toffee

[ taw-fee, tof-ee ]

noun

1. a brittle or chewy brown candy made of sugar or molasses boiled down with butter, often mixed with nuts.
2. British. taffy.

toffee

/ ˈtɒfɪ /

noun

1. a sweet made from sugar or treacle boiled with butter, nuts, etc
2. for toffee informal.
   preceded by can't to be incompetent at a specified activity

   he can't sing for toffee

Word History and Origins

Origin of toffee¹

First recorded in 1860–65; the earlier variants toughy, tuffy were first recorded in 1825–30 ; southern British dialect form of original northern British dialect taffy ( def ); further origin uncertain

Word History and Origins

Origin of toffee¹

C19: variant of earlier taffy

Example Sentences

Over at Nama Ko, dessert is a miso-honey black truffle soft serve with dark chocolate toffee crunch, drizzled with both chocolate and caramel sauces.

From Salon

The sun glares through the trees, and the air is thick and sticky; it feels like walking through toffee.

From Literature

The oven was metal, probably for practical reasons, but the chimney above it seemed to be made of hard toffee.

From Literature

A few of its products include coconut toffee roasted cashews, organic seaweed snacks and garlic mustard aioli.

From Salon

Slabs of roast pork, skin as brittle and sweet as toffee and bathed in vinegar garlic sauce at Dominican spots in Washington Heights.

From Los Angeles Times