# toy

> English word · Noun · IPA /tɔɪ/ · frequency rank #4,342

## Definitions
1. Something to play with, especially as intended for use by a child.
2. A thing of little importance or value; a trifle.
3. A simple, light piece of music, written especially for the virginal.
4. Ellipsis of toy dog.
5. Love play, amorous dalliance; fondling.
6. A vague fancy, a ridiculous idea or notion; a whim.
7. An old story; a silly tale.
8. A headdress of linen or wool that hangs down over the shoulders, worn by elderly women of the lower classes.
9. Ellipsis of sex toy.
10. An inferior graffiti artist.
11. A gun.
12. The penis.
13. The vagina.
14. A watch.
15. A small jar (about an inch across) used to hold prepared opium.
16. A small ball of opium (about the size of a pea).

## Etymology
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.

## Easily confused with
- **TV** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/toy-vs-tv)
- **TX** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/toy-vs-tx)
- **Tu** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/toy-vs-tu)
- **Ty** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/toy-vs-ty)
- **TS** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/toy-vs-ts)
- **TT** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/toy-vs-tt)
- **tp** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/toy-vs-tp)
- **two** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/toy-vs-two)
- **try** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/toy-vs-try)
- **tub** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/toy-vs-tub)
- **tri** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/toy-vs-tri)
- **tug** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/toy-vs-tug)
- **TSA** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/toy-vs-tsa)
- **Tue** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/toy-vs-tue)
- **tre** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/toy-vs-tre)
- **tra** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/toy-vs-tra)
- **tum** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/toy-vs-tum)
- **tru** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/toy-vs-tru)
- **tsk** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/toy-vs-tsk)
- **tun** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/toy-vs-tun)

## Source
Compiled from Wiktionary via kaikki.org (CC BY-SA). Data vintage: 2026-05-06.
Canonical page: https://plainspell.com/en/word/toy