tow1 verbtow2 noun
towtow1 /təʊ $ toʊ/ ●○○ verb [transitive] 
Word OriginWORD ORIGINtow1
Verb TableOrigin:
Old English togianVERB TABLE
tow
| Simple Form | ||
| Present | I, you, we, they | tow |
| he, she, it | tows | |
| Past | I, you, he, she, it, we, they | towed |
| Present perfect | I, you, we, they | have towed |
| he, she, it | has towed | |
| Past perfect | I, you, he, she, it, we, they | had towed |
| Future | I, you, he, she, it, we, they | will tow |
| Future perfect | I, you, he, she, it, we, they | will have towed |
| Continuous Form | ||
| Present | I | am towing |
| he, she, it | is towing | |
| you, we, they | are towing | |
| Past | I, he, she, it | was towing |
| you, we, they | were towing | |
| Present perfect | I, you, we, they | have been towing |
| he, she, it | has been towing | |
| Past perfect | I, you, he, she, it, we, they | had been towing |
| Future | I, you, he, she, it, we, they | will be towing |
| Future perfect | I, you, he, she, it, we, they | will have been towing |
EXAMPLES FROM OTHER DICTIONARIES
Thesaurus- The damaged ship was towed to the nearest port.
- The police had towed his car away because it was blocking the road.
- What's the speed limit for cars towing trailers?
- A final decision will be made once the stricken destroyer is towed away.
- He often towed it to Lake Whitney, near Waco.
- I towed her over to the muddy shore and flung her aboard Flupper.
- Power surfers are towed behind a jet-ski into massive oceanic swells that move too fast to catch by paddling conventional surfboards.
- The lifeguard boat offered to tow his board out through the pounding break.
- Their target was a specific spot where, earlier, a towed temperature probe had measured a spike of warm water.
- Their yacht was also towed in.
THESAURUS► pull
Collocations to make something or someone move in the direction that your hands are moving: · He pulled her towards him and kissed her.· Sam was pulling on his socks.
► tug to pull something suddenly with a short quick movement, often to get someone’s attention: · ‘Look,’ he said, tugging at his brother’s sleeve.· I tugged at the drawer but it wouldn’t open.
► drag to pull something along the ground, especially because it is heavy: · If we can’t lift the piano, we’ll have to drag it.
► haul to pull something big and heavy using a lot of effort, especially upwards and using a rope: · They hauled their boats further up the beach.· fishermen hauling in their nets
► heave to pull or lift something very heavy, especially with one movement: · He heaved the sack of sand onto his shoulder.
► draw formal to pull something or someone gently in a particular direction: · Lisa reached for his hand but he drew it away.
► pull to be attached to a vehicle or piece of machinery and make it move behind you in the direction you are going: · Ten dogs were pulling a sledge over the ice.· a tractor pulling a plough
► tow to pull a vehicle behind – used about a vehicle, a boat, or a horse pulling something using a rope or chain: · The car in front of us was towing a caravan.· Horses were used to tow the boats along the canals.
► draw to pull a vehicle such as a carriage – used especially about horses doing this: · a carriage drawn by four horses· a horse-drawn cart
Longman Language Activatorto pull something heavy► pull to make a vehicle or piece of machinery move along behind - use this especially about animals or heavy vehicles that are attached to something they are pulling: · The Queen's carriage was pulled by two white horses.· a tractor pulling a plough
► drag to pull something or someone along the ground, especially because they are too heavy to carry: drag something along/over/away etc: · One of the firemen went back in and dragged my husband out through the flames.· Pick up your chairs, children. Don't drag them along the floor.
► haul to pull something heavy with a strong continuous movement, often using a rope: haul something along/out/away etc: · Somehow we managed to haul the boat out of the water and onto the bank.haul in a net/rope (=pull it towards you): · At about five o'clock the beach was full of activity, with the fishermen hauling in their nets.
► tow if a vehicle or boat tows something, it pulls it behind it: · What's the speed limit for cars towing trailers?tow something to/from/along etc: · The damaged ship was towed to the nearest port.tow something away (=tow a vehicle to a place where it can be repaired, or where it is not causing a problem): · The police had towed his car away because it was blocking the road.
► heave to pull something very heavy with one great effort: · Everyone pull together now. Are you ready? Heave!heave something onto/into/over etc: · Rod bent down and heaved the sack onto his shoulder.
COLLOCATIONS FROM THE CORPUSADVERB► away
to pull a vehicle or ship along behind another vehicle, using a rope or chain: · Dozens of motorists faced fines of £100 to recover parked cars which were towed away.· The blue hatchback was briefly searched in the parking lot, and then towed away by authorities.· A feeble little hatchback in the Highlands deserves to be towed away.· A final decision will be made once the stricken destroyer is towed away.· Long queues had formed before the car was towed away by police.· Four cars damaged in the pile up have been towed away for forensic tests.· If they don't, they face having their caravans towed away.· A word of warning: be careful not to park illegally as your vehicle is liable to be towed away.
NOUN► car· Read in studio A driver who towed another car at a hundred miles an hour on a motorway has admitted reckless driving.· This left only thirteen railcoaches in original condition, plus the ten trailer towing cars.
The ship had to be towed into the harbor.tow something away Our car had been towed away.► see thesaurus at pulltow1 verbtow2 noun
towtow2 noun ExamplesEXAMPLES FROM THE CORPUS
Collocations- I seized the chance to ask for a tow, anything to get us clear of that suicidal place.
- In April 1986 our 29-year-old son met a lorry coming from the opposite direction with a very heavy utility trailer in tow.
- Many enjoy the festival so much that they return season after season, with spouses and children in tow.
- Sometimes they came alone, sometimes with a man in tow - to foot the bill!
COLLOCATIONS FROM THE CORPUSNOUN► line
Phrases· Grabbing at the Zodiac's tow line, he held himself against the river for a moment, getting his breath back.· Having anchored your sledge you fix your tow line to the front hinge piece, using a karabiner.· Then the moment came when the tow line was released and they savoured the eerie feeling of riding the rising thermals.
► rope· The tow rope sprang taut, plucking the dinghy clear as the swell broke, thundering forward on to the waiting coral.· The boy Ezra was kneeling over the stern with the tow rope tangled in his hands.· Ozzie Griffiths, in the car behind, was being pulled by a thirteen foot long tow rope.· Loi was on the bow, keeping watch on the tow rope.· We would have the tow rope ready when the fishing boat went past us.· He felt the tug of the tow rope.· Nick and I laid out tow ropes to the bow of the raft, and cajoled bystanders to lend a hand.
► truck· The tow truck eventually arrived three hours later, but broke down on the way to her fiance's home near Norwich.· Or if you need help, they can dispatch a tow truck or whatever you need.
VERB► take· And at the end of the session we were taken for a tow round the harbour.
PHRASES FROM THE ENTRY► in tow► take something in tow► under/on tow
1[countable] an act of pulling a vehicle behind another vehicle, using a rope or chain: - Hannah arrived with her four kids in tow.
- Maintenance costs on tow motors were slashed.
Can you give us a tow to the garage?2in tow informal following closely behind someone or something: Hannah arrived with her four kids in tow. He turned up at my office with two lawyers in tow.3take something in tow to connect a rope or a chain to a vehicle or ship so that it can be towed4under/on tow British English if a ship is under tow or a car is on tow, it is being pulled along by another vehicle