The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48:

Bow \Bow\ (bou), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Bowed; p. pr. & vb. n.
   Bowing.] [OE. bowen, bogen, bugen, AS. b[=u]gan (generally
   v. i.); akin to D. buigen, OHG. biogan, G. biegen, beugen,
   Icel. boginn bent, beygja to bend, Sw. b["o]ja, Dan. b["o]ie,
   bugne, Coth. biugan; also to L. fugere to flee, Gr. ?, and
   Skr. bhuj to bend. [root]88. Cf. Fugitive.]
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   1. To cause to deviate from straightness; to bend; to
      inflect; to make crooked or curved.
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            We bow things the contrary way, to make them come to
            their natural straightness.           --Milton.
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            The whole nation bowed their necks to the worst kind
            of tyranny.                           --Prescott.
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   2. To exercise powerful or controlling influence over; to
      bend, figuratively; to turn; to incline.
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            Adversities do more bow men's minds to religion.
                                                  --Bacon.
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            Not to bow and bias their opinions.   --Fuller.
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   3. To bend or incline, as the head or body, in token of
      respect, gratitude, assent, homage, or condescension.
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            They came to meet him, and bowed themselves to the
            ground before him.                    --2 Kings ii.
                                                  15.
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   4. To cause to bend down; to prostrate; to depress,;? to
      crush; to subdue.
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            Whose heavy hand hath bowed you to the grave.
                                                  --Shak.
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   5. To express by bowing; as, to bow one's thanks.
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The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48:

Bow \Bow\ (bou), v. i.
   1. To bend; to curve. [Obs.]
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   2. To stop. [Archaic]
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            They stoop, they bow down together.   --Is. xlvi. 2?
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   3. To bend the head, knee, or body, in token of reverence or
      submission; -- often with down.
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            O come, let us worship and bow down: let us kneel
            before the Lord our maker.            --Ps. xcv. 6.
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   4. To incline the head in token of salutation, civility, or
      assent; to make bow.
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            Admired, adored by all circling crowd,
            For wheresoe'er she turned her face, they bowed.
                                                  --Dryden.
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The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48:

Bow \Bow\ (bou), n.
   An inclination of the head, or a bending of the body, in
   token of reverence, respect, civility, or submission; an
   obeisance; as, a bow of deep humility.
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The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48:

Bow \Bow\ (b[=o]), n. [OE. bowe, boge, AS. boga, fr. AS.
   b[=u]gan to bend; akin to D. boog, G. bogen, Icel. bogi. See
   Bow, v. t.]
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   1. Anything bent, or in the form of a curve, as the rainbow.
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            I do set my bow in the cloud.         --Gen. ix. 13.
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   2. A weapon made of a strip of wood, or other elastic
      material, with a cord connecting the two ends, by means of
      which an arrow is propelled.
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   3. An ornamental knot, with projecting loops, formed by
      doubling a ribbon or string.
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   4. The U-shaped piece which embraces the neck of an ox and
      fastens it to the yoke.
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   5. (Mus.) An appliance consisting of an elastic rod, with a
      number of horse hairs stretched from end to end of it,
      used in playing on a stringed instrument.
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   6. An arcograph.
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   7. (Mech. & Manuf.) Any instrument consisting of an elastic
      rod, with ends connected by a string, employed for giving
      reciprocating motion to a drill, or for preparing and
      arranging the hair, fur, etc., used by hatters.
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   8. (Naut.) A rude sort of quadrant formerly used for taking
      the sun's altitude at sea.
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   9. (Saddlery) sing. or pl. Two pieces of wood which form the
      arched forward part of a saddletree.
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   Bow bearer (O. Eng. Law), an under officer of the forest
      who looked after trespassers.

   Bow drill, a drill worked by a bow and string.

   Bow instrument (Mus.), any stringed instrument from which
      the tones are produced by the bow.

   Bow window (Arch.) See Bay window.

   To draw a long bow, to lie; to exaggerate. [Colloq.]
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The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48:

Bow \Bow\ (b[=o]), v. i. [imp. & p. p. Bowed; p. pr. & vb. n.
   Bowing.]
   To play (music) with a bow. -- v. i. To manage the bow.
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The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48:

Bow \Bow\ (b[=o]), n. [Icel. b[=o]gr shoulder, bow of a ship.
   See Bough.]
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   1. (Naut.) The bending or rounded part of a ship forward; the
      stream or prow.
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   2. (Naut.) One who rows in the forward part of a boat; the
      bow oar.
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   Bow chaser (Naut.), a gun in the bow for firing while
      chasing another vessel. --Totten.
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   Bow piece, a piece of ordnance carried at the bow of a
      ship.

