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tote

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tote¹

  • /təʊt/ UK
  • /toʊt/ US

Rhymes with -əʊt

Where it comes from

Possibly from Middle Low German tûte, tǖte (“horn, conical paper bag”), whence also German Tute (“horn, bugle”) and German Tüte (“bag, paper bag”). Compare also Scots tout (“drinking vessel”), Saterland Frisian Tüütje (“paper bag”), West Frisian tút (“spout, toot, kiss”), Dutch tuit (“horn, spout, nozzle”), Danish tud (“spout, nozzle”), Faroese strútur (“spout”), Icelandic stútur (“spout”), Norwegian and Swedish tut (“spout”), Old Norse tútna (“to be blown up”). Possibly ultimately from Proto-Germanic *tut(t)- (“to stick out, protrude”).

Alternatively, from a Bantu language; compare Kongo tota (“to pick up”), Kimbundu tuta (“to carry, load”), Swahili tuta (“to pile, carry”).

noun totes

  1. A tote bag.
  2. A heavy burden.
  3. A kind of plastic box used for transporting goods. They can be used for palleted bags, totes, or bales and can also be used to transport large logs.
  4. The principal handle of a handplane, for gripping the plane. Coordinate term: knob

verb totes · toting · toted

  1. Southern US To carry or bear. "Well, old man!" said Aunt Chloe. "why don't you go, too? Will you wait to be toted down river, where they kill niggers with hard work and starving?

tote²

  • /təʊt/ UK
  • /toʊt/ US

Rhymes with -əʊt

Where it comes from

Clipping of total, with e to distinguish from tot in writing.

verb totes · toting · toted · tot

  1. To add up; to calculate a total.

    Similar: tote up

tote³

  • /təʊt/ UK
  • /toʊt/ US

Rhymes with -əʊt

Where it comes from

Clipping of totalizator.

noun totes

  1. Australia, UK A pari-mutuel machine; a totalizator. He was a humorist of note and keen at repartee, He laid the odds and kept a "tote", whatever that may be,
  2. Australia, UK Pari-mutuel betting.

Thesaurus

Closest in meaning: tote bag, carryall, holdall, lug, tug, bag, purse, handbag, sack, backpack, gate, haul, schlep, carry, take, sac

Translations

Every language

noun tote bag — see also tote bag

中文托特包
Portuguêssacola
Françaistote bag
DeutschTragetasche, Einkaufstasche
Русскийсу́мка súmka

noun heavy burden

Portuguêscarga pesada
DeutschLast
Русскийно́ша nóša, груз gruz

noun plastic box

Españolcaja plástica

verb carry or bear

Portuguêscarregar
Deutschtragen

verb add up

Españolsumar
Deutschzusammenzählen, summieren

noun totalizator

DeutschTotalisator

Talk about this word

Cite this
MLA

"tote." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/tote. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026.

APA

tote. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/tote

Chicago

"tote." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/tote.

BibTeX
@misc{tote_2026,
  title = {tote},
  howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
  year = {2026},
  url = {https://micwyn.com/word/tote},
  urldate = {2026-11-06}
}