toy.
Something to play with, especially as intended for use by a child.
Meaning & usage
Something to play with, especially as intended for use by a child.
A grown man like him does not play with a child’s toy.
A thing of little importance or value; a trifle.
A simple, light piece of music, written especially for the virginal.
Ellipsis of toy dog.
Love play, amorous dalliance; fondling.
A vague fancy, a ridiculous idea or notion; a whim.
An old story; a silly tale.
A headdress of linen or wool that hangs down over the shoulders, worn by elderly women of the lower classes.
Ellipsis of sex toy.
An inferior graffiti artist.
A gun.
The penis.
The vagina.
A watch.
a toy and tackle (a watch and chain)
A small jar (about an inch across) used to hold prepared opium.
A small ball of opium (about the size of a pea).
Where this word comes from
Inherited from Middle English toye (“amorous play, piece of fun or entertainment”), probably from Middle Dutch toy, tuyg (“tools, apparatus, utensil, ornament”) as in Dutch speel-tuig (“plaything, toy”), from Old Dutch *tiug, from Proto-West Germanic *tiugī̆, *teug, from Proto-Germanic *teugą (“stuff, matter, device, gear, lever”, literally “that which is drawn or pulled”), from Proto-Germanic *teuhaną (“to lead, bring, pull”), from Proto-Indo-European *dewk- (“to pull, lead”). Cognate with Dutch tuig (“thing”), German Zeug (“stuff”), Danish tøj (“stuff”), Icelandic tygi, Norwegian tøy (“equipment, riggings, stuff”), Swedish tyg (“cloth, textile, fabric”). Related to tug, tow, taw, tew.
To play (with) in an idle or desultory way.
to toy with a piece of food on one’s plate
Figo is toying with the English defence.
To ponder or consider.
I have been toying with the idea of starting my own business.
To stimulate with a sex toy.
Where this word comes from
Inherited from Middle English toye (“amorous play, piece of fun or entertainment”), probably from Middle Dutch toy, tuyg (“tools, apparatus, utensil, ornament”) as in Dutch speel-tuig (“plaything, toy”), from Old Dutch *tiug, from Proto-West Germanic *tiugī̆, *teug, from Proto-Germanic *teugą (“stuff, matter, device, gear, lever”, literally “that which is drawn or pulled”), from Proto-Germanic *teuhaną (“to lead, bring, pull”), from Proto-Indo-European *dewk- (“to pull, lead”). Cognate with Dutch tuig (“thing”), German Zeug (“stuff”), Danish tøj (“stuff”), Icelandic tygi, Norwegian tøy (“equipment, riggings, stuff”), Swedish tyg (“cloth, textile, fabric”). Related to tug, tow, taw, tew.
Impractical or unsuitable for real-world use, due to being unrealistically small or simple.
Where this word comes from
Inherited from Middle English toye (“amorous play, piece of fun or entertainment”), probably from Middle Dutch toy, tuyg (“tools, apparatus, utensil, ornament”) as in Dutch speel-tuig (“plaything, toy”), from Old Dutch *tiug, from Proto-West Germanic *tiugī̆, *teug, from Proto-Germanic *teugą (“stuff, matter, device, gear, lever”, literally “that which is drawn or pulled”), from Proto-Germanic *teuhaną (“to lead, bring, pull”), from Proto-Indo-European *dewk- (“to pull, lead”). Cognate with Dutch tuig (“thing”), German Zeug (“stuff”), Danish tøj (“stuff”), Icelandic tygi, Norwegian tøy (“equipment, riggings, stuff”), Swedish tyg (“cloth, textile, fabric”). Related to tug, tow, taw, tew.
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Definitions, grammatical labels, IPA, etymology and examples: Wiktionary contributors, extracted by Kaikki / Wiktextract. Adapted under CC BY-SA 4.0. Selected fields and authored examples are shown; third-party quotations and audio are omitted. See contributor history.
Last enriched 2026-09-10. Definitions are in English. Romanizations are shown when supplied by the source; syllable estimates are omitted for unsupported scripts.