froe

noun — 2 senses

froe

noun

UK /fɹəʊ/ · US /fɹoʊ/

Etymology Abbreviation of obsolete frower, from froward (“turned away”), referring to the orientation of the blade, at right angles to the handle. From late 16th century.

A cleaving tool for splitting cask staves and shingles from a block of wood.

Patch shingles on the barn roof: do we have a maul and froe?1997, Charles Frazier, chapter 4, in Cold Mountain, London: Hodder and Stoughton, page 88:

Derived terms: froe club

froe

noun

Etymology See frow.

Obsolete A dirty woman; a slattern; a frow.

1630, Michael Drayton, Nymphal IV, [from The Muses Elizium], 1793, The Works of the British Poets, Volume 3: Drayton, Carew & Suckling, page 618, Like to thoſe raging frantic froes / For Bacchus' feaſts prepared;

Entry derived from the Wiktionary, under licence CC BY-SA 4.0 — list of authors.