noun pl. gallows -·lows or gallowses -·lowses

1. an upright frame with a crossbeam and a rope, for hanging condemned persons
2. any structure like this, used for suspending or supporting
3. the death sentence by hanging

Etymology: ME galwes, pl. of galwe < OE galga, akin to Ger galgen < IE base *ĝhalgh-, pliant tree branch > Lith žalgà, long, thin pole: the earliest gallows was a pulled-down branch that carried the victim with it when allowed to spring up