The difference between Broad and Narrow

When used as nouns, broad means a prostitute, a woman of loose morals, whereas narrow means a narrow passage, especially a contracted part of a stream, lake, or sea.

When used as adjectives, broad means wide in extent or scope, whereas narrow means having a small width.


Narrow is also verb with the meaning: to reduce in width or extent.

check bellow for the other definitions of Broad and Narrow

  1. Broad as an adjective:

    Wide in extent or scope.

    Examples:

    "three feet broad"

    "the broad expanse of ocean"

  2. Broad as an adjective:

    Extended, in the sense of diffused; open; clear; full.

  3. Broad as an adjective:

    Having a large measure of any thing or quality; unlimited; unrestrained.

  4. Broad as an adjective:

    Comprehensive; liberal; enlarged.

  5. Broad as an adjective:

    Plain; evident.

    Examples:

    "a broad hint"

  6. Broad as an adjective (writing):

    Unsubtle; obvious.

  7. Broad as an adjective:

    Free; unrestrained; unconfined.

  8. Broad as an adjective (dated):

    Gross; coarse; indelicate.

    Examples:

    "a broad compliment; a broad joke; broad humour"

  9. Broad as an adjective (of an accent):

    Strongly regional.

  10. Broad as an adjective (Gaelic languages):

    Velarized, i.e. not palatalized.

  1. Broad as a noun (dated):

    A prostitute, a woman of loose morals.

  2. Broad as a noun (US, colloquial, slang, sometimes, dated, pejorative):

    A woman or girl.

    Examples:

    "Who was that broad I saw you with?"

  3. Broad as a noun (UK):

    A shallow lake, one of a number of bodies of water in eastern Norfolk and Suffolk.

  4. Broad as a noun:

    A lathe tool for turning down the insides and bottoms of cylinders.

    Examples:

    "rfquotek Knight"

  5. Broad as a noun (UK, historical):

    A British gold coin worth 20 shillings, issued by the Commonwealth of England in 1656.

  1. Narrow as an adjective:

    Having a small width; not wide; having opposite edges or sides that are close, especially by comparison to length or depth.

    Examples:

    "a narrow hallway"

  2. Narrow as an adjective:

    Of little extent; very limited; circumscribed.

  3. Narrow as an adjective (figuratively):

    Restrictive; without flexibility or latitude.

    Examples:

    "a narrow interpretation"

  4. Narrow as an adjective:

    Contracted; of limited scope; bigoted

    Examples:

    "a narrow mind"

    "'narrow views"

  5. Narrow as an adjective:

    Having a small margin or degree.

    Examples:

    "a narrow escape"

    "The Republicans won by a narrow majority."

  6. Narrow as an adjective (dated):

    Limited as to means; straitened

    Examples:

    "narrow circumstances"

  7. Narrow as an adjective:

    Parsimonious; niggardly; covetous; selfish.

  8. Narrow as an adjective:

    Scrutinizing in detail; close; accurate; exact.

  9. Narrow as an adjective (phonetics):

    Formed (as a vowel) by a close position of some part of the tongue in relation to the palate; or (according to Bell) by a tense condition of the pharynx; distinguished from wide.

  1. Narrow as a verb (transitive):

    To reduce in width or extent; to contract.

    Examples:

    "We need to narrow the search."

  2. Narrow as a verb (intransitive):

    To get narrower.

    Examples:

    "The road narrows."

  3. Narrow as a verb (of a person or eyes):

    To partially lower one's eyelids in a way usually taken to suggest a defensive, aggressive or penetrating look.

    Examples:

    "He stepped in front of me, narrowing his eyes to slits."

    "She wagged her finger in his face, and her eyes narrowed."

  4. Narrow as a verb (knitting):

    To contract the size of, as a stocking, by taking two stitches into one.

  1. Narrow as a noun (chiefly, in the plural):

    A narrow passage, especially a contracted part of a stream, lake, or sea; a strait connecting two bodies of water.

    Examples:

    "the Narrows of New York harbor"

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