ballow

B3A1L1L1O1W4
/ˈbæ.ləʊ/

adjective

Round; pot-bellied.

OriginMiddle English balowe ← Old English bælg ← Proto-Germanic *balgiz →
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Meanings

ballow1

adjectiveballow (comparative more ballow, superlative most ballow)

comparative more ballow · superlative most ballow

  1. obsoleteRound; pot-bellied.

    A horse of greater speed, nor yet a righter hound, Not any where twixt Kent and Calidon is found. Nor yet the levell South can shewe a smoother Race, Whereas the ballow Nag out-strips the winds in chase;

    1612, Michael Drayton, Poly-Olbion, song 3 p. 40

ballow2

nounballow (plural ballows)

plural ballows

  1. nauticalDeep water inside a shoal or bar.

Ballow3

proper nounBallow (plural Ballows)

plural Ballows

  1. A surname.

Origin

ballow · adjective

  1. Proto-Germanic*balgiz“bag”
  2. Old Englishbælg
  3. Middle Englishbalowe
  4. Englishballow

From Middle English balowe, balwe, balgh, from Old English bælg, bæliġ (“bag, purse, leathern bottle, pair of bellows, pod, husk”), from Proto-Germanic *balgiz (“bag”). Doublet of belly, bellows, and bulge.

More words from Middle English, Old English, Proto-Germanic

Full word history & related roots →

ballow · noun

Unknown.

Full word history & related roots →

Rhymes & wordplay

Rhymes with ballow

shallowaloemarshmallowfallowmallowtallowcallowhallowgiallosallowgallowallo-
All rhymes →

Anagrams

Loblaw
Cite this entry
APA

ballow. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/ballow

MLA

“ballow.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/ballow. Accessed November 3, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “ballow,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/ballow.

Source: ballow on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.