rome, showing the same ideas at work among neighbouring peoples, was the 'golden bough' in the grove of Diana at Aricia.
The Religion of Ancient Rome | Cyril Bailey
A few more shots put an end to its existence, and we then pulled up under the bough on which it was hanging.
A Woman's Journey Round the World | Ida Pfeiffer
Wandering from the parent bough,Little, trembling leaf,Whither goest thou?
The Poems of Giacomo Leopardi | Giacomo Leopardi
The birds were singing, black squirrels were jumping from bough to bough, and they could hear the tapping of the woodpecker.
Mrs. Falchion, Complete | Gilbert Parker

British Dictionary definitions for bough

bough

/ (baʊ) /

noun

any of the main branches of a tree

Origin of bough

Old English bōg arm, twig; related to Old Norse bōgr shoulder, ship's bow, Old High German buog shoulder, Greek pēkhus forearm, Sanskrit bāhu; see bow ³, elbow

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Browse