Meaning & use
ship's prow
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Meaning
nounsingular
the front part of a ship or boat that cuts through the water
Grammar: Usually used with 'the': the ship's prow. It is a singular countable noun and rarely appears in the plural.
Patterns
- the ship's prow
- at the prow
- the prow of the ship
The ship's prow rose high above the waves before crashing down again.
A carved figure was attached to the ship's prow.
From the shore we could see the ship's prow pointing toward the harbor.
Word forms
| plural | ship's prows |
|---|
Common combinations
- the ship's prow
- The ship's prow was decorated with gold paint.
- at the prow
- The lookout stood at the prow, watching for rocks.
- the prow of the ship
- The prow of the ship sliced cleanly through the water.
- point toward the prow
- The captain pointed toward the prow and gave the order to slow down.
Synonyms and how they differ
- bow
- The more technical nautical word for the front of a ship; use 'bow' in sailing or navy contexts, and 'prow' in literary or descriptive writing.
- front
- A general word for the forward part of anything; it is much less precise than 'prow' for a ship.
Opposites
Word family
- prow noun
- The front part of a ship or boat, used without 'ship's'.
Commonly confused: ship's prow or bow?
ship's prow vs bow
'Bow' can also mean the front of a ship, but it is pronounced /baʊ/ like 'cow'. It is the standard term in sailing and naval contexts.
Practice
The captain stood at the ______ of the ship, looking out at the open sea.
Choose one answer.
The prow is the front part of a ship, where a captain might stand to look forward. The stern is the back, so it would not fit 'looking out at the open sea' ahead. The deck is the floor, and the hull is the body, neither of which is a specific front part.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “ship's prow”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.