toss up
Britishverb
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to spin (a coin) in the air in order to decide between alternatives by guessing which side will fall uppermost
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(tr) to prepare (food) quickly
noun
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an instance of tossing up a coin
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informal an even chance or risk; gamble
Explanation
A toss-up is a situation that doesn't have one outcome or choice that's clearly better or more likely than another. If it seems like either basketball team could realistically win, you could call that game a toss-up. Your favorite ice cream flavor might be a toss-up between vanilla and strawberry. And if you two candidates for governor are running neck-and-neck, that's another kind of toss-up. The origin of this informal noun is unclear, but it may stem from the practice of tossing a coin to make a decision: "Let's do a toss-up to see who has to walk the dog. Heads I walk him, tails, you do."
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.
In a clip on his personal TikTok, Burnham, thanks to clever editing, appears to toss up a mortarboard hat and catch a builder's helmet, as he promotes technical education.
From Barron's ● Aug. 16, 2026
Their bullpen is a toss up game to game.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 5, 2023
It’s a toss up on which look for the U.S. is more roundly despised by critics.
From Seattle Times ● Oct. 28, 2022
This is another race that experts are calling a "toss up" because it's too close to call right now.
From BBC ● Oct. 23, 2022
Everybody began to laugh Daddy said, “Well, I guess I’ll have to toss up for this one.”
From "Miracles on Maple Hill" by Virginia Sorensen
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.
