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tea towel

American  

noun

  • tea towels
    plural
  1. a dishtowel.


tea towel British  

noun

  1. US name: dishtowel. a towel for drying dishes and kitchen utensils

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms


Etymology

Origin of tea towel

First recorded in 1870–75


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Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

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A textile artist from north-west London says she is "so so so happy" after a box containing 206 pieces of her tea towel art display was returned, after she thought it had been lost.

From BBC ● Jul. 2, 2026

Pullman moved a nearby tea towel to reveal half a dozen custard creams.

From BBC ● Sep. 30, 2025

Remove bowl from mixer, cover with a tea towel or plate, and rest dough for 20 minutes.

From Seattle Times ● Nov. 21, 2023

She shoots all of her colorful rice bowls, lush salads and pots of long-simmered soup on her white-marble countertops, occasionally accented with a dusting of spilled spices or a strategically haphazard tea towel.

From Salon ● Apr. 18, 2023

We squabble in whispers and monosyllables about whose turn it is to wash: drying with a clammy tea towel isn’t as good as washing, which warms up your hands.

From "Cat's Eye" by Margaret Atwood

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