toll

1 of 5

noun (1)

1
: a tax or fee paid for some liberty or privilege (as of passing over a highway or bridge)
2
: compensation for services rendered: such as
a
: a charge for transportation
b
: a charge for a long-distance telephone call
3
: a grievous or ruinous price
inflation has taken its toll
especially : cost in life or health
the death toll from the hurricane

toll

2 of 5

verb (1)

tolled; tolling; tolls

intransitive verb

: to take or levy toll

transitive verb

1
a
: to exact part of as a toll
b
: to take as toll
2
: to exact a toll from (someone)

toll

3 of 5

verb (2)

tolled; tolling; tolls

intransitive verb

: to sound with slow measured strokes
the bell tolls solemnly

transitive verb

1
: to sound (a bell) by pulling the rope
2
a
: to give signal or announcement of
the clock tolled each hour
b
: to announce by tolling
church bells tolled the death of the bishop
c
: to call to or from a place or occasion
bells tolled the congregation to church

toll

4 of 5

noun (2)

: the sound of a tolling bell

toll

5 of 5

verb (3)

variants or tole
tolled or toled; tolling or toling

transitive verb

1
2
a
: to entice (game) to approach
b
: to attract (fish) with scattered bait
c
: to lead or attract (domestic animals) to a desired point

Examples of toll in a Sentence

Verb (2) let the church bells joyously toll on this most happy occasion
Recent Examples on the Web
Noun
Krasinski shares his daughters Hazel and Violet with wife Emily Blunt John Krasinski is reflecting on the emotional toll the COVID-19 pandemic took on his family. Hannah Sacks, Peoplemag, 19 May 2024 Despite the mounting toll — and the prospect of an eventual surge in superbug fatalities — the development of new antibiotics has stagnated. Tribune News Service, The Mercury News, 18 May 2024 See all Example Sentences for toll 

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'toll.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Noun (1)

Middle English, from Old English, from Vulgar Latin *tolonium, alteration of Late Latin telonium customhouse, from Greek tolōnion, from telōnēs collector of tolls, from telos tax, toll; perhaps akin to Greek tlēnai to bear

Verb (2)

Middle English, to pull, drag, toll (a bell), perhaps alteration of toilen to struggle — more at toil

Verb (3)

Middle English tollen, tolen; akin to Old English fortyllan to seduce

First Known Use

Noun (1)

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Verb (1)

14th century, in the meaning defined at intransitive sense

Verb (2)

15th century, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1

Noun (2)

15th century, in the meaning defined above

Verb (3)

13th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of toll was before the 12th century

Dictionary Entries Near toll

Cite this Entry

“Toll.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/toll. Accessed 29 May. 2024.

Kids Definition

toll

1 of 3 noun
1
: a tax paid for a privilege (as the use of a highway or bridge)
2
: a charge paid for a service
3
: the cost in life or health
the death toll from the hurricane

toll

2 of 3 verb
1
: to announce or call by the sounding of a bell
2
: to sound with slow strokes
the bell tolls solemnly

toll

3 of 3 noun
: the sound of a tolling bell
Etymology

Noun

Middle English toll "a tax or fee paid to be allowed to do something," from early French toll (same meaning), derived from Latin telonium "a house where duties on imports are paid and ships' cargoes are checked," derived from Greek telos "tax, toll"

Verb

Middle English tollen "to pull, drag, or toll (a bell)," perhaps from Middle English toilen "to struggle"

Legal Definition

toll

1 of 3 noun
: a charge for the use of a transportation route or facility
broadly : a charge for use
a water toll

toll

2 of 3 verb

transitive verb

1
: to take away (as a right)
2
a
: to remove the effect of
the court did not toll the statute of repose after the statutory period had expired
b
: suspend sense 2a
toll the running of the statute of limitations
compare run

intransitive verb

: to be suspended
statute of limitations tolls for a period of seventy-five days following the noticeParker v. Yen, 823 S.W.2d 359 (1991)

toll

3 of 3 noun
: a suspension of effect
the court extended the statute of limitations toll
Etymology

Noun

Old English, tax or fee paid for a liberty or privilege, ultimately from Late Latin telonium custom house, from Greek tolōnion, from telōnēs collector of tolls, from telos tax, toll

Verb

Anglo-French tollir, toller to take away, make null, bar, ultimately from Latin tollere to lift up, take away

More from Merriam-Webster on toll

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