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• dow
  dow

  verb (used without object)

  to be able.
• Dow
  Dow

  noun

  none the Dow or the Dow Jones a shortened form of Dow Jones average.
• Dow.
  Dow.

  abbreviation

  dowager.

dow

¹ American  

[dou, doh] / daʊ, doʊ /

verb (used without object)

Scot. and North England.

dowed, dought, dowing

1. to be able.

2. to thrive; prosper; do well.

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Dow ² American  

[dou] / daʊ /

noun

1. none the Dow or the Dow Jones a shortened form of Dow Jones average.

   The Dow is up nearly 8,400 points from its record low on February 12.

   The 7 percent drop in the Dow Jones was a harbinger of the precipice on which the economy was then hanging.

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Dow ³ American  

[dou] / daʊ /

noun

1. Charles Henry, 1851–1902, U.S. journalist and publisher: a founder of Dow Jones company.

2. Gerrard Dou, Gerard.

3. Herbert Henry, 1866–1930, U.S. chemist, inventor, and industrialist.

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Dow. ⁴ American  

abbreviation

1. dowager.

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Dow British  

/ daʊ, dɔu /

noun

1. See Dou

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Etymology

Origin of dow

before 900; Middle English dowen, doghen, Old English dugan to be worthy; cognate with German taugen; cf. doughty

Example Sentences

A big gain in financial stocks helped the Dow Jones Industrial Average settle up 0.7%, while the S&P 500 and Nasdaq also finished higher.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 14, 2026

On the week, the Dow rose 0.7%, the S&P 500 0.7%, and, yes, the Nasdaq Composite 0.7%.

From Barron's • Jun. 12, 2026

For the week, the international benchmark has slumped 7.7%, falling for three of the past four weeks, according to Dow Jones Market Data.

From MarketWatch • Jun. 12, 2026

On Friday, signs of progress on a peace deal helped drive indexes back toward records, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average adding 0.7% and the Nasdaq 0.3% higher.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 12, 2026

The stock market had rebounded earlier in the year, the Dow Jones Industrial Average climbing an all-time record of 15.34 percent in one day on March 15 to close at 62.10.

From "The Boys in the Boat: Nine Americans and Their Epic Quest for Gold at the 1936 Berlin Olympics" by Daniel James Brown