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tollbooth

[tohl-booth, -booth]
noun, plural toll·booths [tohl-booth z, -booths] /ˈtoʊlˌbuðz, -ˌbuθs/.
  1. a booth, as at a bridge or the entrance to a toll road, where a toll is collected.
  2. Chiefly Scot. tolbooth.
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Origin of tollbooth

First recorded in 1300–50, tollbooth is from the Middle English word tolbothe. See toll1, booth

tolbooth

or toll·booth

[tohl-booth, -booth]
noun, plural tol·booths [tohl-booth z, -booths] /ˈtoʊlˌbuðz, -ˌbuθs/. Chiefly Scot.
  1. a town jail.
  2. a town hall or guild hall, especially a place where tolls are paid.
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Origin of tolbooth

Middle English word dating back to 1300–50; see origin at tollbooth
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for tollbooth

Historical Examples of tollbooth

  • But Willie went wrong—and from bad to worse; but now he is in the tollbooth at Aberdeen, as you have heard.

    Allison Bain

    Margaret Murray Robertson

  • But I will give you the name of the man who used to go to the tollbooth on Sunday afternoons.

    Allison Bain

    Margaret Murray Robertson

British Dictionary definitions for tollbooth

tollbooth

tolbooth

noun
  1. a booth or kiosk at which a toll is collected
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tolbooth

noun
  1. mainly Scot a town hall
  2. a variant spelling of tollbooth
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Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for tollbooth

n.

early 14c., originally a tax collector's booth, from toll (n.) + booth.

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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper