oxbow.

1. A strongly curved river bend, or the curved lake left when such a bend is cut off.

2. A U-shaped wooden component fitted beneath an ox's neck in a yoke.

Use it for

Words that belong together

• oxbow lake
• abandoned oxbow

On the page

Reeds filled the abandoned oxbow beyond the levee.

Usage notes

Primary category: setting / environment. Forms: Singular oxbow; plural oxbows. Legacy lexical fields mirror sense 1 only. Use numbered sense fields for all meanings. Established modern English lexical item. No separate regional spelling or grammatical inflection entry. Writing functions: setting, description. Commonness: moderately common.