English dictionary — definitions & meanings

turps

noun

Turpentine or turpentine substitute.

turquoise

noun

A blue-green semi-precious gemstone.

turret

noun

A small tower, often decorative, projecting from the corner of a building or castle.

turron

noun

A Spanish form of nougat made from almonds and honey.

turtle

noun

A reptile with a hard protective shell that lives on land, in fresh water, or in the sea.

turtleish

adj

Resembling or reminiscent of turtles.

turtlesque

adj

Resembling or characteristic of turtles.

Tuscan

adj

Belonging to or coming from Tuscany, a region of Italy.

Tuscany

name

A region of central Italy known for Florence, rolling countryside, and its wine.

tush

noun

Informal: the buttocks.

tusk

noun

A long, pointed tooth that projects outside the mouth of animals such as elephants, walruses, and wild boars.

tusked

adj

Furnished with tusks; having tusks.

tusker

noun

An animal, such as a bull elephant or a boar, with large tusks.

tusklike

adj

Resembling or characteristic of a tusk.

tusky

adj

Having tusks, especially prominent tusks.

tussle

noun

A brief, rough physical struggle or fight.

tussock

noun

A tuft or clump of green grass or similar verdure, forming a small hillock.

tut

intj

Used to express mild disapproval or irritation.

Tutankhamun

name

An ancient Egyptian pharaoh, famous both for dying young and for his tomb being discovered largely intact in 1922.

tutelage

noun

Guidance, instruction, or protection provided by a teacher or guardian.

tutelar

adj

Serving as a guardian; protective; tutelary.

tutelary

adj

Relating to guardianship or protection.

tutor

noun

A person who teaches a student individually or in a small group, often privately.

tutorial

noun

A guide or lesson, often step-by-step, that teaches someone how to do something.

tutoring

noun

The act of teaching someone individually or in a small group, often outside regular classes.

tutorship

noun

The duty of a tutor; tutelage

Tutsi

noun

A member of an ethnic group found mainly in Rwanda and Burundi.

tutti

adv

In music, an instruction for all performers to play or sing together.

Tuttle

name

An English surname derived from a medieval nickname, possibly meaning "start-stop" or "stammerer."

tutu

noun

A short, stiff skirt made of layers of netting, worn by ballet dancers.

Tux

noun

Informal shortening of tuxedo, a formal dinner jacket suit.

Tuxedo

noun

A formal, usually black, jacket-and-trouser suit worn by men at evening events.

TW

noun

A short note placed before a post, video or article to warn that it contains material some readers may find distressing, short for 'trigger warning'.

Twa

noun

A member of a group of pygmy peoples found in central Africa, including parts of Rwanda, Burundi, and the Congo region.

twaddle

noun

Empty or silly idle talk or writing; nonsense, rubbish.

twain

num

An old-fashioned or literary word meaning "two".

twang

noun

A sharp, ringing sound made by a tight string being plucked and released, such as a bowstring or guitar string.

twat

noun

Vulgar slang for the vagina.

tweak

verb

To make a small adjustment to something in order to improve it.

tweaked

adj

Slightly adjusted or modified.

tweaker

noun

A person or tool that makes small adjustments to something.

tweaking

noun

The act of making small adjustments to improve something.

twee

adj

Overly quaint, dainty, cute or nice.

tweed

noun

A rough, woven wool fabric traditionally used for jackets and suits.

tweedle

verb

To play a fiddle or similar instrument in a light, offhand way.

tweek

noun

A type of radio static caused by lightning, where high-frequency parts of the signal arrive before the low-frequency parts.

tween

noun

A child roughly between eight and thirteen years old — older than a young kid but not yet a teenager.

tweenlight

noun

The period between dusk and nightfall; twilight.

tweep

noun

A user of the Twitter microblogging service.

tweet

noun

A short, high-pitched chirp, such as one a small bird makes.

tweeting

noun

The activity of posting messages on Twitter/X.

tweety

adj

Full of, or characteristic of, tweets or chirping.

tweezer

noun

A pair of tweezers, tweezers.

tweezers

noun

A small, pincer-like hand tool used to grip or pull out tiny objects, such as splinters or hairs.

twelfth

adj

Coming after eleventh and before thirteenth in a sequence; number 12 in an ordered list.

twelve

num

The number after eleven and before thirteen; 12.

Twelvetrees

name

An English surname, originally a place name denoting a location marked by twelve trees.

twenties

noun

The years of a decade numbered in the 20s, such as the 1920s or 2020s.

twentieth

adj

Coming after nineteenth and before twenty-first in a sequence; number 20 in an ordered list.

twenty

num

The number after nineteen and before twenty-one; 20.

twerk

noun

A sexually suggestive dance move in which the dancer thrusts and shakes their hips and buttocks from a low squatting position.

twerking

noun

A dance move performed by thrusting and shaking the hips and buttocks rapidly, usually in a low squat, often while facing away from the viewer.

twerp

noun

A foolish, annoying, or insignificant person.

twice

adv

Two times.

twiddle

verb

To fidget with or turn something idly with the fingers.

twiddling

noun

The act of fidgeting or idly playing with something.

twig

noun

A small, thin branch growing off a larger branch of a tree or bush.

twiggy

adj

Covered with or full of twigs.

twigloo

noun

A temporary circular shelter or structure built from thin branches.

