ˈstēlˌbō, -bau̇ noun
Etymology: Middle English stelebow, from stele steel + bow farm stock; from the understanding that the amount must be rigidly preserved and returned — more at bower (farm tenant)
1. : the farming stock, implements, and other materials formerly supplied to a tenant farmer in Scotland by the landlord under a contract stipulating that these goods must be returned or compensated for at the expiration of the tenancy
2. : a type of contract formerly in use in Scotland under which a tenant farmer must at the expiration of his tenancy return to his landlord the farming goods supplied by the landlord or compensate him for them