Tum-tum
noun, slang ·Moderate ·College level
Definitions
- 1 A dog cart; a rickshaw; a kind of vehicle. India
"An optimistic old man was our driver; he needed all his optimism too, for his tum-tum was one of the most rickety I've seen , and his little pony very tiny. The balance of this vehicle was most important; we had to sit in certain definite positions ..."
- 2 A dish made in the West Indies by beating boiled plantain in a wooden mortar until it is soft. uncountable
- 3 Stomach. childish, informal
"Can't eat - my tum-tum's hurting."
- 4 Abdomen. childish, informal
"The dog likes having its tum-tum rubbed."
Example
More examples"An optimistic old man was our driver; he needed all his optimism too, for his tum-tum was one of the most rickety I've seen , and his little pony very tiny. The balance of this vehicle was most important; we had to sit in certain definite positions ..."
Etymology
Uncertain. Perhaps onomatopoeia (of hooves or footfalls); compare tuk-tuk. Perhaps from tandem.
Borrowed fom Twi Akan tumtum (“mashed green bananas”). Compare Sranan Tongo tonton (“mashed plantain dumpling”).
Reduplication of tum, a shortened form of tummy.
More for "tum-tum"
Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.