bowl

Concise Oxford English Dictionary © 2008 Oxford University Press:
bowl1

▶noun

• 1 a round, deep dish or basin.

  ■ a rounded, concave part of an object.

  ■ Geography a natural basin.

• 2 [in names] chiefly N. Amer. a stadium for sporting or musical events.

  ■ an American football game played after the season between leading teams.

– derivatives
bowlful noun (pl. bowlfuls).

– origin OE bolle, bolla, of Gmc origin; rel. to boll.

Concise Oxford English Dictionary © 2008 Oxford University Press:
bowl2

▶noun

• 1 a wooden or hard rubber ball used in the game of bowls.

  ■ a large ball used in tenpin bowling or skittles.

• 2 a spell of bowling in cricket.

▶verb

• 1 roll (a round object) along the ground.

• 2 Cricket (of a bowler) propel (the ball) towards the wicket for the batsman to attempt to hit.

  ■ dismiss (a batsman) by knocking down the wicket with a bowled ball.

• 3 move rapidly and smoothly.

• 4 (bowl someone over) knock someone down.

  ■ informal completely overwhelm or astonish someone.

– derivatives
bowling noun.

– origin ME: from OFr. boule, from L. bulla ‘bubble’.