1. family name; Herbert Henry Dow (1866-1930), American chemist and industrialist who established the Dow Chemical Company in 1897. ship with triangular sails (used in Arabia and India). dowsee under dhowdow dow, v. t. [f. douer. see: dower.] to furnish with a dower; to endow. [obs.]dow dow , n. a kind of vessel. see: dhow