kowtow
/ˈkaʊˌtaʊ/
Word Rarity
Very rare
Frequency: 2.16 in modern English
16
Scrabble Score
6
Letters
2
Syllables
4
Unique Chars
Meaning
verb
To grovel, act in a very submissive manner; to show obeisance to (someone or something) in such a manner; to bow.
Intransitive verb
Example Sentences
- "When the weather turned cold, the tears that he shed would become frozen like veins; the blood on his forehead from kowtowing would also freeze and would not drip."
- "I suppose you're going to be nice to Odie and kowtow to Jon and lick the mailman's boots! I don't like you already."
- "The letter to Razin contained another thought that preoccupied Stalin in the first months after the war: the need to avoid “kowtowing to the West,” including showing “unwarranted respect” for the “military authorities of Germany.”"
- "Three elders dressed in their long silk ceremonial gowns perform the kowtow before the altar in their clan ancestral hall."
Etymology
Word Breakdown
- Root: 叩頭