Meaning & use
tower
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Meanings
nouncountable
A tall, narrow building or part of a building, often standing alone.
Grammar: Countable; plural 'towers'.
Patterns
- a tower of something
- the Eiffel Tower
The castle has a tall stone tower.
We could see the church tower from miles away.
The office tower is the tallest building in the city.
verbintransitive
To be much taller or greater than someone or something nearby.
Grammar: Often followed by 'over' or 'above': tower over someone.
Patterns
- tower over someone
- tower above something
The basketball player towers over his teammates.
The mountain towers above the valley.
She towers over her colleagues in experience.
Word forms
| plural | towers |
|---|---|
| third person singular | towers |
| past tense | towered |
| past participle | towered |
| -ing form | towering |
Common combinations
- clock tower
- The clock tower chimes every hour.
- water tower
- The town's water tower is visible from the highway.
- tower over
- He towers over his father now.
- ivory tower
- Some academics are accused of living in an ivory tower.
Synonyms and how they differ
- spire
- A tall, pointed structure on top of a building, especially a church; a tower is usually broader.
- skyscraper
- A very tall building with many floors; a tower can be shorter or part of a larger structure.
Word family
- towering adjective
- Very tall or impressive.
- tower block noun
- A tall building with many floors, especially apartments.
Commonly confused: tower or towel? tower or touring?
tower vs towel
A towel is cloth for drying; a tower is a tall building.
tower vs touring
Touring means traveling around; tower is a structure or to rise high.
Practice
The new skyscraper will ______ over the entire neighborhood.
Choose one answer.
After 'will', the base form 'tower' is needed. 'Towel' is a different word, and 'towers' and 'towered' do not fit the future tense.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “tower”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.