different between toff vs toffy

English

Etymology

Probably an alteration of tuft, referring to the gold tassel on the cap worn by titled undergraduates at English universities.

Noun

toff (plural toffs)

1. (obsolete) An elegantly dressed person.
2. (Britain, derogatory) A person of the upper class or with pretensions to it, who usually communicates an air of superiority.
   • 1972, Donald Gould, "A Groundling's Notebook", New Scientist, Vol. 55, No. 812, p. 512:

     I came home first class—up the front end with the toffs—semi-anaesthetised throughout the trip by caviar and free champagne—and to hell with frugality and the conservation of resources.

   • 1998 April 11, Paul McCartney, Billboard, p. 34:

     George Martin always seemed to me to be a "toff" and a gentleman even though his roots, like many of us, were in the common people. George has a touch of class that is quite impressive.

   • 2012, John Roberts, How the Dice Fell, p. 186:

     I like to see the toffs being toffs. The women all glammed up, the blokes in their tails and top 'ats, all braying and flinging their money around. Confirms all my prejudices. Just a reminder of who my enemies are.

   • 2000 December 18, BBC and Bafta Tribute to Michael Caine, 16:43–17:05:

     Parkinson: You made films before, but the part that really made your name was Zulu, wasn't it […] and there of course—against type—you played the toff, you played the officer.

     Caine: I played the officer, yeah, and everybody thought I was like that. Everyone was so shocked when they met me, this like Cockney guy had played this toffee-nosed git.

Antonyms

• pleb

Derived terms

• toffy

Translations

See also

• la-di-da

References

• Douglas Harper (2001–2021) , “toff”, in Online Etymology Dictionary

Further reading

• toff on Wikipedia.Wikipedia

English

Pronunciation

Etymology 1

Noun

toffy (countable and uncountable, plural toffies)

1. Alternative spelling of toffee

Etymology 2

toff +? -y

Adjective

toffy (comparative toffier, superlative toffiest)

1. (Britain, Australia, New Zealand, derogatory) Posh, upper-class; snooty.
   • 2007, Craig Sherborne, Muck, Victoria University Press (2007), ?ISBN, page 16:

     As for that accent of his, his speaking in a toffy English way, it's got toffier since we've known him.

   • 2008, "The king of Corfu", The Economist, 23 October 2008:

     Rather it lurks in the now-republished photos of Mr Osborne in the Fauntleroy outfit of the Bullingdon club, a toffy Oxford society of which he was a member at the same time as Mr Rothschild (and of which David Cameron, the Tory leader, is also an alumnus).

   • 2012, Paddy O'Reilly, The Fine Color of Rust, Washington Square Press (2012), ?ISBN, page 44:

     She heaves an exasperated sigh that would do a shop assistant in a toffy dress emporium proud.

See also

• toffee-nosed