Meaning & use
furrows her brow
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Meaning
phrasetransitive
moves the forehead skin into deep lines, usually because she is thinking hard, worried, or annoyed
Grammar: The possessive 'her' is part of the phrase; you can change it to 'his,' 'their,' etc., but you cannot leave it out.
Patterns
- someone furrows her brow
- furrows her brow at something
She furrows her brow as she tries to remember the name.
He saw that she furrowed her brow at the difficult question.
She furrows her brow and looks at the map again.
Word forms
| base form | furrow her brow |
|---|---|
| past tense | furrowed her brow |
| past participle | furrowed her brow |
| -ing form | furrowing her brow |
Common combinations
- furrows her brow in concentration
- She furrows her brow in concentration during the exam.
- furrows her brow at the news
- She furrows her brow at the news of the delay.
- furrows her brow slightly
- She furrows her brow slightly, unsure of the answer.
- furrows her brow and thinks
- She furrows her brow and thinks for a moment.
Synonyms and how they differ
- frowns
- A more general word for an unhappy face; it can involve the mouth as well as the brow.
- scowls
- Stronger and angrier than 'furrows her brow.'
Opposites
Word family
Commonly confused: furrows her brow or furrows her brows?
furrows her brow vs furrows her brows
The plural form is also correct and very common. The singular 'brow' often means the whole forehead, while 'brows' means the eyebrows.
Practice
Which sentence is correct?
Choose one answer.
The phrase needs the possessive 'her' before 'brow.' Option B misses it, C uses 'a' instead, and D has the wrong verb form for 'she.'
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “furrows her brow”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.