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Definition of "cower" [cow•er]

  • To cringe in fear. (verb-intransitive)

American Heritage(R) Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright (c) 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

Use "cower" in a sentence
  • "Van Gundy has hinted how he might react to an Orlando title, saying he might "cower" in a "fetal position.""
  • "So Wright's opinions didn't change but Obama's of Wright did ... did Obama's view of America change (cuz that would allow for the change of heart on Wright) or did he "cower" in the face of falling poll numbers?"
  • "Its meaning in that context is "To draw back instinctively, as from something alarming" but because of the other meanings, there's also a feel or image of a person making himself smaller in fear, which gets us back to "cower" or "cringe.""