# Tow the Line? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [February 2, 2003, 3:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tow-the-line/152228 "2003-02-02T03:21:27Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 7\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Paper\_Geek](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/9de053/32.png) [@Paper\_Geek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Paper_Geek)\ **Post date:** [February 2, 2003, 3:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tow-the-line/152228/1 "2003-02-02T03:21:27Z")
I always thought it was ‘toe the line’, as in ‘to gently nudge the party line with one condescending foot’. Is it ‘tow the line’, as in ‘trudge along carrying all this useless extra baggage in the form of the party line’? Small question, but I’m curious. ---
**Author:** ![brianmelendez](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/65b543/32.png) [@brianmelendez](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/brianmelendez)\ **Post date:** [February 2, 2003, 3:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tow-the-line/152228/2 "2003-02-02T03:25:51Z")
From Merriam-Webster OnLine, [http://www.m-w.com/cgi-bin/dictionary:](http://www.m-w.com/cgi-bin/dictionary:) > [@](#): > > - toe the line or toe the mark : to conform rigorously to a rule or standard There is no entry for “tow the line.” ---
**Author:** ![brianmelendez](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/65b543/32.png) [@brianmelendez](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/brianmelendez)\ **Post date:** [February 2, 2003, 3:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tow-the-line/152228/3 "2003-02-02T03:37:15Z")
From the Naval Historical Center, “Nautical Terms and Phrases… Their Meaning and Origin,” [http://www.history.navy.mil/trivia/trivia03.htm:](http://www.history.navy.mil/trivia/trivia03.htm:) > [@](#): > > **Toe the line** > The space between each pair of deck planks in a wooden ship was filled with a packing material called “oakum” and then sealed with a mixture of pitch and tar. The result, from afar, was a series of parallel lines a half-foot or so apart, running the length of the deck. > Once a week, as a rule, usually on Sunday, a warship’s crew was ordered to fall in at quarters – that is, each group of men into which the crew was divided would line up in formation in a given area of the deck. To insure a neat alignment of each row, the Sailors were directed to stand with their toes just touching a particular seam. > Another use for these seams was punitive. The youngsters in a ship, be they ship’s boys or student officers, might be required to stand with their toes just touching a designated seam for a length of time as punishment for some minor infraction of discipline, such as talking or fidgeting at the wrong time. A tough captain might require the miscreant to stand there, not talking to anyone, in fair weather or foul, for hours at a time. Hopefully, he would learn it was easier and more pleasant to conduct himself in the required manner rather than suffer the punishment. > From these two uses of deck seams comes our cautionary word to obstreperous youngsters to “toe the line.” ---
**Author:** ![Zagadka](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zagadka/32/7272_2.png) [@Zagadka](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zagadka)\ **Post date:** [February 2, 2003, 3:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tow-the-line/152228/4 "2003-02-02T03:49:05Z")
Backup cite, from a site everyone should read twice over. 🙂 It has a different definition than the military one. [http://www.wordorigins.org/wordort.htm](http://www.wordorigins.org/wordort.htm) > [@](#): > > Toe The Line > Yes, it’s toe, not tow, a common mistake. Toe the line or mark dates to 1813 and is a metaphorical reference to the start of a race, the runners conforming to the starter’s orders. ---
**Author:** ![Paper\_Geek](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/9de053/32.png) [@Paper\_Geek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Paper_Geek)\ **Post date:** [February 2, 2003, 3:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tow-the-line/152228/5 "2003-02-02T03:54:31Z")
Oh good. I like it when I’m right. It’s refreshing. Although I guess it doesn’t have the same flavor I thought it did: I always thought it was roughly equivalent to ‘lip service’ except in action. ---
**Author:** ![samclem](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a9a28c/32.png) [@samclem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/samclem)\ **Post date:** [February 2, 2003, 4:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tow-the-line/152228/6 "2003-02-02T04:19:50Z")
**brian** your link didn’t seem to work, so I did it again and [http://www.history.navy.mil/trivia/trivia03.htm](http://www.history.navy.mil/trivia/trivia03.htm) should work. A good rule of thumb 😃 is to trust an etymology site before a government one. ---
**Author:** ![brianmelendez](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/65b543/32.png) [@brianmelendez](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/brianmelendez)\ **Post date:** [February 2, 2003, 4:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tow-the-line/152228/7 "2003-02-02T04:22:17Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Zagadka \* > \*\*Backup cite, from a site everyone should read twice over. 🙂 It has a different definition than the military one. > > [http://www.wordorigins.org/wordort.htm](http://www.wordorigins.org/wordort.htm) \*\* Great site! Thanks.