Wiktionary

tow

See also: Tow, TOW, tow., and tow-

English

edit
 
English Wikipedia has an article on:
Wikipedia

Etymology 1

edit

From Middle English towen, from Old English togian, from Proto-West Germanic *togōn, from Proto-Germanic *tugōną, from Proto-Indo-European *dewk-.

See also Middle High German zogen, German ziehen, Dutch tijgen, Old Norse toga.

Pronunciation

edit

Verb

edit

tow (third-person singular simple present tows, present participle towing, simple past and past participle towed)

  1. (transitive) To pull something behind one, such as by using a line, chain, or tongue.
    Near-synonyms: draw, haul, pull
    • 2022 September 7, “At the cutting edge of NR's track work”, in RAIL, number 965, page 40, photo caption:
      In its current specification it cannot be driven and must be towed to its work location by a locomotive.
  2. (running, cycling, motor racing, etc.) To aid someone behind by shielding them from wind resistance.
Descendants
edit
  • → Welsh: towio
Translations
edit

Noun

edit
 
English Wikipedia has an article on:
Wikipedia

tow (plural tows)

  1. The act of towing and the condition of being towed.
    It isn't the car's battery; I think I need a tow.
  2. Something, such as a tugboat, that tows.
  3. Something, such as a barge, that is towed.
  4. A rope or cable used in towing.
  5. (motor racing) A speed increase given by driving in front of another car on a straight, which causes a slipstream for the car behind.
    • 2019 September 8, Andrew Benson, BBC Sport‎[1]:
      On Saturday, Vettel was very unhappy with Leclerc's failure to work out a way through the traffic and give him a tow for the second runs in qualifying, as had been agreed.
Derived terms
edit
Translations
edit

Etymology 2

edit
 
English Wikipedia has an article on:
Wikipedia

From Middle English touw, from Old English tow- (“spinning”) (in compounds, e.g. towcræft, towhūs, towlic), from Proto-Germanic *tawwą; compare Old Norse tó (“uncleansed wool”), Dutch touw (“rope”). Perhaps cognate with Old English tawian (“prepare for use”), Gothic 𐍄𐌰𐌿𐌾𐌰𐌽 (taujan, “do, make”).[1]

Pronunciation

edit

Noun

edit

tow (countable and uncountable, plural tows)

  1. An untwisted bundle of fibres such as cellulose acetate, flax, hemp or jute.
  2. (specifically) The short, coarse, less desirable fibres separated by hackling from the finer longer fibres (line).
Synonyms
edit
Derived terms
edit
edit
Translations
edit

References

edit
  1. ^ Douglas Harper (2001–2024) “tow”, in Online Etymology Dictionary.

Anagrams

edit

Middle English

edit

Alternative forms

edit

Etymology

edit

From Old English tow-, from Proto-Germanic *tawwą; for more see English tow.

Pronunciation

edit

Noun

edit

tow

  1. Unprepared flax, especially used as a firestarter.
    • 1925, Stanley John Weyman, “XVI A Golden Haze”, in Queen's Folly:
      For if men were fire, women were tow, and she should learn that lesson.
  2. The fibrous matter of flax or a similar plant; (tow).
  3. Oakum, hards; the rough portion of flax separated during hackling.

Descendants

edit

References

edit
Retrieved from "https://en.wiktionary.org/w/index.php?title=tow&oldid=82063898"