Bowery

UK: /ˈbaʊərɪ/ US: (adj. bou′ə rē; n. bou′ə rē, bou′rē)

Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers::

Bowery / ˈbaʊərɪ/ noun

1. the Bowery ⇒ a street in New York City, formerly noted for its cheap hotels and bars, frequented by vagrants and drunks

Etymology: 17th Century: from Dutch bouwerij, from bouwen to farm + erij -ery; see boor, Boer

WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2026

bow•er•y¹  (bou′ə rē), adj. 

1. containing bowers;
   leafy;
   shady:
   a bowery maze.

• bower¹ + -y¹ 1695–1705

bow•er•y²  (bou′ə rē, bou′rē), n., pl. -er•ies. 

1. (among the Dutch settlers of New York) a farm or country seat.
2. Place Names the Bowery, a street and area in New York City, historically noted for its cheap hotels and saloons and peopled by the destitute and homeless.

• Dutch bouwerij farm, equivalent. to bouw cultivation + -erij -ery
• 1640–50, American.