Lowe

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. An old word for a flame or blaze of fire ; an archaic spelling of the verb meaning to make the deep moaning sound that cattle make
2. A flame or fiery glow, used in older English ; to utter the long, deep call of a cow, in an archaic usage
3. Archaically, a burning flame or blaze ; in older writing, to bellow with the deep sound a cow makes

Etymology: The noun "lowe" is simply an alternative spelling of "low" in the sense of a flame or blaze, the old word for a light or fire. Its surprising link is to lying down: the same root that gave English "low" in the sense of a flat, lowered position also gave Latin "lectus," meaning "bed," and Greek "lekhomai," meaning "to lie down." The chain runs through Old English and Germanic forms meaning "to lie" and "to lead," and the root is ancient. Scottish and Irish Gaelic have related words for lying down, and the Slavic languages preserve it too, with Russian "lezhat'" and Polish "leżeć" both meaning "to lie." The English "lowe" in its fire sense is an older, now rare form, and its connection to the root is best seen through these cognates, which show the word's underlying idea of lying or lying low.

Synonyms: flame, blaze, flare