bough

Meaning

Noun

• A tree-branch, usually a primary one directly attached to the trunk.
• A gallows.

Origin

• From Middle English bough, from Old English bōg, bōh, from Proto-West Germanic *bōgu, from Proto-Germanic *bōguz, from Proto-Indo-European *bʰeh₂ǵʰús. Cognate with Saterland Frisian Bouch, West Frisian boech, Dutch boeg, German Low German Boog, German Bug, Danish bov, Icelandic bógur, and distantly with Ancient Greek πῆχυς ("forearm, cubit, etc."). bow .