toothpick

American

[tooth-pik] / ˈtuθˌpɪk /

noun

a small pointed piece of wood, plastic, etc., for removing substances, especially food particles, from between the teeth. tooth.

toothpick British

/ ˈtuːθˌpɪk /

noun

a small sharp sliver of wood, plastic, etc, used for extracting pieces of food from between the teeth
a slang word for bowie knife

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of toothpick

First recorded in 1480–90; tooth + pick ²

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Toppled trees crisscrossed the earth like spilled toothpicks.

From Literature

Massive tree trunks, though they looked like toothpicks from the air, slammed again and again into the bridge.

From Literature

“Once in a Lifetime” is part video display and part sculpture, made of tripods, toothpicks, lights, cardboard boxes and projectors that flicker images on the gallery walls.

From Los Angeles Times

There was a stick, which would do as much damage as a toothpick.

From Literature

Lincoln’s secretary, John Hay, described Clay on a visit to the White House, wearing “with a sublimely unconscious air, three pistols and an Arkansas toothpick”—his Bowie knife.

From The Wall Street Journal

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023