tog

tog — noun

1. A number printed on a duvet label that shows how warm it will keep you: the high

1.nounB2
Definition

A number printed on a duvet label that shows how warm it will keep you: the higher the number, the warmer the cover.

Example

Christopher checked the label and saw that his duvet had a 13.5 tog rating.

collocation: tog rating

For her cold bedroom, Nila chose a duvet with a high tog value.

collocation: high / low tog value

Common collocations
  • tog rating
  • tog value
  • tog number
  • high tog
  • low tog
  • 10.5 tog duvet
Synonyms
  • thermal rating

    broader term used for any insulating material, not just duvets

Grammar Patterns

tog + rating/value/number

Usage Note

Common in product descriptions and home-furnishing shops. Usually paired with a number (e.g. 7.5 tog, 13.5 tog) before the noun 'duvet'.

Common Mistakes

I bought a 10-tag duvet.
I bought a 10-tog duvet.
'tog' is the warmth unit; 'tag' is a label or price sticker.

2. Items of clothing, especially ones chosen for a specific sport, job, or hobby.

2.nounB2
Definition

Items of clothing, especially ones chosen for a specific sport, job, or hobby.

Example

Asher packed his football togs in the bag before heading to the match.

pattern: [sport] + togs

Layla put on her running togs and went out for her morning jog.

Common collocations
  • football togs
  • running togs
  • gym togs
  • riding togs
  • gardening togs
  • swimming togs
Synonyms
  • gear

    broader term; can include equipment as well as clothing

  • outfit

    refers to a coordinated set rather than general clothing

  • attire

    more formal register

Grammar Patterns

[activity] + togs

Usage Note

Always plural when meaning 'clothes'. The singular 'tog' is not used for a single garment. Common in British everyday speech; less familiar to American English speakers.

Common Mistakes

I need a new tog for the party.
I need new togs for the party.
'togs' is always plural in this sense.

3. A piece of clothing worn for swimming; a swimsuit or swimming trunks.

3.nounB2
Definition

A piece of clothing worn for swimming; a swimsuit or swimming trunks.

Example

The children grabbed their togs and ran toward the hotel pool.

informal British: 'togs' for swimwear

Olivia realised she had left her togs at home before the beach trip.

Common collocations
  • pack your togs
  • forget your togs
  • buy new togs
  • bring your togs
Synonyms
  • swimsuit

    more formal and common internationally; standard term

  • swimming costume

    British term for a woman's swimsuit

  • trunks

    British term for a man's swimsuit

Grammar Patterns

togs (no modifier)

Usage Note

Distinguish from sense 2 (CLOTHING): when used alone without a modifier (like 'swimming'), 'togs' means swimwear. With a modifier ('football togs', 'gym togs'), it refers to clothing for that activity.

Common Mistakes

I forgot my tog at home.
I forgot my togs at home.
'togs' is plural even for a single swimsuit.

tog — verb

Word family

  • togs
    noun pluralB2
  • togged
    adjectiveB2
  • togging
    nounC1
  • tog rating
    noun phraseB2

Synonym discussion

Sense: noun/2

All four words refer to clothing, but they differ in collocation and register. 'Togs' is the most informal and activity-specific—you wear 'football togs' or 'swimming togs', not 'business togs'. 'Gear' is broader: it includes equipment and accessories (e.g. 'camping gear'), not just clothes. 'Outfit' suggests a coordinated set chosen for a single occasion ('a smart outfit for dinner'), while 'attire' belongs to formal or written registers ('business attire', 'evening attire'). In everyday British speech, 'togs' is natural for sportswear; 'gear' works for outdoor activities; 'outfit' is neutral for any planned look; and 'attire' sounds stiff in casual conversation.

togsgear ↗outfitattire

Common collocations

Nouns

  • rating (tog rating)
  • value (tog value)
  • duvet (tog duvet)

Adverbs

  • usually only with verb sense: up, out

Phrases

  • tog rating
  • tog value
  • togged up
  • togged out

Prepositions

  • in (togged up in / togged out in)

Etymology

LatinEnglish slangModern English

Shortened from 18th-century slang 'togeman' or 'togman', meaning a cloak or coat, which itself came from Latin 'toga' — the loose outer garment worn by Roman citizens. By the 1700s, 'togs' had become British slang for clothes in general. The warmth-unit sense was created in the 1960s by textile scientists, originally from the brand name 'Tog' used in fabric thermal-resistance testing.