trowel
trowel — noun
- trowelsingular
- trowelsplural
1. A building implement made of a steel blade fixed to a short handle, used by cons
A building implement made of a steel blade fixed to a short handle, used by construction workers to take up wet cement or plaster and spread it across brickwork or to smooth a wall surface.
Rafael scooped wet cement and spread it across the brick with his trowel.
The plasterer ran his trowel over the surface until the wall felt perfectly smooth.
active: run a trowel over [surface] to smooth it
Tamás found his steel trowel rusting after he left it out in the rain.
Mizuki pressed mortar into the gap between two tiles with her trowel.
- float
A flat tool used specifically for smoothing plaster, larger and wider than a trowel
用法筆記
Frequently used with specific modifiers that indicate the type of work, such as 'steel trowel', 'plasterer's trowel', or 'brick trowel'. The blade shape varies — triangular for corners, rectangular for large flat areas.
常見錯誤
2. A small hand tool with a pointed metal blade that curves slightly, used in garde
A small hand tool with a pointed metal blade that curves slightly, used in gardening to dig shallow holes for planting seeds or bulbs, or to lift weeds and small plants out of the soil.
Putri used a garden trowel to plant a new rose bush in the garden.
collocation: garden trowel
Mark loosened the soil with his trowel before pulling the weeds out by the roots.
Mert wiped the dirt off his trowel and put it back in the garden shed.
With a small trowel, Mira carefully lifted the young lettuce plant from the vegetable patch.
- hand shovel
A general term; a hand shovel has a broader blade and is less precise than a trowel
- digger
Informal term for a small hand tool used in the garden
用法筆記
Distinguish from the building sense (noun sense 1). A garden trowel has a pointed, scoop-shaped blade for cutting through soil, while a masonry trowel has a flat blade for spreading cement.
常見錯誤
trowel — verb
- trowelpresent simple I / you / we / they
- trowels3rd person singular
- troweling-ing form
- troweledpast simple
1. To apply, spread, or smooth a material such as cement or plaster using a trowel,
To apply, spread, or smooth a material such as cement or plaster using a trowel, or to dig or move soil with a garden trowel.
Amani troweled the mortar carefully onto each brick as she built the garden wall.
transitive: trowel [material] onto [surface]
Nikhil troweled the soil around the new shrub and patted it down with his hands.
The workers troweled the cement floor until it was perfectly level and smooth.
Reuben watched his father trowel plaster onto the ceiling in long, even strokes.
文法句型
trowel + noun + onto/into/over + noun
用法筆記
The object is typically a building material (mortar, cement, plaster) or garden soil. This verb is less common in everyday speech and appears more often in construction or gardening instructions.