tox|in /tɒ ks I n/ (toxins ) N‑VAR A toxin is any poisonous substance produced by bacteria, animals, or plants. □ Tests showed increased levels of toxin in shellfish.
toy ◆◇◇ /tɔ I / (toys , toying , toyed )
1 N‑COUNT A toy is an object that children play with, for example a doll or a model car. □ He was really too old for children's toys. □ …a toy telephone.
2 → see also soft toy
3 N‑COUNT You can refer to objects that adults use for fun rather than for a serious purpose as toys . □ Computers have become household toys.
▸ toy with
1 PHRASAL VERB If you toy with an idea, you consider it casually without making any decisions about it. □ [V P n] He toyed with the idea of going to China.
2 PHRASAL VERB If you toy with food or drink, you do not eat or drink it with any enthusiasm, but only take a bite or a little drink from time to time. □ [V P n] She had no appetite, and merely toyed with the bread and cheese.
toy|boy /tɔ I bɔ I / (toyboys ) N‑COUNT People sometimes refer to a woman's lover as her toyboy when he is much younger than she is. [BRIT , HUMOROUS , INFORMAL ]
toy|town /tɔ I taʊn/ ADJ [ADJ n] You use toytown to show that you think something is silly, childish, or worthless. [BRIT , DISAPPROVAL ] □ He denounced what he called toytown revolutionaries advocating non-payment of taxes.
TQM /tiː kjuː e m/ N‑UNCOUNT TQM is a set of management principles aimed at improving performance throughout a company, especially by involving employees in decision-making. TQM is an abbreviation for 'total quality management'. [BUSINESS ] □ One of the main themes of TQM is employee involvement. □ Under TQM principles the search for quality is continuous.
trace ◆◇◇ /tre I s/ (traces , tracing , traced )
1 VERB If you trace the origin or development of something, you find out or describe how it started or developed. □ [V n] The exhibition traces the history of graphic design in America from the 19th century to the present. □ [V n + to ] The psychiatrist successfully traced some of her problems to severe childhood traumas. ● PHRASAL VERB Trace back means the same as trace . □ [V n P + to ] Britain's Parliament can trace its history back to the English Parliament of the 13th century. □ [V P n] She has never traced back her lineage, but believes her grandparents were from Aberdeenshire.
2 VERB If you trace someone or something, you find them after looking for them. □ [V n] Police are anxious to trace two men seen leaving the house just before 8am.
3 VERB If you trace something such as a pattern or a shape, for example with your finger or toe, you mark its outline on a surface. □ [V n] I traced the course of the river on the map.
4 VERB If you trace a picture, you copy it by covering it with a piece of transparent paper and drawing over the lines underneath. □ [V n] She learned to draw by tracing pictures out of old storybooks.
5 N‑COUNT A trace of something is a very small amount of it. □ [+ of ] Wash them in cold water to remove all traces of sand.
6 N‑COUNT [oft without N ] A trace is a sign which shows you that someone or something has been in a place. □ [+ of ] There's been no trace of my aunt and uncle. □ Finally, and mysteriously, she disappeared without trace.
7 PHRASE If you say that someone or something sinks without trace or sinks without a trace , you mean that they stop existing or stop being successful very suddenly and completely. □ His party has sunk without trace at these elections.
▸ trace back → see trace 1 SYNONYMS trace VERB 2
find: The police also found a pistol.
track down: She had spent years trying to track down her parents.
discover: A few days later his badly beaten body was discovered on a roadside outside the city.
unearth: …the unearthing of a plot to assassinate the President.
trace|able /tre I səb ə l/ ADJ [usu v-link ADJ ] If one thing is traceable to another, there is evidence to suggest that the first thing was caused by or is connected to the second thing. □ [+ to ] The probable cause of his death is traceable to an incident in 1724.
tra ce el|ement (trace elements )
1 N‑COUNT A trace element is a chemical element such as iron or zinc that occurs in very small amounts in living things and is necessary for normal growth and development.
2 N‑COUNT A trace element is a very small amount of a chemical element that is found in a metal or other substance.
tra|chea /trəkiː ə, [AM ] tre I kiə/ (tracheas or tracheae /trəkiː i, [AM ] tre I kiiː/) N‑COUNT Your trachea is your windpipe . [MEDICAL ]
tra c|ing pa|per N‑UNCOUNT Tracing paper is transparent paper which you put over a picture so that you can draw over its lines in order to produce a copy of it.
track ◆◆◇ /træ k/ (tracks , tracking , tracked )
1 N‑COUNT A track is a narrow road or path. □ We set off once more, over a rough mountain track.
2 N‑COUNT A track is a piece of ground, often oval-shaped, that is used for races involving athletes, cars, bicycles, horses, or dogs called greyhounds. □ The two men turned to watch the horses going round the track. □ …the athletics track.