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Glite Dictionary
tow car

tow car

1 3.3
A vehicle that pulls away broken or illegally parked cars
  • noun
  • /toʊ kɑr/
  • UK
translation icon : grúa
  • Call headquarters and tell them to send out a tow car.

Examples

  • Here is our car, a 1999 Lexus RX 300 that we bought new in 1998. We had just purchased our RV and needed a tow car that we could pull behind our RV.

    Blog text (1)

  • If your car breaks down, you can call for a tow car to take it to the garage.

  • Go get a tow car and haul in the rig.

    They Drive by Night (1940)

  • We'll push the racer onto the trailer and pull it out with a tow car.

    Buck Privates Come Home (1947)

  • I sent a tow car over to your garage this afternoon... and they jacked up that burned-out truck of yours.

    Double Indemnity (1944)

  • The police arrived with a tow car to remove the illegally parked vehicles on the street.

  • She watched as the tow car lifted the car that was blocking the driveway.

Synonyms

tow truck
vstow car
  • US
48 2.7

A truck that lifts and pulls cars that are broken or parked illegally

is any vehicle with towing apparatus used for hauling other vehicles
wrecker
vstow car
  • US
4 5.9

A truck with a crane that tows broken or parked cars

is a vehicle using general towing apparatus rather than a crane or hoist

Surface Forms

tow car singular
tow cars plural

Morphology

tow + car

The meaning is directly and transparently built from 'tow' (to pull or haul) + 'car' (a vehicle) — a car used for towing other vehicles. This is a simple noun compound following a common English pattern, so a B1 learner who knows both words should be able to infer the meaning.

Etymology

The noun tow car comes from the simple picture of a vehicle used to tow a broken car by hooking to it and pulling it away. So, a tow car is a vehicle sent to 'pull away' or remove cars that are damaged or parked where they should not be.