1. TRAWL, N.
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I. 1. A strong net or bag dragged along the bottom of fishing-banks;
a drag-net; = TRAWL-NET 1; esp. that now often distinguished as the
beam-trawl, described in its modern form in quot. 1880. Also applied to
a similar smaller drag-net used for the scientific investigation of the
sea-bottom, dredging for deep-sea organisms, etc.

    2.    {dag}a. (?) The action of trawling, or (?) a trawling-ground.
rare. Obs.

    b. fig. An act of `trawling' in order to find a person or persons
(esp. a new employee) from among a larger population.

    II. 3. U.S. Applied to a buoyed line used in sea-fishing, having
numerous short lines with baited hooks attached at intervals: see quot.
1864; a trawl-line. Cf. also trawl-anchor, -buoy, -roller in 4.

  to set, shoot, or throw a trawl, to place a baited trawl-line in
position for fishing; to strip a trawl, to examine a trawl-line in
position and remove the fish caught.

  (The connexion of this with sense 1 is doubtful.)

    III. 4. attrib. and Comb., as trawl-boat, -fish, -fisherman,
-fishing, -hawse, -smack, -twine; trawl-anchor, a small anchor for a
trawl-line (Cent. Dict. 1891); trawl-beam, the beam which holds open the
mouth of a trawl-net; trawl-buoy, a buoy for buoying up a trawl-line;
trawl-head (see quots.); trawl-keg, a keg-buoy used in connexion with a
trawl-line (Cent. Dict.); trawl-line: see sense 3; trawl-man, one
trained to use a trawl or drag-net; one who fishes with a trawl-net (in
either sense); trawl-master, the master of a trawler: see TRAWLER 2;
trawl-roller: see quot.; trawl-warp, the warp or rope of a trawl-net;
trawl-wings n. pl., towing-nets attached one to each side of a small
beam-trawl for the collection of free-swimming animals. See also TRAWL-NET.

2. TRAWL, V.
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1. a. intr. To fish with a net the edge of which is dragged along
the bottom of the sea to catch the fish living there, esp. flat-fish; to
fish with a trawl-net or in a trawler.

    b. To drag or dredge: cf. DRAG v. 7b.

    c. trans. To fish over (a ground) with a trawl-net; in quots. fig.

    2. intr. To drag a seine-net behind and about a shoal of herring,
etc., in order to drive, enclose, and catch them. (Also trans. with the
net as obj.: see quots.)

    3. trans. To catch or take with a trawl or trawl-net. Hence trawled
(tr{revc}{lm}ld) ppl. a.

    ¶4. Often confounded with trowl, TROLL v. (q.v.).

  The following quot. appears to be the earliest instance of this
confusion.