jowl

¹ American  

[joul, johl] / dʒaʊl, dʒoʊl /

noun

1. a jaw, especially the lower jaw.

2. the cheek.

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jowl ² American  

[joul, johl] / dʒaʊl, dʒoʊl /

Also jole

noun

1. a fold of flesh hanging from the jaw, as of a very fat person.

2. the meat of the cheek of a hog.

3. the dewlap of cattle.

4. the wattle of fowls.

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jowl ¹ British  

/ dʒaʊl /

noun

1. the jaw, esp the lower one

2. (often plural) a cheek, esp a prominent one

3. See cheek

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jowl ² British  

/ dʒaʊl /

noun

1. fatty flesh hanging from the lower jaw

2. a similar fleshy part in animals, such as the wattle of a fowl or the dewlap of a bull

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jowl Idioms  

1. see cheek by jowl.

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Other Word Forms

• jowled
  adjective

Etymology

Origin of jowl¹

before 1000; Middle English chawl, chavell, Old English ceafl jaw; cognate with Dutch kevel, German Kiefer, Old Norse kjaptr

Origin of jowl²

First recorded in 1275–1325; Middle English cholle, Old English ceole “throat”; cognate with German Kehle “throat”

Explanation

Jowls are excess flesh around the jaw and cheeks that tends to grow as people get older. The jowl is also the lower jaw, which is hinged so the mouth can open, in vertebrates. The two meanings of jowl both relate to the jaw. In some cases, jowl literally means jaw, as in the hinged lower jaw of vertebrates. Without a jowl, you wouldn't be able to open your mouth. The jowl can also be called the jawbone, lower jawbone, mandible, or submaxilla. The other kind of jowl — usually called jowls — are loose, fleshy areas around the jaw and lower cheeks. Older people are more likely to have jowls, especially if they are overweight.

Example Sentences

Ruoff’s team has already used it to make diamond films composed of thousands of tiny crystals packed cheek by jowl.

From Science Magazine • Apr. 24, 2024

"We live teeth by jowl with a much bigger country that speaks a language that is a global language," he said.

From BBC • Jan. 21, 2023

And instead of being crammed cheek by jowl in the press section, reporters, along with the justices’ law clerks, are spaced throughout the otherwise-empty chamber.

From Washington Post • Jan. 7, 2022

Right now guanciale, a cured pork jowl traditionally used to make spaghetti alla carbonara, is flying off the shelves, as is an Italian orange soda called Chinotto.

From Seattle Times • Dec. 5, 2021

Factories making cameras, computers, watches, umbrellas, and T-shirts stand cheek by jowl with densely packed blocks of apartment buildings and fields of banana and mango trees, sugarcane, papaya, and pineapple destined for the export market.

From "Outliers" by Malcolm Gladwell