bowl¹ / bōl/ • n. 1. a round, deep dish or basin used for food or liquid: a mixing bowl. ∎  the contents of such a container: huge bowls of steaming spaghetti. ∎  [usu. in names] a decorative round dish awarded as a prize in a competition: the McGeorge Rose Bowl. ∎  a rounded, concave part of an object: a toilet bowl the bowl of a spoon. ∎  Geog. a natural basin.2. [in names] a stadium for sporting or musical events: the Hollywood Bowl. ∎  a football game played after the regular season between leading or all-star teams: [as adj.] their last four bowl games. DERIVATIVES: bowl·ful n.bowl² • v. 1. [tr.] roll (a ball or hoop) along the ground: she snatched her hat off and bowled it ahead of her like a hoop.2. [intr.] play a game of tenpin bowling. ∎  [tr.] acheive a score in tenpin bowling.3. [tr.] Cricket deliver (a ball to a batsman).4. [intr.] move rapidly and smoothly in a specified direction: they bowled along the country roads.PHRASAL VERBS: bowl someone over knock someone down: he was almost bowling people over in his haste. ∎  (usu. be bowled over) inf. completely overwhelm or astonish someone, for example by one's good qualities or looks: when he met Angela, he was just bowled over by her.

bowl.
1. Surface of a sloping auditorium floor, sometimes in the form of the surface of an inverted cone for acoustic reasons.

2. Basin, as of a fountain.

3. Plain capital like a bowl or basin.

bowl2 †ball; globular body used in games; (pl.) game with bowls. XV. — (O)F. boule :- L. bulla (see BULL2).
Hence as vb. XV.

bowl1 basin. OE. bolla, bolle, corr. to OS. bollo cup, OHG. bolla bud, globular vessel.