toddies

Meanings

1. 1nounplural

   Plural of toddy: warm alcoholic drinks made by mixing spirits with hot water, sugar, and often lemon or spices.

   Grammar: Countable noun; the singular is 'toddy', and you use the plural when talking about more than one drink or more than one kind.

   Patterns

   • a hot toddy
   • make toddies for someone
   • serve toddies

   On cold nights, my grandfather made hot toddies for the whole family.

   The bar offered several winter toddies, each with a different spice.

   We drank toddies by the fire while the snow fell outside.

2. 2nounpluralregional

   Plural of toddy: a sweet drink made from the sap of certain palm trees, common in parts of South Asia and Africa.

   Grammar: Countable or uncountable in the singular; the plural 'toddies' refers to servings or types of the palm drink.

   Patterns

   • palm toddy
   • fresh toddy
   • a glass of toddy

   In some villages, fresh toddies are collected from palm trees early in the morning.

   The market sold toddies alongside tea and coffee.

   He learned how palm toddies are fermented from his uncle.

Word forms

Common combinations

hot toddy

She ordered a hot toddy to soothe her sore throat.

make toddies

They made toddies with honey and lemon for the guests.

winter toddies

The menu listed winter toddies with cinnamon and cloves.

palm toddy

Palm toddy is a traditional drink in several tropical regions.

Synonyms and how they differ

grog

Grog is a general term for a hot or cold drink of spirits mixed with water; toddies are specifically warm and often sweetened with honey or sugar.

nightcap

A nightcap is any drink taken before bed, often alcoholic, but it does not have to be warm or mixed like a toddy.

Word family

toddy noun

The singular form: a warm alcoholic drink or a palm sap drink.

Commonly confused: toddies or toddle?

Practice

Make it your own

Write a sentence using “toddies”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.

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