: a stroke in playing a bowed instrument (such as a violin) in which the bow is drawn across the strings from the frog to the tip

Examples of down-bow in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
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Pascale accompanies her with deceptively simple down-bows and up-bows, bearing the technical difficulty lightly, as though that’s just the shape and movements her hands happen to take. Emma Madden, Pitchfork, 11 June 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1722, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of down-bow was in 1722

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Cite this Entry

“Down-bow.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/down-bow. Accessed 15 Jun. 2026.

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