towel

tow·el

T0292300 (tou′əl)n. A piece of absorbent cloth or paper used for wiping or drying.v. tow·eled, tow·el·ing, tow·els or tow·elled or tow·el·ling v.tr. To wipe or rub dry with a towel.v.intr. To dry oneself with a towel.

[Middle English towaille, from Old French toaille, of Germanic origin.]

towel

(ˈtaʊəl) n1. a square or rectangular piece of absorbent cloth or paper used for drying the body2. a similar piece of cloth used for drying plates, cutlery, etc3. (Boxing) throw in the towel See throw in⁴vb (tr) , -els, -elling or -elled, -els, -eling or -eled4. to dry or wipe with a towel5. slang (often foll by: up) Austral to assault or beat (a person)[C13: from Old French toaille, of Germanic origin; related to Old High German dwahal bath, Old Saxon twahila towel, Gothic thwahan to wash]

tow•el

(ˈtaʊ əl, taʊl)

n., v. -eled, -el•ing (esp. Brit.) -elled, -el•ling. n. 1. an absorbent cloth or paper for wiping and drying something wet, esp. the hands, face, or body. v.t. 2. to wipe or dry with a towel. [1250–1300; Middle English (n.) < Old French toaille cloth for washing or wiping < West Germanic *thwahljō (> Old High German dwahilla, akin to dwahal bath)]

towel

Past participle: towelled
Gerund: towelling

Imperative
towel
towel

Present
I towel
you towel
he/she/it towels
we towel
you towel
they towel

Preterite
I towelled
you towelled
he/she/it towelled
we towelled
you towelled
they towelled

Present Continuous
I am towelling
you are towelling
he/she/it is towelling
we are towelling
you are towelling
they are towelling

Present Perfect
I have towelled
you have towelled
he/she/it has towelled
we have towelled
you have towelled
they have towelled

Past Continuous
I was towelling
you were towelling
he/she/it was towelling
we were towelling
you were towelling
they were towelling

Past Perfect
I had towelled
you had towelled
he/she/it had towelled
we had towelled
you had towelled
they had towelled

Future
I will towel
you will towel
he/she/it will towel
we will towel
you will towel
they will towel

Future Perfect
I will have towelled
you will have towelled
he/she/it will have towelled
we will have towelled
you will have towelled
they will have towelled

Future Continuous
I will be towelling
you will be towelling
he/she/it will be towelling
we will be towelling
you will be towelling
they will be towelling

Present Perfect Continuous
I have been towelling
you have been towelling
he/she/it has been towelling
we have been towelling
you have been towelling
they have been towelling

Future Perfect Continuous
I will have been towelling
you will have been towelling
he/she/it will have been towelling
we will have been towelling
you will have been towelling
they will have been towelling

Past Perfect Continuous
I had been towelling
you had been towelling
he/she/it had been towelling
we had been towelling
you had been towelling
they had been towelling

Conditional
I would towel
you would towel
he/she/it would towel
we would towel
you would towel
they would towel

Past Conditional
I would have towelled
you would have towelled
he/she/it would have towelled
we would have towelled
you would have towelled
they would have towelled

Thesaurus

Noun	1.	towel - a rectangular piece of absorbent cloth (or paper) for drying or wipingbath towel - a large towel; to dry yourself after a bathbeach towel - very large towel to dry yourself after swimmingdish towel, dishtowel, tea towel - a towel for drying dishesface towel, hand towel - a small towel used to dry the hands or facepaper towel - a disposable towel made of absorbent paperpiece of cloth, piece of material - a separate part consisting of fabricroller towel - a towel with the ends sewn together, hung on a roller
Verb	1.	towel - wipe with a towel; "towel your hair dry"wipe, pass over - rub with a circular motion; "wipe the blackboard"; "He passed his hands over the soft cloth"

Translations

毛巾用毛巾擦擦...纸

towel

(ˈtauəl) noun a piece of any of several types of absorbent cloth or paper for drying oneself, dishes etc after washing etc. After her swim she dried herself with a towel; a roll of paper kitchen towels. 毛巾，擦...纸 verb – past tense, past participle ˈtowelled , (American) ˈtoweled – to rub with a towel. 用毛巾擦ˈtowelling noun a kind of rough cloth from which towels etc are made. 毛巾布

towel

→ 毛巾zhCN

Could you lend me a towel? → 您可以借给我一条毛巾吗？

towel

crying towel

1. A figurative towel used to wipe away someone's tears; used sarcastically to imply that the person's woes or complaints are uncalled for or exaggerated. Oh, you have to pay a bit more in taxes because you're now making $100,000 more per year? Shall I get out a crying towel for you?2. A person who listens to and/or offers sympathy for someone's troubles, complaints, or grief. I'm getting a little tired of being Charlie's crying towel every time he breaks up with some new boyfriend.See also: crying, towel

throw in the sponge

To give up on some endeavor; to quit or abandon something; to admit defeat or failure. I've been working on this book for over a year, and I'm getting nowhere with it. I think I'm ready to throw in the sponge. After trying their hand in the mobile market for just a few years, the company is already throwing in the sponge after finding very little success.See also: sponge, throw

