Meaning of narrow In English

• 0 having a small distance from one side to the other, especially in comparison with the length:

  • a narrow bridge/passage/gap

  • a narrow face

  • narrow feet

  • The little village has very narrow streets.

• 1 limited to a small area of interest, activity, or thought:

  • They are unable to see beyond the narrow world of the theatre.

  • It was regarded as a very narrow interpretation of the law.

• 2 A narrow result is one that could easily have been different because the amount by which someone failed or succeeded was very small:

  • The election was won by the very narrow margin of only 185 votes.

  • The opposition had a narrow defeat.

  • We won a narrow victory.

  • We got out in time but it was a narrow escape.

• 3 to become less wide or to make something less wide:

  • The road narrows after the bridge.

  • He narrowed his eyes in suspicion.

  • They have narrowed the focus of the investigation, to concentrate on younger adults.

  • figurative We must strive to narrow the gap between rich and poor.

• 4 to become less:

  • The retailer's loss narrowed to $3 million from $10 million a year earlier.

• 5 having a small distance from one side to the other:

  • Scenes from the movie were filmed in some of Rome’s ancient, narrow streets.

  • He was defeated in the election by a narrow margin.

  • It was a narrow victory, with the golf tournament decided by a single stroke.

  • He had a narrow escape, getting out of the car just before it burst into flames.

• 6 limited in range:

  • The local newspaper tends to focus on narrow regional issues.

• 7 to become or make something narrower or smaller:

  • [ I ] The road narrows from four lanes to two when you leave town.

  • [ T ] Senate leaders met again to try to narrow the budget deficit.

• 8 extremely small:

  • a narrow margin/defeat/victory/lead The election was won by a narrow margin of 85 votes.

• 9 including only a small number of things:

  • Specialization by developing countries in a narrow range of commodities had left them vulnerable to external shocks.

  • With little money available, the policymakers established narrow eligibility criteria and limited the number of grants.

• 10 if something trades in a narrow range, it does not go up and down very much in price:

  • Dealers in London described trading as light with prices continuing to trade in a narrow range.

• 11 to become less in amount, or to make something become less in amount:

  • narrow to sth (from sth) The retailer's loss narrowed to $3 million from $10 million a year earlier.

  • a narrowing gap/difference/deficit