narrow

 
Pronunciation: /ˈnarəʊ/

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

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

Phrasal Verbs

narrow something down

reduce the number of possibilities or options: the company has narrowed down the candidates for the job to two

Derivatives

narrowish

adjective

narrowness

noun

Origin:

Old English nearu, of Germanic origin; related to Dutch naar 'dismal, unpleasant' and German Narbe 'scar'. Early senses in English included 'constricted' and 'mean'