gallows Hear it!

gallows definition

gal·lows (galōz)

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

Webster's New World College Dictionary Copyright © 2009 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Cleveland, Ohio.
Used by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

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