"T" Slang

tightwad

Internet

Someone extremely reluctant to part with money.

tigueraje

General

The set of cunning, crafty, opportunistic behaviors associated with being a tíguere — savvy hustling and knowing how to work any angle.

tíguere

General

A cornerstone of Dominican identity: a bold, resourceful, street-smart person who can navigate any situation. It carries a mix of admiration and wariness.

tíguere (pr)

General

In Puerto Rico too, a 'tíguere' is a streetwise, sharp operator who knows how to get by.

tiki tour

General

A journey taken by an indirect or scenic route, or a leisurely drive with no fixed destination.

tiki-taka

General

A style dominated by keeping the ball through rapid short passes and constant movement, famously used by Barcelona and Spain.

til

Internet

Used loosely as 'huh, didn't know that,' even for everyday realizations.

till the cows come home

General

For an indefinitely long stretch; cows amble back to the barn slowly and late.

tilt

Gaming

In 'tilt someone,' to deliberately wind an opponent up so they lose focus.

tilted

Gaming

As 'tilt' the noun, the mental state of frustration that wrecks your performance.

timbs

General

Timberland brand work boots, a staple of NYC winter and hip-hop fashion.

time under tension

General

The total duration a muscle spends under load during a set, often manipulated by slowing reps to drive growth. Abbreviated TUT.

timebox

General

To allocate a fixed maximum amount of time to an activity and stop when it's up.

tin basher

General

Trades nickname for a sheet metal worker — the crew cutting, bending and riveting ducting, flashings and metal panels. The American equivalent is 'tin knocker'. Name comes from the literal sound of hammering thin gauge steel into shape.

tin lizzie

General

Used fondly or mockingly for a reliable but unglamorous machine.

tincture

Street

A liquid cannabis extract, usually alcohol or oil based, dosed under the tongue for controlled effects.

tinderella

Internet

A particularly good-looking or memorable person you matched with on Tinder, sometimes lamented as one you accidentally swiped away and can't find again.

tindstagramming

Internet

After matching with or seeing someone on Tinder, seeking them out on Instagram to slide into their DMs, often bypassing the app or an unmatch. Can feel intrusive.

ting

Street

The Creole pronunciation of 'thing', where the 'th' becomes a hard 't'.

tinknocker

General

A sheet-metal mechanic — the trade that fabricates and installs HVAC ductwork, flashing, gutters, and anything else hammered out of sheet steel or aluminium. The name comes from the constant racket of mallets on tin. Worn as a badge by union sheet-metal workers; rude in the wrong mouth.

tinnie

General

A can of beer; separately, also a small aluminium dinghy.

tinnie run

General

A quick trip to the bottle shop to buy more cans of beer.

tinny

General

A can of beer; separately, a small aluminium dinghy.

tip out

General

End-of-night tax on a dancer's earnings, distributed to the DJ, bouncers, house mom and sometimes the bar. Often mandatory and often a percentage, which means a big night gets eaten harder than a slow one. Stack this on top of the house fee and you see why dancer pay maths is brutal.

tip top

General

A long thin plastic tube of flavoured sugar-water you stick in the freezer, then snip the top off and suck. Cheap, neon-coloured, and core to any Welsh childhood summer. Known elsewhere as a 'freeze pop' or 'ice pole' — in Wales it's a tip top and that's that.

tip tops

General

A cheap ice lolly that's basically frozen squash sealed in a long plastic tube. You bite or scissor the top off and suck the colour out until your tongue's neon. Birmingham summer holidays in one item.

tip-in

General

A close-range score where a player tips the ball over the rim with one hand off a missed shot.

tipo cuadrao

General

A square, rigid, or inflexible type of person.

tippin'

Street

Cruising — specifically the Houston way: low and slow in a slab so the candy paint, the swangas and the trunk-knock all get their moment. Mike Jones told MTV it just means driving, but the whole point is being seen doing it.

tipsy

General

Used to describe the fun, loose mood of being a little buzzed.

tiraera

General

A diss or lyrical war between artists — the reggaeton/rap tradition of trading insults in verse. Also spelled tiradera.

tirar

General

A multi-use verb: to hit on someone romantically, to diss/attack them (especially in a rap feud), or literally to shoot. Context decides.

tirar paro

General

To have someone's back or back them up in a situation.

tirar pinta

General

To show off your look, clothes, or possessions; to flex your style.

tirili

General

Chicano Caló for a pachuco or a marijuana smoker.

tit-for-tat

Street

Cockney rhyming slang meaning hat, almost always contracted to 'titfer'.

titfer

General

A hat. Pure Cockney — 'tit for tat' rhymes with hat, then gets mashed down to 'titfer' until nobody remembers the rhyme. Doff it, tip it, stick it on sideways, it's still a titfer.

title track

Internet

The lead track a group actively promotes from a release, performing it on music shows. It receives the music video and the bulk of promotion.

tizzicky

General

Describes a thin, irritating, tickly cough — the kind that nags at your throat all day and drives everyone in the room mad. Not a chesty cough; a wheezy little hacker.

tl;dr

Internet

A helpful, self-aware summary the writer adds at the top or bottom so busy readers get the gist without the whole essay.

tmi

Internet

Stands for "too much information," a reaction to an overly personal or unnecessary detail.

tng

General

Stands for The Next Generation. A label for BDSM and leather social groups aimed at younger participants, typically ages 18 to 35, giving newer and younger kinksters a lower-pressure entry point into a scene that can otherwise skew older. Think munches and events run by and for the youth bracket of the community.

to the max

Pop

On its own, expressing all-out commitment or intensity.

to the moon

Internet

Sarcastically, to mock a coin that is obviously not going up, or hype that's clearly delusional.

toad strangler

General

A hard, fast rainstorm; a Southern classic close kin to "frog strangler."

toast

General

To talk, chant or rap spontaneously over a riddim — the vocal style that seeded rap and dancehall deejaying.

toasted

Street

A playful term for being seriously high.

toasted ravioli

General

Ravioli that is breaded, deep-fried, and served with marinara for dipping. A St. Louis original, shortened to 't-ravs.'