Borrowed into English from French around 1925–30
A tutu is a short fluffy skirt that ballerinas wear, usually with tights and a leotard. Tutus are also popular with young children who wear them for fun — those tutus are often paired with superhero capes and tiaras. There are two main kinds of tutus: a classical tutu and a romantic tutu. The first has a short, stiff skirt attached to a bodice, and the second has a longer, flowing skirt. Many tutu skirts are made of tulle, a kind of netting that's stiff and lightweight, and this may be the origin of the word tutu, although neither word experts nor ballet experts are certain.
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The process is used in other countries around the world and was chosen as the cremation method of anti-apartheid campaigner Archbishop Desmond Tutu.
From BBC • Mar. 2, 2026
Among other services, the Tutu Foundation uses its money to fund mobile clinics for people unable or unwilling to go to government-funded ones.
From BBC • Feb. 6, 2026
Otumfuo Osei Tutu II received the artefacts at the Manhyia Palace Museum in Kumasi on Sunday, according to a royal statement.
From Barron's • Nov. 10, 2025
But the Rams will be without speedy receiver Tutu Atwell, who will be sidelined for at least four games on injured reserve because of a hamstring injury.
From Los Angeles Times • Nov. 1, 2025
The second was Archbishop Des-mond Tutu, who selflessly fought the evils of racism during the most terrible days of apartheid.
From "Long Walk to Freedom" by Nelson Mandela
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
