A man who uses a bow; an archer.
"The coxswain gave orders to the bowman, who sat closest to the front of the boat to steer through the narrow channel."
The person, in a team or among oarsmen, positioned nearest the bow.
In plain English: A bowman is someone who shoots arrows using a curved stick called a bow.
"The king raised his bowmen to defend the castle walls against the invading army."
Usage: In modern usage, "bowman" almost exclusively refers to an archer rather than a rower, so avoid using it for crew members unless discussing historical contexts or specific nautical terminology. The term is formal and literary; use "archer" in casual conversation instead.
A surname, from occupations for a bowman.
"The family name Bowman is derived from an ancestor who worked as a bowman."
The word bowman comes from Middle English and is simply a combination of the words bow and man. It has always meant an archer who uses a curved stick to shoot arrows.