English word origin

Etymology of tot

Borrowed from Scots tot, a shortened form of totum (“small child; tot”), of uncertain origin, perhaps shortened from totter (“to move in an unsteady way”), Compare tottle, also Old Norse tottr (“name of a dwarf”), Swedis

2 source sectionsExtended source reportWiktionary original ↗

In this entry · 2 source sections

The source etymologies

Wiktionary via Kaikki / Wiktextract

The source reports below are imported and unreviewed by *SET-U. Separate numbered origins and differing source variants are preserved; agreement within this extraction is not independent corroboration.

Source etymology 1

Original entry ↗

noun

A small child. · A small amount of liquor, (particularly) a small measure of rum. · Ellipsis of tater tot. · A small cup, usually made of tin.

Selected source glosses provide context, not a complete modern definition inventory

Relationships mentioned by the source

These are extracted mentions, not a timeline or a verified sequence of immediate parents.

Borrowed-form mentiontotsco
Cognate mentiontottrnon · name of a dwarf
Cognate mentiontuttesv · small child
Cognate mentiontommeltotda · little child

This page abbreviates 1 auxiliary source items. The etymology narrative is not shortened. Omission counts are available in the audit fields below; consult the original for complete auxiliary material.

Inspect preserved source fields

Raw extraction fields are retained for auditing. Their order does not establish ancestry.

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    {
      "name": "bor+",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "sco",
        "3": "tot"
      },
      "expansion": "Borrowed from Scots tot"
    },
    {
      "name": "cog",
      "args": {
        "1": "non",
        "2": "tottr",
        "t": "name of a dwarf"
      },
      "expansion": "Old Norse tottr (“name of a dwarf”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "cog",
      "args": {
        "1": "sv",
        "2": "tutte",
        "t": "small child"
      },
      "expansion": "Swedish tutte (“small child”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "cog",
      "args": {
        "1": "da",
        "2": "tommeltot",
        "t": "little child"
      },
      "expansion": "Danish tommeltot (“little child”)"
    }
  ],
  "links": [
    [
      "tot",
      "tot#Scots"
    ],
    [
      "totum",
      "totum#Scots"
    ],
    [
      "totter",
      "totter#English"
    ],
    [
      "tottle",
      "tottle#English"
    ],
    [
      "tottr",
      "tottr#Old_Norse"
    ],
    [
      "tutte",
      "tutte#Swedish"
    ],
    [
      "tommeltot",
      "tommeltot#Danish"
    ]
  ],
  "references": [],
  "descendants": [],
  "lexical": [
    {
      "pos": "noun",
      "glosses": [
        "A small child.",
        "A small amount of liquor, (particularly) a small measure of rum.",
        "Ellipsis of tater tot.",
        "A small cup, usually made of tin."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "abbreviation",
        "alt-of",
        "ellipsis",
        "Barbados"
      ],
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Source etymology 2

Original entry ↗

verb

To sum or total. · To mark (a debt) with the word tot (Latin for "so much"), indicating that it was good or collectible for the amount specified.

noun

A total, an addition of a long column of figures.

Selected source glosses provide context, not a complete modern definition inventory

Clipping of total (“to sum”).

Inspect preserved source fields

Raw extraction fields are retained for auditing. Their order does not establish ancestry.

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        "1": "en",
        "2": "total",
        "3": "",
        "4": "to sum"
      },
      "expansion": "Clipping of total (“to sum”)"
    }
  ],
  "links": [
    [
      "total",
      "total#English"
    ]
  ],
  "references": [],
  "descendants": [],
  "lexical": [
    {
      "pos": "verb",
      "glosses": [
        "To sum or total.",
        "To mark (a debt) with the word tot (Latin for \"so much\"), indicating that it was good or collectible for the amount specified."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "UK",
        "historical"
      ],
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      "glosses": [
        "A total, an addition of a long column of figures."
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}

Where this record stops

This page does not supply an independently verified sound-change sequence, first-use manuscript or complete family tree unless a cited analysis explicitly establishes one. Missing detail here is a limit of this record—not a claim that humanity knows nothing more.

An older meaning does not determine what a word must mean today. Follow the sources, preserve disagreements, and keep ancestry separate from interpretation.

Contribute located evidence for tot →

Source and snapshot

Imported from Wiktionary contributors; extracted by Tatu Ylonen / Wiktextract / Kaikki.org. Selected fields are reformatted and grouped; wording, source identity and etymology sections are retained. CC-BY-SA-4.0 applies to the imported source material.

Dump: 2026-10-01 · Extracted: 2026-10-30. These are snapshot dates, not the word’s first attestation or the page’s revision date.

Source entry and bibliography ↗Wiktionary revision history ↗Acquisition and rights ledger

Machine-source provenance

Source SHA-256: 5ff2c072f8099f2d2ce484bd6957bf179f046d2ad37bc36555edf8bb84cb5291
Import run: 73216b9a9b78ed3830994bf853103716f5a4dc57099e371e9f8fdc468facca26
Permanent entry ID: w-dG90