toffee

American  

[taw-fee, tof-ee] / ˈtɔ fi, ˈtɒf i /

Sometimes toffy

noun

1. a brittle or chewy brown candy made of sugar or molasses boiled down with butter, often mixed with nuts.

2. British. taffy.

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toffee British  

/ ˈtɒfɪ /

noun

1. a sweet made from sugar or treacle boiled with butter, nuts, etc

2. informal (preceded by can't) to be incompetent at a specified activity

   he can't sing for toffee

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Etymology

Origin of toffee

First recorded in 1860–65; the earlier variants toughy, tuffy were first recorded in 1825–30 ; southern British dialect form of original northern British dialect taffy ( def. ); further origin uncertain

Compare meaning

How does toffee compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:

• toffee vs. caramel

Explanation

Toffee is a hard or brittle candy made from butter and sugar. Some candy bars are made by coating toffee in chocolate. Yum! Toffee is often confused with another candy with nearly the exact same ingredients, taffy. The difference is mainly in the candy-making process: taffy is pulled and stretched until it's soft and chewy. Toffee, on the other hand, won't stick in your teeth like taffy, because it is boiled, shaped, and allowed to harden into a delicious, glossy slab.

Example Sentences

Global packaged foods giant Nestle rejigged its Toffee Crisp range and Blue Riband recipes in the U.K. so much that the products no longer could be called ‘chocolate’ at the end of last year.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 17, 2026

The 23-year-old will be hoping to follow in fellow Toffee Jarrad Branthwaite's footsteps after the defender enjoyed an impressive Premier League campaign last season following a spell abroad.

From BBC • Aug. 13, 2024

Priced at $3.99 for a box of two, Trader Joe's Pumpkin Sticky Toffee Cakes are mini Bundt cakes flavored with pumpkin, dates and brown sugar and coated in a deliciously sticky caramel sauce.

From Salon • Nov. 22, 2022

Fawdon has been producing confectionery since 1958 but, according to unions, the manufacture of Fruit Pastilles will switch to the Czech Republic and Toffee Crisps will be made in Poland.

From BBC • Feb. 8, 2022

"I'm pretty sure this is Toffee Coffee," Nancy said.

From "Scream for Ice Cream: Nancy Drew and the Clue Crew, #2" by Carolyn Keene