“Dour” or “Dower”

Overview

dour / dower are similar-sounding terms with different meanings (referred to as homophones). To better understand the differences, see below for definitions, pronunciation guides, and example sentences using each term. 👇

Definitions

dour: (adjective) harshly uninviting or formidable in manner or appearance; ; ; ; - J.M.Barrie.

dower: (noun) a life estate to which a wife is entitled on the death of her husband.

Pronunciation

dour: d·AW·er

dower: d·AW·r

Trends

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Examples in Context

Examples of “dour”

Lt. Drones, a dour New Orleans law enforcement officer,…
Pate was normally a still, dour man, but on this occasion…

Examples of “dower”

…case they may forfeit their dower, but do not have the…
…practices, the male pays a dower for his wife, which is…
…without Sadaq, Waliy and Shahidain (Dower, Guardian and Witnesses respectively) The…
Lord Elton died at the Dower House in Sutton Bonington, Nottinghamshire…

(Examples are Wikipedia snippets under the CC ShareAlike 3.0 license. Definitions drawn from WordNet.)

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