toggle
Americannoun
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a pin, bolt, or rod placed transversely through a chain, an eye or loop in a rope, etc., as to bind it temporarily to another chain or rope similarly treated.
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a toggle joint, or a device having one.
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an ornamental, rod-shaped button for inserting into a large buttonhole, loop, or frog, used especially on sports clothes.
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Theater.
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Also called toggle rail. a wooden batten across the width of a flat, for strengthening the frame.
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Also called toggle iron. a metal device for fastening a toggle rail to a frame.
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verb (used with object)
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to furnish with a toggle.
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to bind or fasten with a toggle.
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Informal. to turn, twist, or manipulate a toggle switch; dial or turn the switch of (an appliance).
He toggled the TV between the baseball game and the news.
noun
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a wooden peg or metal rod fixed crosswise through an eye at the end of a rope, chain, or cable, for fastening temporarily by insertion through an eye in another rope, chain, etc
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a wooden or plastic bar-shaped button inserted through a loop for fastening
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a pin inserted into a nautical knot to keep it secure
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machinery a toggle joint or a device having such a joint
verb
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(tr) to supply or fasten with a toggle or toggles
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computing to switch to a different option, view, application, etc
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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togglesimple
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togglessimple
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have toggledperfect
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has toggledperfect
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am togglingprogressive
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are togglingprogressive
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is togglingprogressive
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have been togglingperfect progressive
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has been togglingperfect progressive
Past
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toggledsimple
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had toggledperfect
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was togglingprogressive
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were togglingprogressive
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had been togglingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of toggle
First recorded in 1760–70; perhaps variant of tackle
Explanation
Use the word toggle for a switch that has two positions, on and off. As a verb, it means "switch or alternate," the way you toggle between screens as you video chat with two friends at once. The 18th century definition of toggle was "pin passed through the eye of a rope to hold it in place." It's still used for a similar kind of fastener, as well as for an up-and-down switch such as a light switch. In computer technology, a toggle is an on-off command, like the key that turns your caps lock on or off. You can also use this word figuratively: you might find it difficult to toggle between French homework and Spanish homework without mixing up your verbs.
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
Unlike Anthropic and OpenAI, which Kharazian said are incentivized to make users spend as much as possible on tokens, Cursor allows users to toggle between smarter but more expensive models and cheaper alternatives.
From MarketWatch ● Jun. 19, 2026
He can toggle between modes — attack dog in conservative media, measured moderate in mixed company — but the transitions are visible.
From Salon ● Jun. 17, 2026
D’Arcy describes their work as “pretending” in one breath while in another sharing their strong feelings around dramaturgy and text as they toggle between discussions of stage, film and television acting.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 17, 2026
In one instance, a cyber team found a toggle switch that sailors were using to electronically flip between vessel names—the digital equivalent of painting over the ship’s real name on the hull.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 15, 2026
“Michael DM’d me,” I say, glancing up to see Poe’s reaction to my words as I toggle back onto FaceTime.
From "Five Feet Apart" by Rachael Lippincott
At ProjectionLab and MaxiFi, the toggles for this kind of doomsday calculation are part of their regular inputs for your Social Security primary insurance amount, or PIA.
From MarketWatch ● Jun. 9, 2026
It noted thousands of complaints by customers about "Joy-Con drift", with toggles stuck in one direction on the original version of the Switch, even when users were not touching them.
From Barron's ● Jun. 8, 2026
As the war toggles between negotiations and open conflict, China’s foreign-policy apparatus has to deal with the repercussions of its support for Iran.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 21, 2026
The app also has drop-down menus and toggles, to let a user specify tools they have in their kitchen, or if they're in a hurry or not a very good cook.
From BBC ● Aug. 28, 2024
Jumping up as the car’s flame went higher, he pushed the control box’s toggles down hard.
From "Firegirl" by Tony Abbott
He wants more details on the fuel switches and believes an on-board electrical failure could cause the system to believe the switches were toggled to “CUTOFF.”
From Barron's ● Jun. 8, 2026
Mr. Whipple, in his media victory lap, told CNN’s Anderson Cooper that normally when he’s spoken to former chiefs of staff they’ve toggled between background, off the record and on.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Dec. 18, 2025
These solids can be toggled between two distinct states.
From Science Daily ● Nov. 21, 2025
Access was restored on 3 October – but the parent then found that the same websites could still be viewed using a child’s login once the “safe-search” option was toggled off in settings.
From BBC ● Oct. 17, 2024
I toggled it, and the zincoshine-propelled rocket blasted off with a savage roar.
From "October Sky" by Homer Hickam
Sucking out excess humidity makes the air feel crisper and cooler without toggling the thermostat.
From MarketWatch ● Jun. 29, 2026
To address this limitation, the researchers designed an integrated device capable of toggling between electric and magnetic toroidal vortex patterns in free-space terahertz pulses.
From Science Daily ● Feb. 4, 2026
For example, asking Gemini to “make me feel safer” will check that the doors are locked, windows are closed and—if you’re not home—lights are toggling on and off.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 3, 2025
There’s two totally different cases, and you could feel everybody toggling back and forth, depending on which of those they thought they were going to win in the moment.
From Slate ● Jan. 10, 2025
Twiddling a switch or knobs implies much less sense of purpose than toggling or tweaking it; see frobnicate.
From The Jargon File, Version 4.2.2, 20 Aug 2000 by Steele, Guy L.
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.
