tow

Meanings

1. 1
   verb

   to pull a vehicle, boat, or other object behind another vehicle, usually with a rope or bar

   A rescue boat came to tow the damaged yacht back to harbor.

2. 2
   noun

   an act of towing, or a vehicle or vessel being pulled

   The broken-down car needed a tow to the nearest garage.

3. 3
   noun

   coarse, short fibers of flax, hemp, or jute prepared for spinning

   The workers twisted the tow into rough cordage.

The pulling verb comes from Old English togian 'to pull or drag,' a Germanic relative of tug. The fiber noun is a separate Old English word, tow, used in compounds for spinning and referring to uncleaned or coarse textile fibers. Their identical modern spelling is accidental.

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