Twila

name

A feminine given name, likely derived from "twilight," popular in the early 20th century United States.

twilight

noun

The soft, dim light in the sky just before sunrise or, more commonly, just after sunset.

twilightish

adj

Resembling twilight; crepuscular.

twill

noun

A pattern, characterised by diagonal ridges, created by the regular interlacing of threads of the warp and weft during weaving.

twin

noun

One of two children born to the same mother at the same time.

twine

noun

A strong string or cord made from two or more threads twisted together.

twinge

noun

A sudden, brief sharp pain in part of the body.

twink

noun

(slang) A young, slim, attractive gay man, typically without much body hair.

twinkie

noun

A yellow cake with a creamy white filling, known for its artificiality and supposedly long shelf life.

twinkle

verb

To shine with a flickering, sparkling light.

twinkling

noun

A very brief moment, notionally as short as the blink of an eye.

twinned

adj

Produced at, or as if at, a single birth

twinning

noun

A formal link between a town or city in one country and one in another, set up to encourage cultural and business exchange.

twins

noun

Two children born to the same mother at the same birth.

twinsome

adj

Characterised or marked by twinness

twirl

verb

To spin or rotate quickly and gracefully.

twirling

noun

The motion of something that twirls.

twirp

intj

An imitation of the sound of a bird or a horn.

twist

verb

To turn or bend something, often forcefully, so it becomes distorted or wound.

twisted

adj

Bent, wound, or contorted out of its natural shape.

twister

noun

(chiefly US, informal) A tornado.

twisting

adj

Having many bends or turns; winding.

twisty

adj

Full of twists and turns.

twit

noun

A silly or foolish person.

twitch

noun

A small, sudden, often involuntary movement of a muscle.

twitchel

noun

A narrow alleyway between houses; a ginnel.

Twitchell

name

An English surname, derived from a place name for a narrow passage or alley.

twitching

noun

A series of small, involuntary muscle movements.

twitchy

adj

Prone to twitching; jumpy or nervous.

twitten

noun

a narrow path between two walls or hedges, especially on hills. For example, small alleyways leading between two buildings to courtyards, streets, or open areas behind.

twitter

noun

A series of short chirping sounds made by birds.

twittering

noun

A continuous series of chirping sounds.

Twix

noun

A candy bar made of two crunchy biscuit fingers coated in caramel and chocolate.

twixt

prep

A shortened, poetic form of "betwixt," meaning between.

two

num

The number after one; the quantity written as 2.

two-factor authentication

noun

A way of checking that someone is who they claim to be by asking for two different kinds of proof, typically a password plus a second item such as a code from a phone app, a text message or a small physical key.

twofold

adj

Double; duplicate; multiplied by two.

twos

noun

The plural of "two," used for groups or multiples of two.

twosome

noun

Two people or things considered together, as a pair.

Twyla

name

A feminine given name, a variant spelling of Twila, notably borne by choreographer Twyla Tharp.

txt

verb

To text; to send a text message (to).

Ty

name

A masculine given name, often a short form of Tyler or Tyrone.

Tybalt

name

A masculine given name best known as the hot-tempered character in Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet.

Tycho

name

A masculine given name, notably borne by astronomer Tycho Brahe, and the name of a prominent lunar crater named after him.

tycoon

noun

A very wealthy and powerful businessperson, especially the head of a large company or industry.

tye

noun

A trough or tank used for washing crushed ore to separate out valuable minerals.

tying

noun

The action of fastening something with string, rope, or a knot.

tyke

noun

A small child, especially a lively or mischievous one.

Tylenol

noun

A brand name for the painkiller acetaminophen (known as paracetamol outside the US).

Tyler

name

A given name, originally an English surname meaning "one who lays tiles," now common for boys and, more recently, girls.

tympanum

noun

Any of various anatomic structures in various animals with analogy to a drum head:

Tyne

name

A river in northeast England that flows through Newcastle.

typal

adj

of, relating to, or being a type; typical

type

noun

A category or class of things that share particular features.

typecasting

noun

The process by which a person is typecast, or taken to be a particular stereotype.

typed

adj

Written or produced using a keyboard rather than by hand.

typeface

noun

The particular design of some type, font, or a font family.

typesetter

noun

A person who sets type; an employee in a printshop who manually selected pieces of movable type and assembled them for printing.

typewriter

noun

A mechanical or electric machine that prints letters onto paper when its keys are pressed.

typhoid

noun

A serious bacterial infection causing high fever, weakness, and stomach problems, spread through contaminated food or water.

typhoon

noun

A powerful tropical storm that forms over the northwestern Pacific Ocean, equivalent to a hurricane elsewhere.

typhus

noun

A serious bacterial disease spread by lice or fleas, causing high fever, rash, and confusion.

typical

adj

Having the usual features of a particular type or group; representative.

typically

adv

In a way that is usual or expected; normally.

typing

noun

The act of entering text using a keyboard.

typist

noun

A person whose job is to type documents, especially quickly and accurately.

typo

noun

A small mistake made while typing, such as a misspelled word.

typographer

noun

A person skilled in typography, a typesetter.

typography

noun

The art or practice of setting and arranging type; typesetting.

Tyr

name

The Norse god of war, law, and justice, after whom Tuesday is named.

Tyra

name

A feminine given name of Scandinavian origin, related to the god Tyr, notably borne by model Tyra Banks.

tyrannical

adj

Acting like a tyrant; harshly and unfairly controlling.

tyrannicide

noun

Someone who kills a tyrant.

tyrannize

verb

To oppress (someone).

tyrannosaur

noun

Any large bipedal carnivorous dinosaur, of the family Tyrannosauridae, that lived in North America during the Cretaceous period.

tyrannosaurus

noun

A large meat-eating dinosaur, best known through the species Tyrannosaurus rex, that lived in North America near the end of the age of dinosaurs.

tyrannous

adj

Tyrannical, despotic or oppressive.

tyranny

noun

Cruel and unjust rule by a single powerful leader or small group.

tyrant

noun

A ruler who governs cruelly and unfairly, often having seized power illegally.

tyranthood

noun

The state or condition of being a tyrant.

tyrantship

noun

The condition of being a tyrant; tyranny.