Tocqueville, Alexis de 1460
Tocque·ville, A·lex·is de /'tɒkvɪl'tæʊk-, ə'leksɪs də/
(1805-59) a French writer and politician who travelled in the
US and then wrote a book called Democracy in America
which examined the strengths and weaknesses of the Ameri-
can system of government
toc·sin /'tɒksɪn||'tɑːk-/ n especially lit (a bell rung as) a warning
signal
tod /tɒd||tɑːd/ n on one's tod BrE infml alone; by oneself
to·day¹ /tə'deɪ/ adv 1 during or on the present day: Are we
going shopping today? | He was released from prison early
today. | (BrE) I'm starting my new job a week today/today week.
(=a week from today) 2 during or at the present time;
NOWADAYS: We export more cars today than we've ever done
before. | Young people today have no manners. 3 here today
and gone tomorrow present or fashionable for only a very
short time: another of those pop singers who are here today
and gone tomorrow
today² n [U] 1 this present day: Today's my birthday. | Have
you seen today's paper? 2 this present time, period etc: The
computers of today/today's computers are far more powerful
than those of five years ago.
Today also the To'day programme a morning news
programme on BBC Radio, generally considered to be the
most important British radio news programme, which
includes INTERVIEWS with politicians and other people in the
news. The interviews sometimes involve arguments between
the show's PRESENTERS and government ministers.
Todd, Sweeney /'tɒdlta:d/ a character in a 19th-century
British play whose job is to cut men's hair, but who murders
his customers and has them made into meat PIES. He is
known as 'the demon barber of Fleet Street'. → see also
SWEENEY
tod·dle /'tɒdl||'tɑ:dl/ v [I] 1 to walk with short unsteady
steps, as a small child does 2 [+adv/prep] infml to walk; go: I'm
just toddling over to Mary's. Why don't you come?
tod·dler /'tɒdlər||'tɑ:dl-/ n a small child who has just learnt
to walk → see CHILD (USAGE)
tod·dy /'tɒdi||'tɑ:di/ n [C;U] a sweetened mixture of WHISKY
and hot water: A hot toddy is just the thing for your cold.
to-'die-for adj infml humor extremely good or desirable - used
humorously: Betty's strawberry cheesecake is simply to-die-for.
to-do /tə 'du:/ n pl. to-dos infml 1 {C usually sing.} a state of
excited confusion or annoyance; FUSS: What a to-do about
nothing! 2 AmE rare for DO³
toe¹ /təʊ/ n 1 any of the five small movable parts at the end
of each foot → see picture at FOOT 2 the part of a sock, shoe
etc, that covers the toes: sandals with open toes 3 on one's
toes watchful and ready for action; ALERT 4 make your toes
curl to give you an uncomfortable feeling of dislike or
embarrassment: The receptionist had the kind of accent that
made Rob's toes curl. | The thought of spending an evening
alone with Jess makes my toes curl. → compare FINGER; see
also from top to toe (TOP), tread on someone's toes (TREAD)
toe² v toe the line to obey orders or rules; act in accordance
with what is usual or expected
'toe cap n a strong covering over the toe of a shoe or boot
toe-hold /'təʊhəld/ n a very small place on a rock etc just
big enough to take part of the foot and thus give support to
a climber
toe-nail /'təʊnel/ n the nail on the upper end of a toe
toff /tɒf||tɑ:f/ n old-fash infml, especially BrE a rich and/or well-
dressed person of high social class
tof·fee, toffy /'tɒfi||'tɑ:fi/ n [C;U] 1 (a piece of) a hard
sticky sweet brown substance made by boiling sugar and
butter with water 2 for toffee also for nuts — BrE infml
(especially after can't) at all: He can't sing for toffee!
'toffee apple || also candy apple, taffy apple AmE — n
an apple covered with toffee, held on a small stick. Toffee
apples are usually bought by children, especially at the SEA-
SIDE, at FAIRS, or at Halloween.
