: a hand-drawn wooden bow held vertically and used especially by medieval English archers
Examples of longbow in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Eager to seek revenge for his loss at Stirling, Edward equipped his soldiers with longbows, which enabled them to rain down arrows on the enemy from afar.
—
Meilan Solly, Smithsonian Magazine, 11 Sep. 2024
During the Hundred Years’ War, the invention of the English longbow gave England an advantage over France.
—Jacquelyn Schneider, Foreign Affairs, 3 Mar. 2023
Bows and Arrows Archer with medieval English longbow and arrows.
—Stephen C. George, Discover Magazine, 7 Dec. 2023
It is thought that the yew was used to create longbows for his royal archers in the lead-up to the Battle of Bannockburn.
—Demetrius Simms, Robb Report, 7 June 2023
Then there are recurve bows with curved tips that create more energy than the longbow.
—Patrick Cooke, Smithsonian Magazine, 19 Nov. 2021
There’s the longbow like the English used to shoot, a D-shaped design, very simple thing.
—Patrick Cooke, Smithsonian Magazine, 19 Nov. 2021
The Iceman’s survival gear included a longbow of yew, a quiver of arrows, a copper ax and a kind of crude first-aid kit full of plants with powerful pharmacological properties.
—New York Times, 2 Nov. 2021
On Bob’s 12th birthday, his parents gave him his first real bow, a Ben Pearson lemonwood longbow.
—David Howard, Popular Mechanics, 11 Aug. 2021
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Meilan Solly, Smithsonian Magazine, 11 Sep. 2024
During the Hundred Years’ War, the invention of the English longbow gave England an advantage over France.
—Jacquelyn Schneider, Foreign Affairs, 3 Mar. 2023
Bows and Arrows Archer with medieval English longbow and arrows.
—Stephen C. George, Discover Magazine, 7 Dec. 2023
It is thought that the yew was used to create longbows for his royal archers in the lead-up to the Battle of Bannockburn.
—Demetrius Simms, Robb Report, 7 June 2023
Then there are recurve bows with curved tips that create more energy than the longbow.
—Patrick Cooke, Smithsonian Magazine, 19 Nov. 2021
There’s the longbow like the English used to shoot, a D-shaped design, very simple thing.
—Patrick Cooke, Smithsonian Magazine, 19 Nov. 2021
The Iceman’s survival gear included a longbow of yew, a quiver of arrows, a copper ax and a kind of crude first-aid kit full of plants with powerful pharmacological properties.
—New York Times, 2 Nov. 2021
On Bob’s 12th birthday, his parents gave him his first real bow, a Ben Pearson lemonwood longbow.
—David Howard, Popular Mechanics, 11 Aug. 2021
Cite this Entry
“Longbow.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/longbow. Accessed 13 Jul. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
longbow
noun
long·bow
ˈlȯŋ-ˌbō 
: a wooden bow drawn by hand
Love words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share