tot
noun
a small child.
tot
1 American
[tot]
/ tɒt /
noun
-
a small child.
-
Chiefly British. a small portion of a beverage, especially a dram of liquor.
-
a small quantity of anything.
tot
2
American
[tot]
/ tɒt /
verb (used with or without object)
-
tots,
present (3rd person singular)
-
totted,
past participle, past
-
totting
present participle
noun
-
a total.
-
the act of adding.
-
British Informal. a column of numbers to be added.
tot.
3
American
abbreviation
tot
1
British
/ tɒt /
noun
-
a young child; toddler
-
a small amount of anything
-
a small measure of spirits
tot
2
British
/ tɒt /
verb
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
totsimple
-
totssimple
-
have tottedperfect
-
has tottedperfect
-
am tottingprogressive
-
are tottingprogressive
-
is tottingprogressive
-
have been tottingperfect progressive
-
has been tottingperfect progressive
Past
-
tottedsimple
-
had tottedperfect
-
was tottingprogressive
-
were tottingprogressive
-
had been tottingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of tot1
1680–90; perhaps short for totterer ( def. )
Origin of tot2
1745–55; < Latin: so much, so many
Explanation
A tot is a small child, like the tots at your little sister's nursery school. Tater tots, or little bitty potato puffs, are another kind of tot. The origin of the noun tot is a little unclear, although we know it first appeared in the 18th century. It was also common in the early 20th century to refer to children's playgrounds as tot lots. As a verb, tot is an old-fashioned way to say "add," a shortened form of total. So your waiter might say, "I'll be right back with your check as soon as I tot everything up!"
Vocabulary lists containing tot
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:
The spending that was originally anticipated for the fourth quarter is pushed forward tot the first quarter of 2026.
From Barron's ● Nov. 11, 2025
He’ll apparently risk dozens of full-grown proteges for one unproven tot.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 5, 2025
When you tot up the balance of alleged irreparable harms here, it isn’t even a close call.
From Slate ● Mar. 19, 2024
The unforced errors continued to tot up from Murray and it helped Etcheverry, still playing at a high level, cruise to only his second win at Melbourne Park.
From BBC ● Jan. 15, 2024
Here’s a hint: If you can substitute a noun for the ing word—departure in place of going, for example, or habit tot smoking—then treat it like a noun.
From "Woe Is I" by Patricia T. O'Conner
Lamb Weston, based in Idaho, has a market value of close to $6.5 billion and is a major producer of frozen-potato products including french fries, hash browns and tater tots.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 8, 2026
The tots were crispy and well seasoned, topped with togarashi crème fraîche that carried a faint citrus taste with subtle heat.
From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 15, 2025
Placing ABC’s “Abbott Elementary” and FXX’s “It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia” into the same lunch tray compartments feels higher risk than, say, mixing red gelatin into your tater tots instead of ketchup.
From Salon ● Jan. 8, 2025
The students take turns describing the mindfulness activities they’ve used with children in the past — smelling flowers, morning yoga sessions for tots.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 30, 2024
Like a combo of tater tots, bad pizza, Salisbury steak, waxy red apples, and spoiled milk.
From "Popcorn" by Rob Harrell
This is, after all, a player who scored twice in the Club World Cup final less than six months ago, and across the two seasons prior to this one totted up 37 Premier League goals.
From BBC ● Feb. 7, 2026
But Anisimova was annoyed with herself too, as she totted up 44 unforced errors to Pegula's 21 and made seven double faults.
From Barron's ● Jan. 28, 2026
An on-air graphic totted up the final score: 34 guilty, 0 not guilty.
From New York Times ● May 30, 2024
Zookeepers tempted squirrel monkeys onto scales, totted up tarantulas and used a curry-scented measuring stick to coax Sumatran tigers to stretch out.
From Seattle Times ● Aug. 24, 2023
Now I totted up numbers this way and that.
From "Hattie Big Sky" by Kirby Larson
Plus: Federal cyber help for water plants; totting up security regulations.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 1, 2026
Another visitor from Australia, Tony Cosford, was busy totting up the figures.
From Reuters ● Sep. 26, 2022
We might worry about the quantities of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases totting up in the atmosphere, or feel increasingly nervous about tiny, naked-to-the-eye particles of pollution, especially in car-choked cities.
From Slate ● Dec. 20, 2021
Their own insularity prevents no one in this book from totting up the ethical and empathic deficits of others.
From New York Times ● Oct. 1, 2019
"You were totting up your virtues then?" he pursued.
From Love's Usuries by Louis Creswicke
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