towel

from WordNet (r) 3.0 (2006)

towel
    n 1: a rectangular piece of absorbent cloth (or paper) for
         drying or wiping
    v 1: wipe with a towel; "towel your hair dry"

from The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48

Towel \Tow"el\, v. t.
   To beat with a stick. [Prov. Eng.]
   [1913 Webster]

from The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48

Towel \Tow"el\, n. [OE. towaille, towail, F. touaille, LL.
   toacula, of Teutonic origin; cf. OHG. dwahila, swahilla, G.
   zwehle, fr. OHG. dwahan to wash; akin to D. dwaal a towel,
   AS. [thorn]we['a]n to wash, OS. thwahan, Icel. [thorn]v[=a],
   Sw. tv[*a], Dan. toe, Goth. [thorn]wahan. Cf. {Doily}.]
   A cloth used for wiping, especially one used for drying
   anything wet, as the person after a bath.
   [1913 Webster]

   {Towel gourd} (Bot.), the fruit of the cucurbitaceous plant
      {Luffa Aegyptiaca}; also, the plant itself. The fruit is
      very fibrous, and, when separated from its rind and seeds,
      is used as a sponge or towel. Called also {Egyptian bath
      sponge}, and {dishcloth}.
      [1913 Webster]

from Moby Thesaurus II by Grady Ward, 1.0

34 Moby Thesaurus words for "towel":
      air-dry, anhydrate, bake, blot, brush, burn, cure, dehumidify,
      dehydrate, desiccate, drain, dry, evaporate, exsiccate, fire,
      insolate, kiln, mummify, parch, rub, scorch, sear, shrivel, smoke,
      soak up, sponge, sun, sun-dry, swab, torrefy, weazen, wipe, wither,
      wizen