BOWSPRIT Bow"sprit`, n. Etym: [Bow + sprit; akin to D.boegspriet; boeg bow of a ship + spriet, E. sprit, also Sw. bogspröt, G. bugspriet.] (Naut.)
Defn: A large boom or spar, which projects over the stem of a ship or other vessel, to carry sail forward.
BOWSSEN
Bows"sen, v. t.
Defn: To drench; to soak; especially, to immerse (in water believed to have curative properties). [Obs.] There were many bowssening places, for curing of mad men. . . . If there appeared small amendment he was bowssened again and again. Carew.
BOWSTRING
Bow"string`, n.
1. The string of a bow.
2. A string used by the Turks for strangling offenders. Bowstring bridge, a bridge formed of an arch of timber or iron, often braced, the thrust of which is resisted by a tie forming a chord of the arch. — Bowstring girder, an arched beam strengthened by a tie connecting its two ends. — Bowstring hemp (Bot.), the tenacious fiber of the Sanseviera Zeylanica, growing in India and Africa, from which bowstrings are made. Balfour.
BOWSTRING Bow"string`, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Bowstringed ( or Bowstrung (; p. pr. & vb. n. Bowstringing.]
Defn: To strangle with a bowstring.
BOWSTRINGED
Bow"stringed`, p.a.