akimbo

Valid in Scrabble

Scrabble points
14
Words With Friends
16
Letters
6
Pronunciation
/əˈkɪm.bəʊ/
See all 2 pronunciations
/əˈkɪm.bəʊ/ · /əˈkɪm.boʊ/

Definition of akimbo

5 senses · 3 parts of speech · etymology included

adj

  1. (not-comparable)With a crook or bend; with the hand on the hip and elbow turned outward.
    “"Now, then, mister," said he, with his head cocked and his arms akimbo, "what are you driving at? Let's have it straight, now."”
    “Girls take hold of the skirts; boys place the hands akimbo, bend forward from the waist, and bow.”
    “Men preferred one pose above all others, namely, the elbow akimbo.”
See all 5 definitions

adj

  1. (not-comparable)With a crook or bend; with the hand on the hip and elbow turned outward.
    “"Now, then, mister," said he, with his head cocked and his arms akimbo, "what are you driving at? Let's have it straight, now."”
    “Girls take hold of the skirts; boys place the hands akimbo, bend forward from the waist, and bow.”
    “Men preferred one pose above all others, namely, the elbow akimbo.”
  2. (not-comparable)With legs spread and the knees bent in an outward or awkward way, sometimes with the feet touching.

adv

  1. (not-comparable)Into, in, or of the position where the arms are akimbo.
    “The man was standing akimbo.”
    “Otherwise, it is likely that she may be accosted as "dear" or "Sally,"—invited to take "a drop o' tea," or otherwise chaffed by rough women standing akimbo at street doors.”
    “...and the other end window bearing the figure of a woman standing akimbo with her right hand touching her right temple.”
  2. (not-comparable)Of weapons, especially firearms: one held in each hand.
    “Although it was a little impractical, Elmer held his revolvers akimbo because to him it looked cool.”

verb

  1. (slang, transitive)To wield (two weapons), one in each hand.

Definitions from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA.

Etymology

From Middle English in kenebowe, in kene bowe (“in a keen bow”, i.e. “in a sharp bend or angle”), from in (“in”) + keen, kene (“brave, keen, sharp”) + bowe (“bow, bend”). Alternately, possibly from Old Norse kengr (“bent”) + bogi (“a bow”), compare Icelandic kengboginn (“bow-bent”).

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