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  • tonga
    tonga
    noun
    a light, two-wheeled, horse-drawn vehicle used in India.
  • Tonga
    Tonga
    noun
    a Polynesian kingdom consisting of three groups of islands in the S Pacific, NE of New Zealand: a former British protectorate. About 270 sq. mi. (700 sq. km). Nukualofa.

tonga

1 American  
[tong-guh] / ˈtɒŋ gə /

noun

  1. a light, two-wheeled, horse-drawn vehicle used in India.


Tonga 2 American  
[tong-guh] / ˈtɒŋ gə /

noun

  1. a Polynesian kingdom consisting of three groups of islands in the S Pacific, NE of New Zealand: a former British protectorate. About 270 sq. mi. (700 sq. km). Nukualofa.


Tonga 1 British  
/ ˈtɒŋə, ˈtɒŋɡə /

noun

  1. a member of a Negroid people of S central Africa, living chiefly in Zambia and Zimbabwe

  2. the language of this people, belonging to the Bantu group of the Niger-Congo family

"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

Tonga 2 British  
/ ˈtɒŋə, ˈtɒŋɡə /

noun

  1. Also called: Friendly Islands.  a kingdom occupying an archipelago of more than 150 volcanic and coral islands in the SW Pacific, east of Fiji: inhabited by Polynesians; became a British protectorate in 1900 and gained independence in 1970; a member of the Commonwealth. Official languages: Tongan and English. Religion: Christian majority. Currency: pa'anga. Capital: Nuku'alofa. Pop: 106 322 (2013 est). Area: 750 sq km (290 sq miles)

"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

tonga 3 British  
/ ˈtɒŋɡə /

noun

  1. a light two-wheeled vehicle used in rural areas of India

"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

Etymology

Origin of tonga

First recorded in 1870–75, tonga is from the Hindi word tāṅgā

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 suppose their might be a risk of some of the potential GB players competing for their home countries - tonga, samoa, south africa, new zealand, holland etc. but i'm sure it'll be good.

From The Guardian Aug. 7, 2012

"Na, na, damchee, na, na, damchee! " wailed the tongawalla to a British officer, who was trying to rent his two-wheeled tonga at an air base in India.

From Time Magazine Archive

It's a shorter cut down to the maharajah's stables in Darpore town than by the tonga road.

From The Three Sapphires by W. A. Fraser

"We shall get to Deoli in six hours," said Ram Baksh the boastful, and, even as he spoke, the spring of the tonga bar snapt "mit a harp-like melodious twang."

From From Sea to Sea Letters of Travel by Rudyard Kipling

Then said the driver: "Had there been no tonga behind us, I should have put the mails on a horse, because the Sirkar's mail cannot stop."

From From Sea to Sea Letters of Travel by Rudyard Kipling

In its nomination, Tonga highlighted A-Baki's roles as a cabinet minister, the first women ambassador from Ecuador to Washington and ambassador to Qatar.

From Barron's Aug. 18, 2026

During the Tonga eruption, massive amounts of salty seawater were blasted into the stratosphere together with volcanic ash.

From Science Daily May 10, 2026

Tonga Nolan grew up in a predominantly Black neighborhood on the north side of Baton Rouge and remembers it fondly as a tight-knit community.

From Salon May 10, 2026

England's first match at the Rugby World Cup, a pool-stage meeting with Tonga in Brisbane, is less than 16 months away.

From BBC May 5, 2026

Dryland agriculture became especially productive on Easter, tiny Anuta, and flat and low Tonga, where Polynesians devoted most of the land area to the growing of food.

From "Guns, Germs, and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies" by Jared M. Diamond

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