oxbow
pronunciation
How to pronounce oxbow in British English: UK [ˈɒksbəʊ]
How to pronounce oxbow in American English: US [ ˈɑːksboʊ]
-
- Noun:
- the land inside an oxbow bend in a river
- a U-shaped curve in a stream
- a wooden framework bent in the shape of a U; its upper ends are attached to the horizontal yoke and the loop goes around the neck of an ox
Word Origin
- oxbow (n.)
- also ox-bow, mid-14c., "wooden collar for an ox," from ox + bow (n.1). Meaning "semicircular bend in a river" is from 1797, American English (New England); meaning "curved lake left after an oxbow meander has been cut off by a change in the river course" is from 1898. The reference is to similarity of shape.
Example
- 1. Oxbow lakes , the floodplain , dry streams and tributaries , waves beating against the shore .
- 2. William founded his own energy company oxbow and turned to yachting ; he spent an estimated sixty-five million dollars to win the america 's cup in 1992 .
- 3. Oxbow bend , grand teton national park , wyoming ( mark lissick )
- 4. Oxbow corp. , a mining and energy company based in west palm beach , fla. , is the single largest contributor to a super pac founded to help mr. romney .
- 5. For me , the problem with reintroducing beavers to scotland , where they haven 't lived for 400 years , is that pretty soon the highlands will be a broken and desolate place full of nothing but poisoned oxbow lakes , dead deer and grouse moors that look like the uae 's empty quarter .