throw in the towel

To give up on some endeavor; to quit or abandon something; to admit defeat or failure. I've been working on this book for over a year, and I'm getting nowhere with it. I think I'm ready to throw in the towel. After trying their hand in the mobile market for just a few years, the company is already throwing in the towel after finding very little success.See also: throw, towel

towel off

1. To dry off with a towel. I didn't even have time to towel off as I ran out of the shower to answer the door. I need to towel off after working up such a sweat.2. To dry someone or something off with a towel. In this usage, a noun or pronoun can be used between "towel" and "off." He toweled the kids off after their bath and got them both dressed for bed. Gym members are reminded to always towel off the equipment after each use.See also: off, towel

throw in the towel

and throw in the sponge; toss in the spongeFig. (From boxing, where this is done by a boxer's trainer to stop the fight.) to signal that one is going to quit; to quit. When John could stand no more of Mary's bad temper, he threw in the towel and left. Don't give up now! It's too soon to throw in the sponge.See also: throw, towel

towel someone or something down

to rub someone or something dry with a towel. The mother toweled her child down and dressed her in clean clothes. She toweled down the child gently. Towel down the dog. He's wet and shaking.See also: down, towel

towel someone or something off

to dry someone or something with a towel. The young mother toweled the baby off with a soft, warm towel. She toweled off the baby.See also: off, towel

crying towel

A figurative towel for wiping the tears of a self-pitying individual. For example, So you didn't make the first team? Get out the crying towel. This expression is always used sarcastically. [Slang; 1920s] See also: crying, towel

throw in the sponge

Also, throw in the towel. Give up, acknowledge defeat, as in I can't move this rock; I'm throwing in the sponge, or Bill decided to throw in the towel and resign from his job. This idiom comes from boxing, where formerly a fighter (or his second) conceded defeat by throwing the sponge or towel used to wipe his face into the ring. [c. 1900] See also: sponge, throw

throw in the towel

COMMON If you throw in the towel, you stop trying to do something, because you know that you cannot succeed. Klara's support, when even her son's trainers wanted to throw in the towel, was crucial. Note: Verbs such as chuck and toss are sometimes used instead of throw. One day I will be brave enough (or fed up enough) to chuck in the towel and start again. Note: You can also say that someone throws in the sponge. You're not the kind of man who throws in the sponge. You're a fighter and it's your fighting spirit which is going to save you. Note: In boxing, a fighter's trainer sometimes throws a towel or sponge into the ring as a signal of defeat in order to stop the fight before there are any more injuries. See also: throw, towel

throw in the towel (or sponge)

abandon a struggle; admit defeat. Boxers or their trainers traditionally signal defeat by throwing the towel or sponge used to wipe a contestant's face into the middle of the ring.See also: throw, towel

throw in the ˈtowel/ˈsponge

(informal) stop doing something because you know that you cannot succeed; admit defeat: It’s a bit early to throw in the towel — you’ve only just started the job.This idiom comes from boxing: throwing in the towel or sponge is a sign that a fighter accepts defeat.See also: sponge, throw, towel

towel off

v.1. To dry oneself with a towel: The swimmer got out of the pool and toweled off.2. To dry someone or something with a towel: I toweled off my wet feet before putting my socks on. We hosed the car down and toweled it off.See also: off, towel

crying towel

n. someone or something used to comfort someone. It’s so sad. I guess I really need a crying towel today. See also: crying, towel

throw in the towel

and throw in the sponge and toss in the sponge tv. to quit; to give up. (From boxing, where a towel or sponge thrown into the ring indicates that a boxer has given up.) The candidate who was exposed by the press as a former pickpocket tossed in the sponge in a tearful press conference. I’m done! I’m tossing in the sponge! See also: throw, towel

throw in the sponge

verbSee throw in the towelSee also: sponge, throw

throw in the sponge/towel, to

To acknowledge defeat; to give up. J. C. Hotten’s Slang Dictionary of 1860 explained that this term comes from prizefighting, where throwing up the sponge used to clean the contender’s face was a signal that the “mill,” or round, was concluded. However, Hotten got it wrong; the sponge (or later, towel) more often was thrown up as a signal of defeat, and it is in this sense that the expression was transferred to other enterprises. “If ever you are tempted to say . . . ‘I am beaten and I throw up the sponge,’ remember Paul’s wise exhortation,” wrote Alexander Maclaren (Philippians, 1909). Later up was changed to in, at least in North America.See also: sponge, throw

throw in the towel

To quit. A prizefighter's sidemen use sponges to clean his face of sweat and blood. To toss the sponge into the ring during a fight signaled that the boxer had had enough—and so the sponge was no longer needed. In recent years, towels have been substituted for sponges in boxing matches, and consequently, in the expression too.See also: throw, towel

towel

tow·el

towel

tow•el

towel

towel

towel

towel

crying towel

throw in the sponge

throw in the towel

towel off

throw in the towel

towel someone or something down

towel someone or something off

crying towel

throw in the sponge

throw in the towel

throw in the towel (or sponge)

throw in the ˈtowel/ˈsponge

towel off

crying towel

throw in the towel

throw in the sponge

throw in the sponge/towel, to

throw in the towel

towel

Words related to towel

noun a rectangular piece of absorbent cloth (or paper) for drying or wiping

Related Words

verb wipe with a towel

Related Words