trowel

American  

[trou-uhl] / ˈtraʊ əl /

noun

1. any of various tools having a flat blade with a handle, used for depositing and working mortar, plaster, etc.

2. a similar tool with a curved, scooplike blade, used in gardening for taking up plants, turning up earth, etc.

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verb (used with object)

troweled, troweling, trowelled, trowelling

1. to apply, shape, smooth, or dig with or as if with a trowel.

trowel British  

/ ˈtraʊəl /

noun

1. any of various small hand tools having a flat metal blade attached to a handle, used for scooping or spreading plaster or similar materials

2. a similar tool with a curved blade used by gardeners for lifting plants, etc

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verb

1. (tr) to use a trowel on (plaster, soil, etc)

trowel Idioms  

1. see under lay it on thick.

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Other Word Forms

• troweler noun
• troweller noun

Etymology

Origin of trowel

1300–50; Middle English < Old French truelle < Late Latin truella, equivalent to Latin tru ( a ) ladle + -ella -elle

Example Sentences

“I went back out there with my school satchel and a gardening trowel. I had to make two trips. They’re really heavy.”

From Literature

We go to work wiping down the boxes of detergent, the plastic-wrapped toilet paper, the popcorn, the tools, rakes, and trowels.

From Literature

No fuzzy chicks, no bags of seeds for the greenhouse, no new knitting needles or garden trowels or other tools.

From Literature

He pulls out a trowel, jams it into the gray dirt, and digs down.

From Literature

When I saw her, brandishing a hard hat and trowel at a housebuilding site, there seemed no question of her going anywhere.

From BBC

Related Words

• burrow
• inquire