toilet
Definition from Wiktionary, the free dictionary
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[edit] English
[edit] Alternative forms
[edit] Etymology
From French toilette (“small cloth,”) diminutive of toile (“cloth”); a cloth used to protect garments when making up the hair or shaving.
[edit] Pronunciation
[edit] Noun
toilet (plural toilets)
- (archaic) Personal grooming; washing, dressing etc. [from 17th c.]
- 1931, William Faulkner, Sanctuary, Vintage 1993, p. 111:
- Three women got down and standing on the curb they made unabashed toilets, smoothing skirts and stockings, brushing one another's back, opening parcels and donning various finery.
- 1931, William Faulkner, Sanctuary, Vintage 1993, p. 111:
- (now rare) One's style of dressing; dress, outfit. [from 18th c.]
- 1872, George Eliot, Middlemarch, 1:
- "It is so painful in you, Celia, that you will look at human beings as if they were merely animals with a toilet, and never see the great soul in a man's face."
- 1917, Arthur Conan Doyle, "The Adventure of Wisteria Lodge":
- "It is a quarter-past two," he said. "Your telegram was dispatched about one. But no one can glance at your toilet and attire without seeing that your disturbance dates from the moment of your waking."
- 1872, George Eliot, Middlemarch, 1:
- (archaic) A dressing room. [from 19th c.]
- Now specifically, a room or enclosed cubicle containing a lavatory, e.g., a bathroom or water closet (w.c.).
- 1906, Upton Sinclair, The Jungle, Chapter 26:
- there were also tons of garbage festering in the sun, and the greasy laundry of the workers hung out to dry, and dining rooms littered with food and black with flies, and toilet rooms that were open sewers.
- 1906, Upton Sinclair, The Jungle, Chapter 26:
- A lavatory or device for depositing human waste and then flushing it away with water. [from 20th c.]
- EPA is currently developing the specification for high-efficiency toilets. All HETs that meet WaterSense criteria for efficiency and performance will be eligible to receive a label once EPA finalizes the specification. — US Environmental Protection Agency.
- Other similar devices, such as squat toilets, as in Japan or the Middle East.
- (figuratively) A shabby or dirty place, especially a lounge/bar/pub/tavern. [from 20th c.]
- 1982, The Mosquito Coast:
- Look around you. It's a toilet.
- 1982, The Mosquito Coast:
[edit] Usage notes
Before the 20th century, toilet universally referred to personal grooming, bathing and washing combing or arranging one's hair, shaving, etc., a sense preserved today in toiletry 'personal grooming item'. Nowadays, it is mostly used to indicate a lavatory. "Toilet of the mouth", however, is still in use by oral surgeons.
[edit] Derived terms
[edit] Descendants
[edit] Translations
personal grooming
dressing room
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bathroom with toilet
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lavatory, w.c. (the room)
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ceramic bowl
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dirty place
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[edit] Synonyms
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[edit] Verb
toilet (third-person singular simple present toilets, present participle toileting, simple past and past participle toileted)
[edit] Anagrams
[edit] Danish
[edit] Etymology
From French toilette (“small cloth”) diminutive of toile (“cloth”).
[edit] Pronunciation
[edit] Noun
toilet n. (singular definite toilettet, plural indefinite toiletter)
- toilet (room containing lavatory and lavatory)
- men's room / ladies' room
[edit] Inflection
Inflection of toilet
| neuter gender | Singular | Plural | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| indefinite | definite | indefinite | definite | |
| nominative, dative and accusative | toilet | toilettet | toiletter | toiletterne |
| genitive | toilets | toilettets | toiletters | toiletternes |
[edit] Synonyms
[edit] External links
Toilet on the Danish Wikipedia.da.Wikipedia
