bowls
bowls Lexical Profile
bowls Game Scores & Validity
• noun
Plural form of bowl: round, deep dishes or basins used for holding food or liquid, or the heavy balls used in bowling.
"She stacked the ceramic soup bowls neatly on the top shelf of the kitchen cupboard."
British A precision game played on a flat lawn or indoor green in which players roll slightly asymmetrical balls (called woods or bowls) so that they stop as close as possible to a smaller target ball called a jack.
"Every Sunday afternoon, the retirees gather in their white uniforms for a friendly match of bowls on the village green."
• verb
To roll a ball along a flat surface in bowling or lawn bowls, or to propel the ball toward the wicket in cricket (third-person singular simple present of bowl).
"He consistently bowls a fast, accurate delivery that challenges even the most experienced batters."
Word Nuance & Usage
When referring to the precision lawn game ('lawn bowls'), 'bowls' is plural in form but functions as a singular uncountable noun in grammar (e.g., 'Bowls is a popular pastime in the summer').
Word Origin & Etymology
The sport sense derives from Middle English 'boule', from Old French 'bole' ('ball'), ultimately from Latin 'bulla' ('bubble, round object'). The vessel sense comes separately from Old English 'bolla' ('pot, cup, rounded vessel').