bowling

[ boh-ling ]

/ ˈboʊ lɪŋ /

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR bowling ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

any of several games in which players standing at one end of an alley or green roll balls at standing objects or toward a mark at the other end, especially a game in which a heavy ball is rolled from one end of a wooden alley at wooden pins set up at the opposite end.Compare boccie, candlepins(def 2), duckpins(def 2), lawn bowling, ninepins(def 1), tenpins(def 1).

the game of bowls;lawn bowling.

an act or instance of playing or participating in any such game: Bowling is a pleasant way to exercise.

RELATED WORDS

skittles, ninepins, candlepins, kegling

Nearby words

Origin of bowling

First recorded in 1525–35; bowl² + -ing¹

Definition for bowling (2 of 3)

bowl

[ bohl ]

/ boʊl /

noun

a rather deep, round dish or basin, used chiefly for holding liquids, food, etc.

the contents of a bowl: a bowl of tomato soup.

a rounded, cuplike, hollow part: the bowl of a pipe.

a large drinking cup.

festive drinking; conviviality.

any bowl-shaped depression or formation.

an edifice with tiers of seats forming sides like those of a bowl, having the arena at the bottom; stadium.

Also called bowl game. a football game played after the regular season by teams selected by the sponsors of the game, usually as representing the best from a region of the country: the Rose Bowl.

Typography. a curved or semicircular line of a character, as of a, d, b, etc.

verb (used with object)

to give (a floor) a gentle inclination on all sides toward some area, as a stage or platform.

Origin of bowl

before 950; Middle English bolle, Old English bolla; cognate with Old Norse bolli. See boll

Related formsbowl·like, adjective

Definition for bowling (3 of 3)

bowl

[ bohl ]

/ boʊl /

noun

one of the balls, having little or no bias, used in playing ninepins or tenpins.

one of the biased or weighted balls used in lawn bowling.

bowls, (used with a singular verb) lawn bowling.

a delivery of the ball in bowling or lawn bowling.

(formerly) a rotating cylindrical part in a machine, as one to reduce friction.

verb (used without object)

to play at bowling or bowls; participate in or have a game or games of bowling.

to roll a bowl or ball.

to move along smoothly and rapidly.

Cricket. to deliver the ball to be played by the batsman.

verb (used with object)

to roll or trundle, as a ball or hoop.

to attain by bowling: He bowls a good game. She usually bowls a 120 game, but today she bowled 180.

to knock or strike, as by the ball in bowling (usually followed by over or down).

to carry or convey, as in a wheeled vehicle.

Cricket. to eliminate (a batsman) by bowling (usually followed by out): He was bowled for a duck. He was bowled out for a duck.

Verb Phrases

bowl over, to surprise greatly: We were bowled over by the news.

Origin of bowl

1375–1425; late Middle English bowle, variant of boule < Middle French < Latin bulla bubble, knob; cf. boil¹, bola

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for bowling

The 18-inch air ducts that feed the pipe rooms are each over 50 feet in length, large enough to fit a bowling ball.
How to Save Silent Movies: Inside New Jersey’s Cinema Paradiso|Rich Goldstein|October 2, 2014|DAILY BEAST
In the eyes of the NRA, Rambo is as grave a threat to gun rights as The Fonz—or the director of Bowling for Columbine.
Rambo Hates Guns: How Sylvester Stallone Became the Most Anti-Gun Celeb in Hollywood|Asawin Suebsaeng|August 14, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Paul employed his wife, a deacon in their Bowling Green presbyterian church, for damage control.
Is Rand Paul Christian Enough for the GOP?|Olivia Nuzzi|August 2, 2014|DAILY BEAST
According to the lawsuit, Bowling says his appearance on the show ended in “relentless embarrassment and harassment.”
It’s Time to Turn Off TV Doctors|April Siese|June 23, 2014|DAILY BEAST

Then there was the bowling party Billy Bob Thornton threw for the cast three or four weeks later.
Meet ‘Fargo’ Breakout Star Allison Tolman|Kevin Fallon|April 23, 2014|DAILY BEAST
In the last is an ancient and picturesque mansion, which formerly belonged to the Bowling or Bolling family.
Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 4, Slice 4|Various
Early the morning succeeding proceeded on the march, but went into camp one mile from Bowling Green.
Our Battery|Orlando P. Cutter
And there was such a distinguished air about Gusher, that Bowling Green was half inclined to look on him with favor.
The Von Toodleburgs|F. Colburn Adams
By midday the snow had ceased and we were bowling along before a stiff breeze.
The Mutiny of the Elsinore|Jack London
They were bowling rapidly along, when an automobile passed them, moving at a rate of speed that was almost reckless.
Baseball Joe in the World Series|Lester Chadwick

British Dictionary definitions for bowling (1 of 3)

bowling

/ (ˈbəʊlɪŋ) /

noun

any of various games in which a heavy ball is rolled down a special alley, usually made of wood, at a group of wooden pins, esp the games of tenpin bowling (tenpins) and skittles (ninepins)

the game of bowls

cricket the act of delivering the ball to the batsman

(modifier) of or relating to bowls or bowlinga bowling team

British Dictionary definitions for bowling (2 of 3)

bowl

/ (bəʊl) /

noun

a round container open at the top, used for holding liquid, keeping fruit, serving food, etc

Also: bowlful the amount a bowl will hold

the rounded or hollow part of an object, esp of a spoon or tobacco pipe

any container shaped like a bowl, such as a sink or lavatory

mainly US a bowl-shaped building or other structure, such as a football stadium or amphitheatre

a bowl-shaped depression of the land surfaceSee also dust bowl

literary

a drinking cup
intoxicating drink

Word Origin for bowl

Old English bolla; related to Old Norse bolli, Old Saxon bollo

British Dictionary definitions for bowling (3 of 3)

bowl

/ (bəʊl) /

noun

a wooden ball used in the game of bowls, having flattened sides, one side usually being flatter than the other in order to make it run on a curved course

a large heavy ball with holes for gripping with the fingers and thumb, used in tenpin bowling

verb

to roll smoothly or cause to roll smoothly, esp by throwing underarm along the ground

(intr usually foll by along) to move easily and rapidly, as in a car

cricket

to send (a ball) down the pitch from one's hand towards the batsman, keeping the arm straight while doing so
Also: bowl out to dismiss (a batsman) by delivering a ball that breaks his wicket

(intr) to play bowls or tenpin bowling

(tr) (in tenpin bowling) to score (a specified amount)he bowled 120

Word Origin for bowl

C15: from French boule, ultimately from Latin bulla bubble

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

Word Origin and History for bowling (1 of 3)

bowling

1530s, originally "playing at bowls," verbal noun from bowl (v.). Bowling alley is from 1550s.

Word Origin and History for bowling (1 of 3)

bowl

Old English bolla "pot, cup, bowl," from Proto-Germanic *bul- "a round vessel" (cf. Old Norse bolle, Old High German bolla), from PIE *bhl-, from root *bhel- (2) "to blow, inflate, swell" (see bole).

Word Origin and History for bowling (2 of 3)

bowl

"to roll a ball on the ground," typically as part of a game or contest, mid-15c., from bowl "wooden ball" (see bowls). Specifically of cricket from 1755; cricket use is source of late 19c. expressions bowl over, etc. Related: Bowled; bowling.