bow

bow and scrape behave in an obsequious way to someone in authority.

bow down in the house of Rimmon pay lip service to a principle; sacrifice your principles for the sake of conformity.

☞ Rimmon was a god worshipped in ancient Damascus; the source of this phrase is Naaman's request in 2 Kings 5:18, 'when I bow down myself in the house of Rimmon, the Lord pardon thy servant in this thing'.

bow (or bend) the knee (to) kneel in submission; submit.

have a second string to your bow: seestring.

make your bow make your first formal appearance in a particular role.

take a bow

1 (of an actor or entertainer) acknowledge applause after a performance.

2 used to tell someone that they should feel themselves worthy of applause.

a warning shot across the bows a statement or gesture intended to frighten someone into changing their course of action.

☞ Literally, a shot fired in front of the bows of a ship is one which is not intended to hit it but to make it stop or alter course.