tommy
English meaning: Tommy
Definition
Bread, generally a penny roll; the supply of food carried by workmen as their daily allowance
Example
“He wrapped a hunk of tommy in cloth before heading to the field.”
Another example: “At noon the labourers sat down to their tommy and a flask of tea.”
Usage — When, Where & How
A dated and chiefly British informal/regional (and military slang) noun for bread or the packed food a workman carries for the day. Largely archaic now; a learner is far more likely to meet the proper name Tommy or the WWI sense 'Tommy' (a British soldier).
Etymology & Origin
English — Origin & History
A 19th-century British slang use, probably from the personal name Tommy (a generic name for a common man or soldier); the bread sense is now archaic.
Synonyms
- bread
- ration
- provisions
Related Words
Common Collocations
- tommy and cheese
- piece of tommy
- soft tommy
- brown tommy
Word Forms
tommy (n); tommies (pl)
Word Tools
Literary Heritage
“To thine own self be true, and it must follow, as the night the day, thou canst not then be false to any man.”
/To thine own self be true/
“Be honest with yourself — and as naturally as night follows day, you will be unable to be false to others.”
“I'm nobody! Who are you? Are you nobody, too?”
/I'm nobody! Who are you?/
“I am nobody — and that quiet anonymity is more honest than the noise of public fame.”
Images
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Language information
- Language
- English
- English
- Script
- Latin
- Family
- Indo-European
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