HOW TO PRONOUNCE
tow
/toʊ/
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American Pronunciation Guide · 1:03
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What does tow mean?
verb
- To pull something behind one, such as by using a line, chain, or tongue.
- To aid someone behind by shielding them from wind resistance.
noun
- The act of towing and the condition of being towed.
More meanings (9)
noun
- Something, such as a tugboat, that tows.
- Something, such as a barge, that is towed.
- A rope or cable used in towing.
- A speed increase given by driving in front of another car on a straight, which causes a slipstream for the car behind.
- An untwisted bundle of fibres such as cellulose acetate, flax, hemp or jute.
- The short, coarse, less desirable fibres separated by hackling from the finer longer fibres (line).
- Initialism of tube-launched, optically tracked, wire-guided: a kind of antitank missile.
phrase
- (slang) Initialism of The One with ... or The One Where ...: used to refer to episodes of the American television sitcom Friends.
proper noun
- A surname.
Definitions regrouped for readability · CC BY-SA 4.0
IPA pronunciation
/toʊ/
Wiktionary contributors · CC BY-SA 4.0 ↗Pronunciation varies by speaker and region. About these dictionary pronunciations.
In the pages of books
See this word in context.
No, they hold there a large, round wad of tow and cork, enveloped in the thickest and toughest of ox-hide.
The same messenger brought word from the port captain that he would despatch a steam-tug to tow the Spray to Montevideo.
More book examples (3)
He then betook himself to the paddles with which his craft was provided, and reached Snake Island with the balloon in tow.
Stenhouse carried on, and in the early morning of April 2 the Aurora picked up the tug and was taken in tow.
Leaving his home he followed the highway until he came to a rough, narrow pig-trail leading to the Tow River.