Etymology From Middle English towayle, towel, towail, towaille, from Old French toaille (“towel”) (modern French touaille), Medieval Latin toallia, from Frankish *þwahilu (“cloth”), from Proto-Germanic *þwahaną (“to wash”). Cognate with Old High German dwahila (“towel”) (modern dialectal German Zwehle), Dutch dwaal (“towel”), dweil (“mop”), Low German Dweel (“towel”), Old English þwǣle (“band; ribbon; fillet”), Old English þwēan (“to wash”).
1
A cloth used for wiping, especially one used for drying anything wet, such as a person after a bath.
Etymology From Middle English towayle, towel, towail, towaille, from Old French toaille (“towel”) (modern French touaille), Medieval Latin toallia, from Frankish *þwahilu (“cloth”), from Proto-Germanic *þwahaną (“to wash”). Cognate with Old High German dwahila (“towel”) (modern dialectal German Zwehle), Dutch dwaal (“towel”), dweil (“mop”), Low German Dweel (“towel”), Old English þwǣle (“band; ribbon; fillet”), Old English þwēan (“to wash”).
1
To dry by using a towel.
He got out of the shower and toweled himself dry.
2
To hit with a towel.
3
To block up (a door, etc.) with a towel, to conceal the fumes of a recreational drug.
We would open the windows, towel the door, and turn my bedroom into an Allman Brothers concert.2012, Dave Tomar, The Shadow Scholar: How I Made a Living Helping College Kids Cheat: