What does toweling mean?
Toweling is a material term for the absorbent cloth used to make towels, most commonly woven from cotton. It is especially associated with terry cloth, whose raised loops make it soft and highly absorbent, though toweling can also refer to other absorbent fabrics intended for drying dishes, hands, or surfaces. In American English the word is usually spelled with one “l,” while British English commonly uses “towelling”; both spellings are accepted. Toweling is normally treated as an uncountable noun, particularly when referring to the material by the roll or bolt. A much rarer and more technical sense denotes the action of towing a vessel or other object, distinguishing it from the everyday fabric meaning. In practical use, the distinction between towel and toweling is simple: a towel is an individual finished item, while toweling is the fabric from which such items are made. The word therefore appears naturally in expressions involving cotton, bath, kitchen, or dish towels and descriptions of materials in sewing, crafts, and household goods.
nounAbsorbent fabric, especially cotton, used for making towels. In a rarer technical use, it means the action of towing a vessel or other object.
- Absorbent fabric used for making towels, especially cotton or terry cloth.
- The action of towing a vessel or other object.
"She folded a strip of cotton toweling over the handle of the oven."
"The kitchen towel was made from soft cotton toweling."
"Toweling the damaged vessel required another hour."
Rare; toweling is normally treated as an uncountable mass noun when referring to the material.
"The supplier offered several towelings in different colors."
A towel is the finished piece; toweling is the roll it comes from.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Where does toweling come from?
Toweling is a modern English formation made by adding the suffix “-ing” to “towel,” with the resulting word naming the material used for towels. “Towel” entered Middle English through Old French “touaille,” a learned borrowing from Medieval Latin “toalla,” but the further origin of that Latin word is uncertain. Later derivatives from the same English base include “towelette” and the plural “towels”; British spelling also commonly uses “towelling” for the material.
How toweling is actually used
Toweling is normally an uncountable mass noun. The spelling “toweling” is common in American English, while “towelling” is the usual British spelling, although both forms are understood in both varieties. The sense meaning the action of towing is formal and technical.
Easily confused with toweling
A towel is an individual piece of absorbent fabric, whereas toweling is the material from which towels are made.