Definitions
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.
- noun Coarse broken flax or hemp fiber.
- noun A continuous untwisted bundle of manufactured fibers.
- transitive verb To draw or pull behind by a chain or line: synonym: pull.
- noun The act or an instance of towing.
- noun Something, such as a tugboat, that tows.
- noun Something, such as a barge or car, that is towed.
- noun A rope or cable used in towing.
- idiom (in tow) In a condition of being towed.
- idiom (in tow) Under close guidance; in one's charge.
- idiom (in tow) As a companion or follower.
from The Century Dictionary.
- To make fluffy by picking to pieces, as hair.
- To pull; draw; haul; especially, to drag through the water by means of a rope or chain: as, to
tow a small boat astern; to tow a vessel into harbor. - To dredge with a towing-net. See
towing , n., 2. - noun The coarse and broken part of flax or hemp separated from the finer part by the hatchel or swingle.
- noun In hecking, a quantity of hemp fibers sufficient for spinning a yarn 160 fathoms long. These fibers are passed twice through the heckle, and are then tied up into a bundle, which weighs about 3½ pounds.
- An obsolete or dialectal form of
tough . - noun A rope.
- noun The act of towing, or the state of being towed: generally with in: as, to take a disabled vessel in tow.
- noun A vessel or number of vessels that are being towed.
from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.
- noun The coarse and broken part of flax or hemp, separated from the finer part by the hatchel or swingle.
- noun A rope by which anything is towed; a towline, or towrope.
- noun The act of towing, or the state of being towed; -- chiefly used in the phrase,
to take in tow , that is to tow. - noun That which is towed, or drawn by a towline, as a barge, raft, collection of boats, ect.
- transitive verb To draw or pull through the water, as a vessel of any kind, by means of a rope.
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.
- noun An
untwisted bundle offibers such as cellulose acetate,flax ,hemp orjute . - verb transitive To
pull something behind one using aline orchain ; tohaul . - noun The act of
towing and the condition of beingtowed . - noun Something, such as a
tugboat , that tows. - noun Something, such as a
barge , that is towed. - noun A rope or cable used in towing.
from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.
- noun the act of hauling something (as a vehicle) by means of a hitch or rope
- verb drag behind
Etymologies
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License
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Examples
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I very rarely venture to the butcher, as even the supermarket with Tiefling in tow is too much to contemplate most days, so while kid-free today I not only got to go to the butcher, I got to peruse the dead cow selections before making my choice.
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Any piece of water with my dog in tow is my new favorite.
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The plot, about police investigator Stewart trying to nab a criminal while being unlawfully pursued with daffy poetess Colbert in tow, is too lightweight — and the characters spend too much time pointlessly arguing — for me to care.
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The plot, about police investigator Stewart trying to nab a criminal while being unlawfully pursued with daffy poetess Colbert in tow, is too lightweight — and the characters spend too much time pointlessly arguing — for me to care.
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Any piece of water with my dog in tow is my new favorite.
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Bunch of marines, with Sigourney Weaver, in tow, is harassed by a corporate big wig, this time played by Giovanni Ribisi, instead of Paul Riser.
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Cycling to work with a limo in tow is up there with hug-a-hoodie.
Hot Air From Al Gore Newmania 2007
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At 03: 00 the lifeboat was in tow but choppy conditions meant she was yawing dangerously.
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Or witnessing the continuous struggle of the young mom to visit him, baby in tow, at the facility two hours away.
Reader poll: Send Roman Polanski to prison? (Jack Bog's Blog) 2009
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If these trips are so God-awful, why are the spouses in tow?
Brian Baird led junket to South Pole on taxpayers' dime (Jack Bog's Blog) 2009
johnmperry commented on the word tow
(n) Coarse broken flax or hemp fiber prepared for spinning.
Hence tow rag
June 22, 2008
yarb commented on the word tow
...such a conversation passed between the trio as put fire and tow to the combustible heart of Don Lewis.
- Lesage, The Adventures of Gil Blas of Santillane, tr. Smollett, bk 4 ch. 6
September 18, 2008
sarahlena commented on the word tow
tow away zone
May 27, 2009