'toffee-nosed adj BrE infml thinking oneself important because
of one's social position; SNOBBISH
to·fu /'təʊfu:/ n [U] a soft, cheeselike food much used in
Japanese, VEGETARIAN etc cooking, which is made from the
milk of the SOYA BEAN
tog /tɒɡ||tɑːɡ, tɔɡ/ v -gg-
tog sbdy. up/out phr v [T(Tn)] infml to dress (especially oneself)
in specially fine or formal clothes → see also TOGS
to·ga /'təʊɡə/ n a long loose flowing outer garment worn by
the citizens of ancient Rome
to·geth·er¹ /tə'geðər/ adv 1 so as to form a single group,
body, or object; so as to be joined: Tie these two pieces of string
together. | Add these numbers together. | It's broken, but I can
stick it together (again) with glue. | We hope these new proposals
will bring the two sides in the dispute together. (=into a state of
agreement) | Your argument does not hold together well. 2 in or
into one place: People came together from all over the country to
attend his funeral. 3 with each other: We went to the dance
together, but got separated soon after we arrived. | Charles and she
were at school together. (=we went to the same school) | The
strings and the brass weren't quite together (=did not play their
notes exactly with each other) in that passage. | She and her
ex-husband are getting back together. → see also GO TOGETHER,
LIVE TOGETHER, SLEEP TOGETHER 4 to each other: His eyes are
too close together. 5 at the same time: Why do all the bills
always come together? 6 considered as a whole: Taken together,
these measures should create a lot of new jobs. → see also PUT
TOGETHER 7 working or acting in united agreement; com-
bined: We stand together in our determination to defend our
rights. 8 old-fash without interruption: It rained for four days
together. 9 together with as well as; in addition to: He sent her
some roses, together with a nice letter. → see also ALTOGETHER
together² adj infml apprec 1 very much in control of one's life,
feelings etc; very well organized (ORGANIZE): I admire Jane -
she's a really together person. 2 get it together to have
things under control
to·geth·er·ness /tə'geðənɪs||-ðər-/ n [U] a feeling of being
united with other people in a friendly relationship
tog·gle /'tɒɡəl||'tɑ:-/ n a short shaped bar of wood used as a
button → see picture at FASTENER
To·go /'təʊɡə/ a country in West Africa between Benin and
Ghana. Population: 5,556,812 (2004). Capital: Lomé
—Togolese /ˌtəʊɡə'liːz/ n, adj
togs /tɒɡz||tɑːɡz, tɔːɡz/ n [P] infml clothes, especially for a
particular activity
toil¹ /tɔɪl/ n [U] especially fml or lit 1 hard or continuous work →
see also TOILS; see WORK (USAGE) 2 Double, double, toil
and trouble; Fire burn and cauldron bubble. quote a rhyme
used by the three WITCHES in SHAKESPEARE's play Macbeth
toil² v [I+adv/prep] especially fml or lit 1 to work for a long time and
with great effort 2 to move slowly with great effort or pain:
The slaves toiled up the hill pulling the heavy blocks.
toi·let /'tɔɪlət/ n 1 [C] an apparatus, usually a seatlike bowl
fixed to the floor and connected to a pipe (DRAIN), used for
getting rid of the body's waste matter 2 [C] especially BrE a
room containing a toilet → see USAGE 3 [U] old-fash fml the
act of washing and dressing oneself: Madam does not wish to
be interrupted while she is at her toilet.
USAGE In British English toilet is generally acceptable, but
lavatory and WC (becoming old-fashioned except when
talking about the plans of houses) are also used. Loo is a
fairly common informal word. Public conveniences is the
formal expression for specially built buildings containing
toilets used by the public, and these are often called the
gents (for men's toilets) and the ladies (for women's
toilets). In American English bathroom, restroom, and
washroom are commonly used for toilet and john is a
common informal word. Public toilets are usually called
the men's room and the women's room: Excuse me.
Can you tell me where the toilet/ the loo/ the gents/the
ladies/ the bathroom (AmE)/ the restroom (AmE) is?
'toilet bag n a bag for holding TOILETRIES
'toilet paper also 'toilet tissue, lavatory paper n [U]
thin paper, in a continuous length or single pieces, for
cleaning oneself after passing waste matter from the body
toi·let·ries /'tɔɪlətriz/ n [P] articles or substances used in
washing, making oneself tidy etc: toothpaste, shaving foam,
cologne, and other men's toiletries
'toilet roll n especially BrE a rolled-up continuous length of
TOILET PAPER
'toilet-trained adj POTTY-TRAINED