toss

[[t]tɒ̱s, AM tɔ͟ːs[/t]]

tosses, tossing, tossed

1) VERB If you toss something somewhere, you throw it there lightly, often in a rather careless way.

[V n prep/adv] He screwed the paper into a ball and tossed it into the fire...

[V n prep/adv] He tossed his blanket aside and got up...

[V n n] He tossed Malone a can of beer, and took one himself.

2) VERB If you toss your head or toss your hair, you move your head backwards, quickly and suddenly, often as a way of expressing an emotion such as anger or contempt.

[V n] `I'm sure I don't know.' Cook tossed her head...

[V n prep/adv] Gasping, she tossed her hair out of her face.

N-COUNT

Toss is also a noun.

With a toss of his head and a few hard gulps, Bob finished the last of his beer.

3) VERB In sports and informal situations, if you decide something by tossing a coin, you spin a coin into the air and guess which side of the coin will face upwards when it lands.

[V n] We tossed a coin to decide who would go out and buy the buns.

N-COUNT: usu sing

Toss is also a noun.

It would be better to decide it on the toss of a coin.

4) N-SING: the N The toss is a way of deciding something, such as who is going to go first in a game, that consists of spinning a coin into the air and guessing which side of the coin will face upwards when it lands.

Bangladesh won the toss and decided to bat first.

5) VERB If something such as the wind or sea tosses an object, it causes it to move from side to side or up and down. [LITERARY]

[V n] The seas grew turbulent, tossing the small boat like a cork...

[be V-ed adv/prep] As the plane was tossed up and down, the pilot tried to stabilise it.

6) VERB If you toss food while preparing it, you put pieces of it into a liquid and lightly shake them so that they become covered with the liquid.

[V n] Do not toss the salad until you're ready to serve...

[V n in n] Add the grated orange rind and toss the apple slices in the mixture...

[V-ed] Serve straight from the dish with a tossed green salad.

7) → See also toss-up

8) PHRASE: V inflects, oft PHR prep (disapproval) If you say that someone argues the toss, you are criticizing them for continuing to argue for longer than is necessary about something that is not very important. [BRIT]

They were still arguing the toss about the first goal...

They spend so much time arguing the toss over inconsequential matters.

9) PHRASE: with brd-neg, V inflects, oft PHR about n, PHR wh (emphasis) If you say that you do not give a toss about someone or something, you are emphasizing that you do not care about them at all. [BRIT, INFORMAL]

Well, who gives a toss about sophistication anyway?...

I don't give a toss what people think...

The rest of us really couldn't give a toss; money's what we want.

10) PHRASE: Vs inflect If you toss and turn, you keep moving around in bed and cannot sleep properly, for example because you are ill or worried.

You feel as if you've been tossing and turning all night, and wake up feeling worn out.