Meaning & use
jowls
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Meanings
nounusually plural
The loose, hanging flesh under a person's lower jaw and cheeks, especially in older or heavier people.
Grammar: Usually plural: his jowls shook; the singular jowl is rare.
Patterns
- jowls sagging
- heavy jowls
His jowls trembled when he laughed.
With age, her jowls began to sag a little.
The judge had heavy jowls and a stern stare.
nounusually plural
The loose, drooping cheeks and lower jaw area of certain animals, such as bulldogs.
Grammar: Usually plural, used for animals: the dog's jowls flapped.
Patterns
- a dog's jowls
The bulldog shook its head and drool flew from its jowls.
The hound's jowls hung low as it sniffed along the path.
A line of spit ran down the mastiff's jowls.
Word forms
| singular | jowl |
|---|
Common combinations
- heavy jowls
- He was a large man with heavy jowls.
- sagging jowls
- She joked about her sagging jowls.
- jowls quiver
- His jowls quivered with anger.
- drooping jowls
- The old basset hound had drooping jowls.
- jowls shake
- His jowls shook as he shouted.
Synonyms and how they differ
- cheeks
- Cheeks is neutral and covers the whole side of the face, while jowls specifically implies loose, hanging flesh.
- dewlaps
- Dewlaps is a term for the loose skin under the neck, especially of cattle, and is not used for the cheeks.
- chops
- Chops is informal and used mainly for the jaws and cheeks of dogs and similar animals.
Word family
- jowl noun
- singular form
- jowly adjective
- having heavy, loose jowls
- cheek by jowl phrase
- very close together
Commonly confused: jowls or jowels? jowls or jaws?
jowls vs jowels
This is a misspelling, sometimes made by confusing jowls with vowels; the correct word is jowls.
jowls vs jaws
Jaws are the bones of the mouth, while jowls are the loose flesh around and below them.
Practice
The old bulldog's ____ shook as it barked.
Choose one answer.
Jowls are the loose, drooping cheeks, which can shake. Jaws are the bones, which do not shake in this way.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “jowls”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.