narrow

adjective (narrower, narrowest)

• 1of small width in relation to length:he made his way down the narrow road

• 2limited in extent, amount, or scope:they ate a narrow range of foods
• (of a person’s attitude or beliefs) limited in range and unwilling or unable to appreciate alternative views:companies fail through their narrow view of what contributes to profit
• precise or strict in meaning:the idea of nationalism in the narrowest sense of the word
• (of a phonetic transcription) showing fine details of accent.

• 3(especially of a victory, defeat, or escape) with only a small margin; barely achieved:the home team just hung on for a narrow victory

• 4 Phonetics denoting a vowel pronounced with the root of the tongue drawn back so as to narrow the pharynx.

verb

• 1become or make less wide: [no object]:the road narrowed and crossed an old bridge [with object]:the Victoria Embankment was built to narrow the river
• almost close (one’s eyes) so as to focus on something, or to indicate anger or other emotion: [with object]:she narrowed her eyes at him suspiciously [no object]:her eyes narrowed as she looked at him

• 2become or make more limited in extent or scope: [no object]:the gap between the sexes is narrowing the trade surplus narrowed to £70 m in January [with object]:the committee narrowed the selection to three designers

noun

• a narrow channel connecting two larger areas of water:there was a car ferry across the narrows of Loch Long