narrow
/ˈnæɹəʊ/
Word Rarity
Uncommon
Frequency: Zipf frequency 4.39 in modern English
9
Scrabble Score
6
Letters
2
Syllables
5
Unique Chars
Meaning
adj
Having a small width; not wide; having opposite edges or sides that are close, especially by comparison to length or depth.
adj
Of little extent; very limited; circumscribed.
adj
Restrictive; without flexibility or latitude.
adj
Contracted; of limited scope; bigoted.
adj
adj
Example Sentences
- "a narrow hallway"
- "She was like a Beardsley Salome, he had said. And indeed she had the narrow eyes and the high cheekbone of that creature, and as nearly the sinuosity as is compatible with human symmetry."
- "Just under the ceiling there were three lunette windows, heavily barred and blacked out in the normal way by centuries of grime. Their bases were on a level with the pavement outside, a narrow way which was several feet lower than the road behind the house."
- "Not long ago, it was difficult to produce photographs of tiny creatures with every part in focus. That’s because the lenses that are excellent at magnifying tiny subjects produce a narrow depth of field. A photo processing technique called focus stacking has changed that."
- "The Jews were but a small nation, and confined to a narrow compass in the world."
- "a narrow interpretation"
Etymology
From Middle English narow, narowe, narewe, narwe, naru, from Old English nearu (“narrow, strait, confined, constricted, not spacious, limited, petty; limited, poor, restricted; oppressive, causing anxiety (of that which restricts free action of body or mind), causing or accompanied by difficulty, hardship, oppressive; oppressed, not having free action; strict, severe”), from Proto-West Germanic *naru, from Proto-Germanic *narwaz (“constricted, narrow”), from Proto-Indo-European *(s)ner- (“to turn, bend, twist, constrict”). Cognates Cognate with North Frisian naar, noar, noor, nåår (“narrow”), Saterland Frisian noar (“narrow”), Dutch naar (“nasty, scary; sickening, unpleasant”), Danish and Swedish nor (“narrow strait”); also Sanskrit नृत् (nṛt, “to dance; act on stage, represent”).
Origin
Word Breakdown
Regional Pronunciation
- British English: /ˈnæɹəʊ/