brow

brow · noun, verb¹

1. Proto-Indo-European · inherited from*h₃bʰrúHs“brow”
2. Proto-Germanic · inherited from*brūwō
3. Proto-West Germanic · inherited from*brāwu
4. Old English · inherited frombrū
5. Middle English · inherited frombrowe
6. English todaybrow

From Middle English browe, from Old English brū, from Proto-West Germanic *brāwu, from Proto-Germanic *brūwō, from Proto-Indo-European *h₃bʰrúHs (“brow”). Cognate with Scots broo (“brow”), Dutch brauw (“brow”), German Braue (“eyebrow”), Danish, Norwegian Nynorsk and Swedish bryn (“brow”), Faroese, Icelandic brún (“brow”). See also Middle Irish brúad, Tocharian B pärwāne (“eyebrows”), Lithuanian bruvi̇̀s, Serbo-Croatian obrva (“eyebrow”), Russian бровь (brovʹ, “brow”), Ancient Greek ὀφρύς (ophrús, “eyebrow”), Sanskrit भ्रू (bhrū, “eyebrow”)), Persian ابرو (abru, “eyebrow”), Khowar بروُ (bruú, “eyebrow”). For noun sense 4, compare Italian piglio (“aspect, countenance”).

Brow · proper noun²

* As an English surname, from the noun brow. * As a French surname, variant of Brault and also Breaux. Compare Bro, Broe. * As a Dutch surname, Americanized from Brouw, either from the verb brouwen (“to brew”) or a variant of op den Brouw, a toponym of uncertain origin (possibly itself related to brouwen).

Words from the same roots