What does "trowel" mean?
A mason’s tool, used in spreading and dressing mortar, and breaking bricks to shape them.
Trowel
/ˈtɹaʊ.əl/ noun, verb, slang
noun, verb, slang ·Moderate ·High school level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: A mason’s tool, used in spreading and dressing mortar, and breaking bricks to shape them.
- Grammar: trowel is listed as noun, verb, slang.
- Nearest alternatives: apply, bricklayer trowel, buffer, bulb trowel.
- Useful contrasts: bury, conceal, flat trowel.
- Usage evidence: "This is ..." "Working glove and trowel. One of a gardening club's basic tools."
How to use "trowel"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "trowel" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
- Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.
Meaning check
- Does the word fit the sentence's grammar?
- Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
- Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
- Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?
Source and review context
This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "trowel" in a final draft.
If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.
Before you rely on this definition
Read the first definition as a starting point, then check the example, synonyms, and part of speech before treating "trowel" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "trowel" with a nearby alternative so the final choice matches both meaning and reader expectation.
Compare nearby meanings
- Use synonyms when you need a softer, stronger, simpler, or more specific word.
- Use antonyms to check the boundary of the meaning and avoid accidental contrast.
- Use the example sentence to confirm the word behaves naturally in context.
- Keep the original wording when a replacement adds complexity without improving precision.
Definition decision workflow
1. Identify the role
Check whether "trowel" is acting as noun, verb, slang in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.
2. Test the nearest option
Compare it with "apply" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.
3. Confirm with context
Use the example sentence below as an evidence check, then read your own sentence out loud to catch tone or rhythm problems.
Review note: Definition pages are checked for source coverage, sentence evidence, synonym support, and editorial insight before they are treated as approval-ready pages. If the evidence is too thin, the page remains available to users but is kept out of the approval-facing indexed inventory.
Final meaning check
Before publishing a sentence with "trowel", ask whether the word helps the reader understand the idea faster. A precise word should reduce confusion, not simply make the sentence look more polished.
When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.
Definitions
Noun
- 1 A mason’s tool, used in spreading and dressing mortar, and breaking bricks to shape them.
- 2 a small hand tool with a handle and flat metal blade; used for scooping or spreading plaster or similar materials wordnet
- 3 A gardener’s tool, shaped like a scoop, used in taking up plants, stirring soil etc.
"I need to dig a hole for these begonias; would you pass me that trowel?"
- 4 A tool used for smoothing a mold.
Verb
- 1 To apply (a substance) with a trowel. transitive
"He troweled the coarse mix with a twist, leaving a pattern of arcs."
- 2 use a trowel on; for light garden work or plaster work wordnet
- 3 To pass over with a trowel. transitive
"Most finish coats are troweled smooth, but sometimes you will have to add cosmetic touches to make the patch match the surrounding plaster, texturing the surface randomly or uniformly with any of a variety of tools, ranging from sponges to special trowels."
- 4 To apply something heavily or unsubtly. colloquial, figuratively
"The whole Planet of the Apes set-up has been ripe for metaphor – from slavery and Afro-American revolution to European conquest of the Americas, even the war on terror. But mercifully, there's no big subtext being troweled on here."
Synonyms
All synonymsExample
""This is ..." "Working glove and trowel. One of a gardening club's basic tools.""
Common questions
What is a synonym for "trowel"?
Common synonyms include: apply, bricklayer trowel, buffer, bulb trowel, excavate, garden trowel.
How do you use "trowel" in a sentence?
"This is ..." "Working glove and trowel. One of a gardening club's basic tools."
How do you pronounce "trowel"?
Pronounced /ˈtɹaʊ.əl/.
Etymology
From Middle English trowell, trouel, truel, from Middle French truelle, from Late Latin truella, from Classical Latin trulla, the diminutive of trua (“ladle”). Doublet of trullo.