arrow

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noun

ar·​row ˈer-(ˌ)ō How to pronounce arrow (audio)
ˈa-(ˌ)rō
plural arrows
1
: a missile shot from a bow and usually having a slender shaft, a pointed head, and feathers at the butt
2
: something shaped like an arrow
especially : a mark (as on a map or signboard) to indicate direction
3
: a painful or damaging experience or occurrence that is likened to being shot with an arrow
… to suffer the slings and arrows of outrageous fortune …William Shakespeare

Illustration of arrow

Illustration of arrow
  • arrow 1

arrow

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verb

arrowed; arrowing; arrows
1
a
intransitive : to move fast and straight like an arrow in flight
Just below us, a hunting peregrine falcon arrowed across the sere fields …Tom Mueller
b
transitive : to hit or throw (something) toward a target fast and straight like an arrow
Mia Hamm … doesn't even look up as she arrows a pass to her teammate with almost telepathic confidence.David Hirshey
2
transitive chiefly US : to shoot (an animal) with an arrow
In the spring, only boy turkeys can be shot or arrowed.Fred LeBrun

Examples of arrow in a Sentence

Noun The arrow on the map points north.
Recent Examples on the Web
Noun
Lynn Reaser, economist YES: The return of the pandas will be another quiver tourist officials will have in their arrow kit to sponsor San Diego. Phillip Molnar, San Diego Union-Tribune, 1 Mar. 2024 There’s this arrow of time associated with evolution of life. Quanta Magazine, 29 Feb. 2024 In March 2023, a Mallard duck was brought in for treatment at the Wetlands and Wildlife Care Center after it was shot in the neck with a dart arrow in Newport Beach. Mona Darwish, Orange County Register, 25 Feb. 2024 Of the 446 carrier robbery cases reviewed, the report said about half involved the theft of an arrow key. Minnah Arshad, USA TODAY, 23 Feb. 2024 At one point on their journey, Pema and Karma pass by a village where another woman accused of adultery is forced to shoot an arrow at a bullseye in order to prove her innocence. Jordan Mintzer, The Hollywood Reporter, 23 Feb. 2024 Please check back again soon for the recorded video. LIVE VIDEO TO BEGIN AFTER AD Loaded: 0% Progress: 0% Use up and down arrows to change volume, and spacebar or enter to toggle mute. Julian Chokkattu, WIRED, 2 Mar. 2024 Davies said the training arrow had a metal head and solid body wrapped in a plastic sheath, which likely came from a crossbow. Mona Darwish, Orange County Register, 25 Feb. 2024 Inspectors also found 585 arrow keys across San Francisco and Chicago offices were missing. Minnah Arshad, USA TODAY, 23 Feb. 2024
Verb
While still relying on the brand's key Flying D logo, the 2023 FX highlights arrow graphics on the frame, meant to indicate the power concentration in the middle of the racket. Tim Newcomb, Forbes, 2 Jan. 2023 Virginia bowhunter Earl Phillips was elated to arrow his biggest buck to date on Nov. 20, a fine 8-point buck…that had no visible male organs. Scott Bestul, Field & Stream, 16 Jan. 2023 According to the researchers, the embryo does not attach to the mother’s uterus and continue growth until the mother switches to arrow bamboo leaves, at which point the calcium intake is the highest. Brenda Poppy, Discover Magazine, 15 July 2014 The Launch's default look is subdued, but the board comes with blue and red Esc and arrow keys for extra pop. Scharon Harding, Ars Technica, 8 Mar. 2022 Kate came to the bow and arrow on her own, though Clint's years of experience are still a benefit. Christian Holub, EW.com, 3 Nov. 2021 In Bears Ears -- named for the twin buttes that rise above the landscape -- tourists and looters routinely steal ceramic shards, arrow heads and other remnants of the settlements of the Ancestral Puebloan Indians who lived in the area. Arkansas Online, 9 Oct. 2021 Meanwhile, Katurah plays the help, who is readying weapons, from knives to bow and arrow to guns and RPGs in between skits. Rohan Preston, Star Tribune, 8 July 2021 Video captured McCormick in an argument with some protesters, and showed him getting a bow and arrow out of his car and pointing it at several people. Scott D. Pierce, The Salt Lake Tribune, 17 Nov. 2020

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'arrow.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Noun

Middle English arwe, arowe, going back to Old English earh (strong noun, probably neuter), arwe, arewe (weak feminine noun), going back to Germanic *arhwō- "arrow," presumably originally an adjectival derivative "belonging to the bow" (whence also Old Icelandic ǫr, genitive ǫrvar "arrow," and, with an additional suffix, Gothic arhwazna), going back to dialectal Indo-European *arkw- "bow," whence also Latin arcus "bow, rainbow, arch"

Note: See the Oxford English Dictionary, third edition, for details of the Old and Middle English developments. The editors point out that earh is a rare poetic word, occurring mainly in the compound earhfaru "flight of arrows," the more usual older words for "arrow" being strǣl and flā; the popularity of arwe in later Old English prose may have resulted from influence of the Old Norse word. — The etymon *arkw- "bow" (*h2erkw- if *a is excluded as a possible vowel) has been compared with various names for plants, as Greek árkeuthos "juniper (Juniperus macrocarpa)," Russian rakíta (for *rokíta by vowel reduction) "the willow Salix fragilis," Bosnian-Croatian-Serbian ràkita "osier (Salix viminalis)" (both from Slavic *orkyta), Latvian ẽrcis "juniper." The presumed connection would be from the use of wood from these small trees as material for bows, though this is questionable (especially in the case of willows). In any case both sets of words appear to be of substratal origin.

Verb

derivative of arrow entry 1

First Known Use

Noun

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Verb

1827, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Time Traveler
The first known use of arrow was before the 12th century

Dictionary Entries Near arrow

Cite this Entry

“Arrow.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/arrow. Accessed 28 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

arrow

noun
ar·​row
ˈar-ō
1
: a weapon that is made to be shot from a bow and is usually a stick with a point at one end and feathers at the other
2
: a mark (as on a map) to show direction
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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