Word of the Day: KOWTOW

Genuflect or grovel

kowtow (verb) - to act in a subservient or obsequious manner [kou-tou]

• kowtow as a noun means an act of deep respect shown by prostration

BREAKDOWN: The faintly derogatory word kowtow derives from the Chinese term koutou, a combination of the verbs kou (to knock) and tou (head). The term evokes the custom of touching one’s forehead to the ground while kneeling as a gesture of submission or respect.

“I'd command each thing, be it fish or fowl
With a woof and a woof and a royal growl
As I'd click my heel, all the trees would kneel!
And the mountains bow and the bulls kowtow!
And the sparrow would take wing,
If I, if I, were king!” —If I Were King of the Forest, Yip Harburg

[Our Wednesday Wildcards are fascinating and important words that are not derived from classical roots.]