King James Bible Dictionary

NARROW, adjective I suspect this word and near to be contracted by the loss of g, nig, narrow strait; nigiaw, to narrow; for the D. has naauw, narrow close, G. with a prefix. In this case, the word belongs to the root of nigh; to approach.

1. Of little breadth; not wide or broad; having little distance from side to side; as a narrow board; a narrow street; a narrow sea; a narrow hem or border. It is only or chiefly applied to the surface of flat or level bodies.

2. Of little extent; very limited; as a narrow space or compass.

3. Covetous; not liberal or bountiful; as a narrow heart.

4. Contracted; of confined views or sentiments; very limited.

The greatest understanding is narrow

In this sense and the former, it is often prefixed to mind or soul, _ c. ; as narrow-minded; narrow-souled; narrow-hearted.

5. Near; within a small distance.

6. Close; near; accurate; scrutinizing; as a narrow search; narrow inspection.

7. Near; barely sufficient to avoid evil; as a narrow escape.

NARROW, noun A strait; a narrow passage through a mountain, or a narrow channel of water between one sea or lake and another; a sound. It is usually in the plural, but sometimes in the singular.

NARROWED, participle passive Contracted; made less wide.

NARROWING, ppr. Contracting; making less broad.

NARROWINGS, noun The part of a stocking which is narrowed.

NARROWLY, adverb

1. With little breadth.

2. Contractedly; without much extent.

3. Closely; accurately; with minute scrutiny; as, to look or watch narrowly; to search narrowly

4. Nearly; within a little; by a small distance; as, he narrowly escaped.

5. Sparingly.

NARROWNESS, noun

1. Smallness of breadth or distance from side to side; as the narrowness of cloth, of a street or highway, of a stream or sea.

2. Smallness of extent; contractedness; as the narrowness of capacity or comprehension; narrowness of knowledge or attainments.

3. Smallness of estate or means of living; poverty; as the narrowness of fortune or of circumstances.

4. Contractedness; penuriousness; covetousness; as narrowness of heart.

5. Illiberality; want of generous, enlarged or charitable views or sentiments; as narrowness of mind or views.

NARROWS, noun A strait; a narrow passage through a mountain, or a narrow channel of water between one sea or lake and another; a sound. It is usually in the plural, but sometimes in the singular.

NARROW, verb transitive

1.To lessen the breadth of; to contract.

A government, by alienating the affections of the people, may be said to narrow its bottom.

2. To contract in extent; as, to narrow ones influence; to narrow the faculties or capacity.

3. To draw into a smaller compass; to contract; to limit; to confine; as, to narrow our views or knowledge; to narrow a question in discussion.

4. In knitting, to contract the size of a stocking by taking two stitches into one.

NARROW, verb intransitive

1. To become less broad; to contract in breadth. At that place, the sea narrows into a strait.

2. In horsemanship, a horse is said to narrow, when he does not take ground enough, or bear out enough to the one hand or the other.

3. To contract the size of a stocking by taking two stitches into one.