noun
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a vessel used for trawling
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a person who trawls
Etymology
Origin of trawler
Explanation
A trawler is a boat that's used for fishing. Trawlers drag large fishing nets behind them. The special nets used on trawlers are called trawls. Both words come from the Middle Dutch traghelen and its root, the Latin tragula, "dragnet." That's exactly what a trawler (also called a dragger) does—it drags a net behind it. Trawlers are controversial, because although strictly regulated, they can damage seabeds and accidentally catch fish that are endangered or too small.
Vocabulary lists containing trawler
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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.
The trawler, which had departed from Bangladesh and was bound for Malaysia, "reportedly sank due to heavy winds, rough seas and overcrowding", the agencies said.
From BBC • Apr. 14, 2026
Jens Frederiksen, who works at a fishing business in Nuuk running a big shrimp trawler, said there is a divide in opinion between those in the capital and those in other coastal areas.
From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 15, 2026
While other experiments with that approach have proven successful, this one results in a hanging work that looks like a trawler accidentally got its haulage caught in a tree.
From The Wall Street Journal • Oct. 17, 2025
In 2016, six Cambodian crew members died from beriberi, a preventable disease, onboard a Thai fishmeal trawler.
From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 28, 2025
Even after Garvey returned to shore, Peter remained sitting by the water, staring at the trawler motor from the bay.
From "Touching Spirit Bear" by Ben Mikaelsen
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
