tote
n. countablen. a large, strong bag with two handles that is open at the top. You use it to carry many things at once, like groceries or books.
n. a large, open-topped bag with parallel handles that emerge from the sides of its pouch. Often made of durable fabric like canvas or nylon.
I carry my groceries in a canvas tote.
She packed her laptop, a notebook, and a water bottle into her leather tote before heading to the office.
The rise of the reusable tote as a fashion accessory reflects a broader cultural shift toward sustainable consumer habits and the rejection of single-use plastic bags.
Possibly from Middle Low German tûte, tǖte (“horn, conical paper bag”), whence also German Tute (“horn, bugle”) and German Tüte (“bag, paper bag”). Compare also Scots tout (“a drinking vessel”), Saterland Frisian Tüütje (“paper bag”), West Frisian tút (“spout, toot, kiss”), Dutch tuit (“horn, spout, nozzle”), Swedish tut (“spout”), Danish tud (“spout, nozzle”), Old Norse tútna (“to be blown up”). Possibly ultimately from Proto-Germanic *tut(t)- (“to stick out, protrude”). Alternatively, from a Bantu language; compare Kongo tota (“to pick up”), Kimbundu tuta (“to carry, load”), Swahili tuta (“to pile, carry”).
Clipping of total, with e to distinguish from tot in writing.
Clipping of totalizator.
Often used as a compound noun, such as 'tote bag'.