English

Noun

frow ‎(plural frows)

1. A woman; a wife, especially a Dutch or German one.

   (Can we find and add a quotation of Beaumont and Fletcher to this entry?)

2. A slovenly woman; a wench; a lusty woman.
3. A big, fat woman; a slovenly, coarse, or untidy woman; a woman of low character.

   (Can we find and add a quotation of Halliwell to this entry?)

Etymology 2

Noun

frow ‎(plural frows)

1. Alternative spelling of froe

Etymology 3

From Middle English frow, frough, frogh, frouh, frouȝ ‎(“brittle; tender; fickle; slack; loose”), cognate with Scots frooch, freuch ‎(“dry and brittle”). Of obscure origin. Perhaps also related to Middle Dutch vro, vroo, Middle Low German vrô, German froh.

Adjective

frow ‎(comparative more frow, superlative most frow)

1. (Now chiefly dialectal) Brittle; tender; crisp

   (Can we find and add a quotation of Evelyn to this entry?)

Derived terms

• frowish

Etymology 4

Compare frower.

Noun

frow ‎(plural frows)

1. A cleaving tool with handle at right angles to the blade, for splitting cask staves and shingles from the block; a frower.