tad

noun

ˈtad 

1

: a small or insignificant amount or degree : bit

… might give him some water and a tad to eat …

—C. T. Walker

2

: a small child

especially : boy

Phrases

a tad

: somewhat, rather

He looked a tad bigger than me.

—Larry Hodgson

Synonyms of tad

• bit
• little
• sprinkling
• glimmer
• splash
• hint
• shred
• speck
• touch

Examples of tad in a Sentence

there's more than just a tad of hyperbole in the critics' praise for the promising young pianist

grandfather never tires of telling us about the days when he was just a tad

Recent Examples on the Web

Late in the film, Bowser also takes on a spooky skeletal form called Dry Bowser, which may be a tad too scary for the youngest moviegoers. —Patrick Ryan, USA Today, 1 Apr. 2026

This crust is similar, consisting of crumbled cookies, butter and a tad of sugar — only it’s not baked. —Carolynn Carreño, Los Angeles Times, 29 Mar. 2026

An edition that has maybe felt a tad quieter than previous Lille confabs and suffered from a couple of last-minute keynote cancellations nonetheless was privy to grand spending commitments from Disney+, HBO Max and Prime Video. —Max Goldbart, Deadline, 26 Mar. 2026

Some competitors have shifted over to pressure-sensitive controls that can be more consistent and harder to accidentally activate, so the Air Pro 4+ feel a tad behind, though the controls worked reliably in testing. —Mark Knapp, PC Magazine, 26 Mar. 2026

Word History

Etymology

probably from English dialect, toad, from Middle English tode — more at toad

First Known Use

circa 1877, in the meaning defined at sense 2

Rhymes for tad

• ad
• add
• bad
• brad
• cad
• clad
• dad
• fad
• gad
• glad
• grad
• had

Kids Definition

tad

noun

ˈtad 

1

: boy sense 1

2

: bit entry 2 sense 1