toilet
noun /ˈtɔɪlət/
/ˈtɔɪlət/
enlarge image[countable] a large bowl attached to a pipe that you sit on or stand over when you get rid of waste matter from your body- Have you flushed the toilet?
- (British English) I need to go to the toilet (= use the toilet).
- a toilet seat
- the toilet bowl
- toilet facilities
- Do you need the toilet?
- The girl asked if she could use the toilet.
- The hotels usually have modern showers and toilets.
Extra ExamplesTopics Houses and homesa1- He flushed the letter down the toilet.
- The caravan is equipped with a sink and a flush toilet.
Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadjective- flush
- flushing
- portable
- …
- go to
- use
- visit
- …
- bowl
- seat
- paper
- …
- in the toilet
- on the toilet
- (British English)(North American English bathroom)[countable] a room containing a toilet
- Every flat has its own bathroom and toilet.
- Who's in the toilet?
- There was a communal toilet on the landing for the four flats.
- There is a separate downstairs toilet.
Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadjective- public
- communal
- shared
- …
- (British English) [countable](also toilets [plural])a room or small building containing several toilets, each in a separate smaller room
- public toilets
- toilet facilities
- Could you tell me where the ladies' toilet is, please?
- The toilets are located in the entrance area.
- a disabled toilet (= for disabled people)
- His new duties included cleaning the toilets.
British/American toilet / bathroomtoilet / bathroom- In British English, but not in North American English, the room that has a toilet in it is usually referred to as the toilet. This room in people’s houses can also be called the lavatory, or informally, the loo. An extra downstairs toilet in a house can be called the cloakroom. In public places, especially on signs, the words toilets, Gents (for men’s toilets) or Ladies (for women’s toilets) are used for a room or small building containing several toilets. You might also see WC or Public Conveniences on some signs.
- In North American English the room that contains a toilet is called the bathroom, never the toilet. A room with a toilet in a public place can also be called a restroom, ladies’ room, women’s room or men’s room. Washroom is also used, especially in Canada.
Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadjective- public
- communal
- shared
- …
- [uncountable] (old-fashioned) the process of washing and dressing yourself, arranging your hair, etc.
Word Originmid 16th cent.: from French toilette ‘cloth, wrapper’, diminutive of toile ‘cloth, web’, from Latin tela ‘web’. The word originally denoted a cloth used as a wrapper for clothes; then (in the 17th cent.) a cloth cover for a dressing table, the articles used in dressing, and the process of dressing, later also of washing oneself (sense (4)). In the 19th cent. the word came to denote a dressing room, and, in the US, one with washing facilities; hence, a lavatory (early 20th cent.).