thong
/θɒŋ
/noun
1A narrow strip of leather or other material, used especially as a fastening or as the lash of a whip.A wooden ladder lashed together with leather thongs led into a hole into the ceiling above....
- The assortment of straps and leather thongs and long, heavy stirrups annoyed him.
- He managed adequately, though, in subzero temperatures by wrapping his feet in meal sacks which were nailed to his 12-foot long skis and lashed in place with leather thongs.
Synonyms
strip, band, cord, string, lash, tie, belt, strap, tape, rope, tether
2A skimpy bathing garment or pair of knickers like a G-string: [as modifier]: by day it’s miniskirts and by the pool thong bikinis...
- Some spider thongs, suspender G-strings, and skimpy tops come with a warning that they aren't for everyone.
- The women favor skimpy bikinis with a thong cut.
- Confidence evaporating, I dive to my right to escape and find myself in ladies lingerie amid a kaleidoscopic array of skimpy bras, thongs and fishnets.
3North American & Australian A light sandal or flip-flop.As well, skip the sandals and stick to thongs or flip-flops....
- Get your feet on the coolest loafers, lounges, sandals, thongs, and sneakers of the season, and be a step ahead of the rest.
- Style is not necessarily synonymous with formal, making it possible for you to give casual shoes like thongs, slides and sneakers a try.
verb [with object] archaic
Flog or lash with a whip.
Derivatives
thonged
- Roughly made thonged sandals were worn only in lowland areas where the terrain was rocky.
- It's hard to keep the three sun-hungry Seattle guys off the long golden beaches where the thonged girls are.
thongy
- The next day, Frank and I were looking at some thongy sandals in the local leather emporium when I heard a voice behind me.
Origin
Old English thwang, thwong, of Germanic origin; related to German Zwang 'compulsion'. Compare with whang.
Thong is related to twinge (Old English), which originally meant to pinch. In Anglo-Saxon times a thong was a shoelace. It then came to be used for any narrow strip of leather, and finally to any thin strip of material, from which came the modern use for minuscule underwear in the 1970s.
Rhymes
- comic genius
- comicly
- comic novel
- comic novelist
- comic opera
- comic poet
- comic postcard
- comic relief
- comicry
- comic singer
- comic song
- comic strip
- comic timing
- comic valentine
- comigrate
- coming
- coming and going (or comings and goings)
- coming of age
- Comino
- COMINT
- Comintern
- comiscible
- comital
- comitology
- comity