Do you TOE the line or TOW the line?

[YellowRubberDuckie]

In the Ladies' Home Journal, I'm reading a story about tween fashion She says her son "towed the line..." Please explain to me wtf she's thinking. I always thought it was TOE the line...like you're standing on the line, but not quite going over it...:shrug:
Duckie

[Cerridwen]

1. towed as in taking the line attached to a boat or ship

and towing it.

My understanding of the phrase.

[slackmaster]

5. IMO you haul a line (as in rope)

You might tow an object attached to the rope (line).

I say you toe the line, as in step up to it in line with other people, shoulder to shoulder.

[Cerridwen]

9. Cool. Learn something every day. n/t

[rock]

10. I believe you are correct

The first is a literal (non-figurative) use of the words. The second is an idiom, meaning standing close to the line as in formation, therefore showing good form.

[RebelYell]

17. You're right

Toe the line is a nautical term. The deck hands would line up their toes on the edge of a deck board.

[slackmaster]

18. The coaches made us toe the line in PE class in high school

Some of them were very military in their affect.

[RebelYell]

20. My PE teacher was former drill sargeant

We had to line up in squads, like the Chinese army.

[RT_Fanatic]

Definitely

TOE. I'm an English Teacher and know about these things first hand. Don't try this at home.
:)

[Dogmudgeon]

2. Yes ... one would TOE the line

LHJ made a mistake.

Nothing new about that.

--bkl

[sniffa]

3. it is toe - on your mark

and i say that with certainty - nothing to do with my bias for toes.

[ClintonTyree]

4. That would be "Toe"..................

I have no knowledge as to how one could "Tow" a line.

[Joe_VB]

6. Its toe the line.

Toe the line is the survivor of a set of phrases that were common in the nineteenth century; others were toe the mark, toe the scratch, toe the crack, or toe the trig. In every case, the image was that of men lining up with the tips of their toes touching some line. They might be on parade, or preparing to undertake some task, or in readiness for a race or fight.

[YellowRubberDuckie]

7. Thanks...

I hate it when I see mistakes like this in magazines. People think they can do whatever they want with the English Language and it's acceptable. Damn Bush makes people think they're allowed to take liberties with whatever they want. THAT is not the case. Makes me about as insane as when I hear irregardless. I don't care what anyone says, it's not a fucking word, in Webster's or not!

[Richardo]

8. Toe...

LHJ needs to fire an editor.

[BlueJazz]

11. Sorry Folks but the word is TOW

In the early days of the circuses, workers had to load and unload the animals in/out of their wooden carts.
The smaller animals and tame ones, could be easily handled.

The large animals had to be loaded with ropes to keep them from attacking anybody (3 ropes would be put on the animals neck)
The hardest animals were the Big Cats so of course the Men had to:
"Tow the Lions" (i'm also full of shit!)

[YellowRubberDuckie]

12. LOL OH Dear lord...

God, it's getting thick in here. LMAO
Duckie

[slackmaster]

14. You owe me a new keyboard

I just spat hot coffee all over mine.

BTW the small lion on my computer says "Meow!"

[On the Road]

13. "Toe" the Line

"It’s correctly toe the line, but it is indeed often seen as tow the line, an error that’s all too easy to make when in a hurry. In this case, the association of ideas between tow and line (in the sense of a rope) is often too powerful to overcome, and the lack of any clear mental image of where it comes from is a contributing factor.

Toe the line is the survivor of a set of phrases that were common in the nineteenth century... In every case, the image was that of men lining up with the tips of their toes touching some line. They might be on parade, or preparing to undertake some task, or in readiness for a race or fight. "

http://www.worldwidewords.org/qa/qa-toe2.htm

[WilliamPitt]

15. Toe - it's an archaic reference to a fishing method

Throw a baited line into the river, let the current take it, tie the line to your toe, lay down for a nap, wake up when something pulls the line.

See: Mark Twain.

[YellowRubberDuckie]

16. Fun reference...

Thanks...I love Twain.
Duckie

[hyphenate]

19. line

"Toe the Line," NOT "Tow the Line"

by Tina Blue
August 14, 2003

I saw it again today, this time in a comment on an article on a political website. It referred to reporters who mindlessly "tow the administration's line."

Um, that should be "toe the line."

A lot of people who don't know the origin of the phrase picture someone pulling a rope, cord, or some other "line"--"tow the line"--as a way of working for whomever the "line" belongs to. Thus, if the administration has a "line"--i.e., a "party line"--then those who side with the administration help to pull it ("tow" it) along.

Wrong.

The phrase "toe the line" is equivalent to "toe the mark," both of which mean to conform to a rule or a standard. The Oxford Dictionary of Word Histories (Oxford: Oxford Univ. Press, 2002; ed. by Glynnis Chantrell) says, "The idiom toe the line from an athletics analogy originated in the early 19th century" (514).

The specific sport referred to is foot-racing, where the competitors must keep their feet behind a "line" or on a "mark" at the start of the race--as in "On your mark, get set,
go!"

So one who "toes the line" is one who does not allow his foot to stray over the line. In other words, one who does not stray beyond a rigidly defined boundary.


http://www.grammartips.homestead.com/toetheline.html