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

Example Sentences

"You know, this argument that keeps coming up, 'oh, it will take us down the road of Liz Truss' - is just complete toffee," said Ms Graham.

From BBC

Or classic brown butter chocolate chip cookies, which adds notes of butterscotch and toffee that enhance the cookies’ overall depth.

From Salon

Long known as the home of sticky toffee pudding, Cartmel in Cumbria is experiencing its own sweet taste of success.

From BBC

Over at Nama Ko, dessert is a miso-honey black truffle soft serve with dark chocolate toffee crunch, drizzled with both chocolate and caramel sauces.

From Salon

A few of its products include coconut toffee roasted cashews, organic seaweed snacks and garlic mustard aioli.

From Salon