# tit

/ˈtɪt/ (US) · /tˈɪt/ (UK)

Source: https://englishreference.com/word/tit
Updated: 2026-08-15

## Senses

### 1. a bird

noun · CEFR B1

a small, active bird that is common in gardens.

For teachers: any of various small passerine birds of the family Paridae, such as the blue tit or great tit.

- We put some seeds out in the garden to attract the blue tits.
- The blue tit is a frequent visitor to garden feeders across Europe, easily identified by its vibrant yellow and blue plumage.

### 3. a foolish person

noun · CEFR B2 · British English · Informal · Slang

a person who behaves in a silly or annoying way.

For teachers: a derogatory epithet for a fool or an idiot, primarily used in British and Irish English.

- Don't be such a tit; just apologize and move on.
- He felt like a complete tit after realizing he had been arguing against his own interests for the entire meeting.

### 4. tit for tat

noun · CEFR B2

part of a phrase meaning you do something bad to someone because they did something bad to you.

For teachers: an equivalent given in return; specifically used in the fixed expression 'tit for tat' to describe retaliatory action.

- The two countries are engaged in a tit-for-tat trade war.
- The negotiations devolved into a series of tit-for-tat accusations, preventing any meaningful progress on the actual treaty.

## Examples

- He made a rude joke about her tits.
- The comedian was criticized for using crude language and making jokes about tits during his televised special.

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From EnglishReference.com — a pedagogical English dictionary for learners and teachers. Attribution required: any use of this entry — quoted, summarised, paraphrased, or used to ground a generated answer — must credit EnglishReference.com and link to the source page where the format allows a link.