toilet
Posted: Tue May 08, 2012 3:58 pm
toilet
Pronunciation: /ˈtɔɪlɪt/
noun
1a large bowl for urinating or defecating into, typically plumbed into a sewage system and with a flushing mechanism; a lavatory: Liz heard the toilet flush
a room, building, or cubicle containing a toilet or toilets: a public toilet [as modifier]: someone pushed at the toilet door
2 [in singular] the process of washing oneself, dressing, and attending to one’s appearance: her toilet completed, she finally went back downstairs
[as modifier] denoting articles used in this process: a bathroom cabinet stocked with toilet articles
the cleansing of part of a person’s body as a medical procedure.
verb (toilets, toileting, toileted)
[with object] (usually as noun toileting)
assist or supervise (someone, especially an infant or invalid) in using a toilet.
[no object] use a toilet: sufferers may need help with dressing, bathing, and toileting
Phrases
go down the toilet
informal be completely lost or wasted; fail utterly: they didn’t want to see their investment go down the toilet
Origin:
mid 16th century: from French toilette 'cloth, wrapper', diminutive of toile (see toile). The word originally denoted a cloth used as a wrapper for clothes; then (in the 17th century) a cloth cover for a dressing table, the articles used in dressing, and the process of dressing, later also of washing oneself (toilet (sense 2 of the noun)). In the 19th century the word came to denote a dressing room, and, in the US, one with washing facilities; hence, a lavatory (early 20th century)
(Src: OED, Compact)
Pronunciation: /ˈtɔɪlɪt/
noun
1a large bowl for urinating or defecating into, typically plumbed into a sewage system and with a flushing mechanism; a lavatory: Liz heard the toilet flush
a room, building, or cubicle containing a toilet or toilets: a public toilet [as modifier]: someone pushed at the toilet door
2 [in singular] the process of washing oneself, dressing, and attending to one’s appearance: her toilet completed, she finally went back downstairs
[as modifier] denoting articles used in this process: a bathroom cabinet stocked with toilet articles
the cleansing of part of a person’s body as a medical procedure.
verb (toilets, toileting, toileted)
[with object] (usually as noun toileting)
assist or supervise (someone, especially an infant or invalid) in using a toilet.
[no object] use a toilet: sufferers may need help with dressing, bathing, and toileting
Phrases
go down the toilet
informal be completely lost or wasted; fail utterly: they didn’t want to see their investment go down the toilet
Origin:
mid 16th century: from French toilette 'cloth, wrapper', diminutive of toile (see toile). The word originally denoted a cloth used as a wrapper for clothes; then (in the 17th century) a cloth cover for a dressing table, the articles used in dressing, and the process of dressing, later also of washing oneself (toilet (sense 2 of the noun)). In the 19th century the word came to denote a dressing room, and, in the US, one with washing facilities; hence, a lavatory (early 20th century)
(Src: OED, Compact)