toilet
Americannoun
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toilets
plural
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a bathroom fixture consisting of a bowl, usually with a detachable, hinged seat and lid, and a device for flushing with water, used for defecation and urination.
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a lavatory.
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a bathroom.
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a dressing room, especially one containing a bath.
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the act or process of dressing or grooming oneself, including bathing and arranging the hair.
to make one's toilet; busy at her toilet.
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the dress or costume of a person; any particular costume.
toilet of white silk.
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Surgery. the cleansing of a part after childbirth or a wound after an operation.
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Archaic. dressing table.
idioms
noun
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another word for lavatory
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old-fashioned the act of dressing and preparing oneself
to make one's toilet
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old-fashioned a dressing table or the articles used when making one's toilet
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rare costume
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the cleansing of a wound, etc, after an operation or childbirth
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of toilet
1530–40; < French toilette small cloth, doily, dressing table, equivalent to toile toil 2 + -ette -et
Explanation
When you've really got to go, you need the toilet. It's what you use to relieve yourself after you've drunk way too much lemonade. A toilet is the most basic feature of a modern bathroom. You can also use this word for the room that houses it, as in "Excuse me, where is the toilet?" — although in the U.S. most people say "bathroom" or "restroom" instead. Another meaning of toilet is "the routine of washing and dressing," and this old-fashioned definition is the original one, from a word meaning "cover or bag for clothes."
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:
I hadn’t previously considered that telling a computer I needed toilet paper might result in an emergency toilet-paper rate.
From Salon ● Nov. 2, 2026
The Dodgers are out; the Rams are underwater; the Trojans have a potent offense but so-so defense; and, the Chargers are in the toilet.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 24, 2026
With one eye on her baby in a pushchair, Minae Kamata operates an arcade machine in a Tokyo suburb, manipulating a claw to grab not a stuffed toy but a pack of toilet paper.
From Barron's ● Oct. 22, 2026
The allegation this week that an OpenAI engineer from Saudi Arabia wrapped a tiny mic in toilet paper and hid it in a company conference room has suddenly raised the specter of Silicon Valley spies.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 18, 2026
She dabbed toilet water behind her ears and plucked at her cheeks.
From "Secrets at Sea" by Richard Peck
They mapped out public toilets in some of the poorest regions of the city, created bus routes databases and fought slum clearance policies.
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 2, 2026
The campaign features some of the country’s most architecturally impressive toilets, many situated along scenic routes overlooking fjords, mountains and waterfalls.
From Salon ● Oct. 31, 2026
Crop pickers were paid less than the federal minimum wage, had no access to toilets, no way to wash their hands, no mandated breaks.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 28, 2026
White House Press Secretary Katie Zacharia, who was appointed less than a week ago, said China lacked "proper toilets" in an interview that aired on Thursday.
From Barron's ● Oct. 16, 2026
You didn’t have much choice about getting to know each other, because the trains didn’t have any toilets.
From "A Thousand Sisters" by Elizabeth Wein
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Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
