toss

1 of 2

verb

ˈtȯs 

ˈtäs

tossed; tossing; tosses

transitive verb

1

a

: to throw with a quick, light, or careless motion or with a sudden jerk

toss a ball around

b

: to throw up in the air

tossed by a bull

c

: match sense 5a

d

: to send as if by throwing

tossed in jail

tossed out of the game

e

: to get rid of : throw away

2

a

: to fling or lift with a sudden motion

tosses her head angrily

b

: to tilt suddenly so as to empty by drinking

tossed his glass

also : to consume by drinking

toss down a drink

3

a

: to fling or heave continuously about, to and fro, or up and down

a ship tossed by waves

b

: bandy sense 1

c

: to mix lightly until well coated with a dressing or until the elements are thoroughly combined

toss a salad

4

: to make uneasy : stir up : disturb

5

: to accomplish, provide, or produce readily or easily

toss off a few verses

6

: throw sense 5

toss a party

7

: vomit sense 1

—often used in the phrase toss one's cookies

intransitive verb

1

a

: to move restlessly or turbulently

especially : to twist and turn repeatedly

tossed sleeplessly all night

b

: to move with a quick or spirited gesture

2

: to decide an issue by flipping a coin

tosser noun

toss

2 of 2

noun

1

: an act or instance of tossing: such as

a

: throw, pitch

b

: an abrupt tilting or upward fling

c

: a deciding by chance and especially by flipping a coin

2

: the state or fact of being tossed

Synonyms

Verb

• careen
• lurch
• pitch
• rock
• roll
• seesaw
• sway
• wobble
• wabble

Choose the Right Synonym for toss

throw, cast, toss, fling, hurl, pitch, sling mean to cause to move swiftly through space by a propulsive movement or a propelling force.

throw is general and interchangeable with the other terms but may specifically imply a distinctive motion with bent arm.

can throw a fastball and a curve

cast usually implies lightness in the thing thrown and sometimes a scattering.

cast it to the winds

toss suggests a light or careless or aimless throwing and may imply an upward motion.

tossed the coat on the bed

fling stresses a violent throwing.

flung the ring back in his face

hurl implies power as in throwing a massive weight.

hurled himself at the intruder

pitch suggests throwing carefully at a target.

pitch horseshoes

sling stresses either the use of whirling momentum in throwing or directness of aim.

slung the bag over his shoulder

Examples of toss in a Sentence

Verb

She tossed the ball high in the air.

She tossed the paper at the recycling bin.

He tossed his dirty socks onto the floor.

He tossed his head back.

She tossed her hair and smiled.

Waves tossed the ship about.

The ship tossed on the waves.

Noun

They decided what to do by a coin toss.

the toss of a coin

She threw her hair back with a toss of her head.

Recent Examples on the Web

Verb

The American Idol judge then tossed the phone back to the culprit. —Lester Fabian Brathwaite, EW.com, 21 Apr. 2024

The second-year pitcher tossed 5 2/3 shutout innings. —Jaylon Thompson, Kansas City Star, 20 Apr. 2024

The Pioneers dominated the rematch with the help of Harley Malone, who tossed a complete game shutout. —Charles Baggarly, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 17 Apr. 2024

Schumaker continued to argue his case for a few minutes to no avail and emerged from the dugout one final time after Doval threw his first pitch to argue some more about the situation before ultimately being tossed by home plate umpire Laz Diaz. —Jordan McPherson, Miami Herald, 16 Apr. 2024

Another storm also tossed large hailstones to the north, in Montgomery County. —Dan Stillman, Washington Post, 16 Apr. 2024

But to capture them and toss them into American prisons would wipe out the executive branch of a foreign government. —Patrick Winn, Rolling Stone, 13 Apr. 2024

In a large bowl, toss the cauliflower with olive oil, garlic, salt, and curry powder. —Bethany Thayer, Detroit Free Press, 13 Apr. 2024

In another bowl, toss remaining tofu with cornstarch. —Melissa Clark, San Diego Union-Tribune, 10 Apr. 2024

Noun

Coaches and players from the Lahainaluna High School football team are present for the coin toss. —Curtis Pashelka, The Mercury News, 11 Feb. 2024

But so far, his swinging has been limited to hitting off a tee or soft tosses. —Bill Plunkett, Orange County Register, 7 Feb. 2024

One way to consider what house shirt to keep or toss is to think about it as a friend. —Dominique Fluker, Essence, 21 Mar. 2024

With most of the games above, there are betting strategies that can lower the house edge to roughly 1%, giving you nearly a 50-50 shot with each deal, spin, or dice toss. —Sponsored Content, The Mercury News, 5 Mar. 2024

The San Francisco 49ers lost the coin toss, and the Kansas City Chiefs opted to defer. —Breanne L. Heldman, Peoplemag, 12 Feb. 2024

The 49ers won the coin toss and chose to have first possession. —Ben Morse, CNN, 13 Feb. 2024

After winning the coin toss, the 49ers chose to receive the ball, which made sense under the previous rules — a touchdown wins it — but not so much under the new ones. —Scott Chasen, Kansas City Star, 12 Feb. 2024

If Kansas City had won the coin toss to start overtime and scored a touchdown, would the Chiefs' defense have held for a 7-point win? 3. —Richard Morin, USA TODAY, 12 Feb. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Verb

Middle English

First Known Use

Verb

15th century, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 3a

Noun

1634, in the meaning defined at sense 2

Phrases Containing toss

• argue the toss
• not give a toss
• ring toss
• throw/hurl/toss a monkey wrench into
• throw/toss one's hat in/into the ring
• toss and turn
• toss back
• toss/flip a coin
• toss in
• toss off
• toss one's cookies
• toss out
• toss-up

Kids Definition

toss

verb

ˈtȯs,

ˈtäs

1

: to throw or swing to and fro or up and down

waves tossed the ship about

2

: to throw with a quick light motion

toss a ball into the air

3

: to lift with a sudden motion

toss the head

4

: to be thrown about rapidly

the river surged and tossed

5

: to move about restlessly

toss in one's sleep

6

: to stir or mix lightly

toss a salad

7

: to drink quickly

toss noun