stow

B2 Topic:Actions & Processes

US /stoʊ/ UK /stəʊ/ See IPA manual

Meanings

1

verb
to pack or store something carefully and neatly in a particular place

Please stow your luggage in the overhead compartment.
2

verb
to hide or conceal something

He stowed the documents in a secret drawer.

Verb forms

Verb forms are not available for this word yet.

Multiword verbs with stow

stow away Phrasal verb B2

to hide aboard a vehicle in order to travel without permission or payment

Thesaurus

Synonyms

1 verb · to pack or store something... pack storestashtuck awayput away

2 verb · to hide or conceal something hide concealstashsecrete tuck away

Opposites

unpack remove display

Appears in

Phrases (1)

See all

stow away
to hide aboard a vehicle in order to travel without permission or payment

Verb + adverb

Simplified etymology

Stow is an Old English word meaning “place.” Although it was largely superseded by place after that word entered from French, it survives in place names such as Stow on the Wold and Padstow.

Etymology

From Old English stowian ('to place, put'), via Middle English stowen ('to place, arrange'), into Modern English stow ('to pack or store').

Topics

Actions & Processes

External links

# stow

**Type:** Word
**Level:** B2
**Part of speech:** verb
**IPA (US):** /stoʊ/
**IPA (UK):** /stəʊ/

## Meanings
1. to pack or store something carefully and neatly in a particular place
2. to hide or conceal something

## Examples
- Please stow your luggage in the overhead compartment.
- He stowed the documents in a secret drawer.

## Synonyms
- pack
- store
- stash
- tuck away
- put away
- hide
- conceal
- secrete

## Antonyms
- unpack
- remove
- display

## Etymology
From Old English stowian ('to place, put'), via Middle English stowen ('to place, arrange'), into Modern English stow ('to pack or store').

## AI Etymology
Stow comes from Old English stowian ('to place, put'), via Middle English stowen ('to place, arrange'), into Modern English stow ('to pack or store'). In current use it is a verb meaning "to pack or store something carefully and neatly in a particular place". That sense is explained by the older material without requiring a speculative semantic step: the inherited or borrowed base supplies the field of meaning, while the English formation fixes its modern role. The history is mainly one of transmission into English, with the older form and sense carried through borrowing or adaptation. For dictionary purposes, the important point is the continuity between the older form, the route into English, and the present lexical sense.

## Topics
- Actions & Processes

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