   On the bow (Naut.), on that part of the horizon within
      45[deg] on either side of the line ahead. --Totten.
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WordNet (r) 3.0 (2006):

bow
    n 1: a knot with two loops and loose ends; used to tie shoelaces
         [syn: bow, bowknot]
    2: a slightly curved piece of resilient wood with taut horsehair
       strands; used in playing certain stringed instruments
    3: front part of a vessel or aircraft; "he pointed the bow of
       the boat toward the finish line" [syn: bow, fore, prow,
       stem]
    4: a weapon for shooting arrows, composed of a curved piece of
       resilient wood with a taut cord to propel the arrow
    5: something curved in shape [syn: bow, arc]
    6: bending the head or body or knee as a sign of reverence or
       submission or shame or greeting [syn: bow, bowing,
       obeisance]
    7: an appearance by actors or performers at the end of the
       concert or play in order to acknowledge the applause of the
       audience [syn: bow, curtain call]
    8: a decorative interlacing of ribbons
    9: a stroke with a curved piece of wood with taut horsehair
       strands that is used in playing stringed instruments
    v 1: bend one's knee or body, or lower one's head; "He bowed
         before the King"; "She bowed her head in shame" [syn:
         bow, bow down]
    2: yield to another's wish or opinion; "The government bowed to
       the military pressure" [syn: submit, bow, defer,
       accede, give in]
    3: bend the head or the upper part of the body in a gesture of
       respect or greeting; "He bowed before the King"
    4: bend one's back forward from the waist on down; "he crouched
       down"; "She bowed before the Queen"; "The young man stooped
       to pick up the girl's purse" [syn: crouch, stoop, bend,
       bow]
    5: play on a string instrument with a bow

Moby Thesaurus II by Grady Ward, 1.0:

270 Moby Thesaurus words for "bow":
   A string, Amati, Cremona, D string, E string, G string, S-curve,
   Strad, Stradivari, Stradivarius, accost, address, angle, arc, arch,
   bass, bass viol, beak, bend, bend back, bend the knee,
   bend the neck, bend to, bending, bending the knee, bilge,
   bite the dust, blain, bleb, blister, blob, bob, bob a curtsy,
   bob down, bootlick, boss, bow, bow and scrape, bow down,
   bow the head, bow to, bowing, bowing and scraping, bowsprit,
   bridge, bubble, bulb, bulge, bull fiddle, bulla, bump, bunch, burl,
   button, cahot, capitulate, carriage bow, catacaustic, catenary,
   caustic, cave in, cello, chine, circle, clump, conchoid, condyle,
   conflexure, contrabass, convex, cower, crawl, creep, cringe,
   cringe to, crook, crossbow, crouch, crouch before, crowd, curl,
   curtsy, curvation, curvature, curve, decurve, defer, deflect,
   deflection, diacaustic, dipping the colors, do homage,
   do obeisance, dome, double bass, dowel, duck, ear, ellipse, embow,
   embrace, fall, fall down before, fawn, festoon, fiddle, fiddlebow,
   fiddlestick, figurehead, fingerboard, flange, flap, flatter,
   flection, flex, flexure, forecastle, foredeck, forepeak, gall,
   geanticline, genuflect, genuflection, geosyncline, gnarl, go down,
   go under, greeting, grovel, hail, hairpin turn, hand-clasp, handle,
   handshake, have enough, hello, hill, homage, hook, how-do-you-do,
   hug, hump, hunch, hyperbola, inclination, incurvate, incurve,
   inflect, inflection, jib boom, jog, joggle, kiss, kit, kit fiddle,
   kit violin, kneel, kneel to, kneeling, knob, knot, knuckle,
   knuckle to, knuckle under, knur, knurl, kowtow, lick the dust,
   lickspittle, lip, lituus, longbow, loop, lose, lose out,
   lose the day, lump, make a leg, make a reverence, make obeisance,
   making a leg, meander, mole, mountain, nevus, nod, nose, nub,
   nubbin, nubble, obeisance, obsequiousness, oxbow, papilloma,
   parabola, peg, play violin, presenting arms, prore, prostration,
   prow, recurve, reflect, reflection, reflex, retroflex, reverence,
   rib, ridge, ring, rostrum, round, sag, salaam, salutation, salute,
   saw, say uncle, scrape, scroll, servility, shoulder, sinus, smile,
   smile of recognition, soundboard, spine, squat,
   standing at attention, stem, stoop, string, stud, style,
   submission, submissiveness, submit, succumb, supination, swag,
   sweep, tab, take the count, tenor violin, toadeat, toady, tracery,
   truckle, truckle to, tubercle, tubercule, tumble, tuning peg, turn,
   turning, vault, verruca, vesicle, viola, violin, violinette,
   violoncello, violoncello piccolo, violone, violotta, wale, wart,
   wave, welt, wind



Easton's 1897 Bible Dictionary:

Bow
   The bow was in use in early times both in war and in the chase
   (Gen. 21:20; 27:3; 48:22). The tribe of Benjamin were famous for
   the use of the bow (1 Chr. 8:40; 12:2; 2 Chr. 14:8; 17:17); so
   also were the Elamites (Isa. 22:6) and the Lydians (Jer. 46:9).
   The Hebrew word commonly used for bow means properly to tread (1
   Chr. 5:18; 8:40), and hence it is concluded that the foot was
   employed in bending the bow. Bows of steel (correctly "copper")
   are mentioned (2 Sam. 22:35; Ps. 18:34).

     The arrows were carried in a quiver (Gen. 27:3; Isa. 22:6;
   49:2; Ps. 127:5). They were apparently sometimes shot with some
   burning material attached to them (Ps. 120:4).

     The bow is a symbol of victory (Ps. 7:12). It denotes also
   falsehood, deceit (Ps. 64:3, 4; Hos. 7:16; Jer. 9:3).

     "The use of the bow" in 2 Sam. 1:18 (A.V.) ought to be "the
   song of the bow," as in the Revised Version.