What is "toilet"

Lavatory \Lav"a*to*ry\, n.; pl. Lavatories. [L. lavatorium: cf. lavatoire. See Lave to wash, and cf. Laver.]

1. A place for washing.

2. A basin or other vessel for washing in.

3. A wash or lotion for a diseased part.

4. A place where gold is obtained by washing.

5. A room containing one or more sinks for washing, as well as one or more toilet fixtures; also called bathroom, toilet, and sometimes commode. Commode and toilet may refer to a room with only a toilet fixture, but without a sink.

   Syn: toilet, lavatory, can, facility, john, privy, bathroom.

1530s, "cover or bag for clothes," from Middle French toilette "a cloth, bag for clothes," diminutive of toile "cloth, net" (see toil (n.2)). Sense evolution in English (mostly following French uses) is to "act or process of dressing" (1680s); then "a dressing room" (1819), especially one with a lavatory attached; then "lavatory or porcelain plumbing fixture" (1895), an American euphemistic use. Toilet paper is attested from 1884 (the Middle English equivalent was arse-wisp). Toilet training is recorded from 1940.

1. n. a room equipped with toilet facilities [syn: lavatory, lav, can, john, privy, bathroom]

2. a plumbing fixture for defecation and urination [syn: can, commode, crapper, pot, potty, stool, throne]

3. misfortune resulting in lost effort or money; "his career was in the gutter"; "all that work went down the sewer"; "pensions are in the toilet" [syn: gutter, sewer]

4. the act of dressing and preparing yourself; "he made his morning toilet and went to breakfast" [syn: toilette]

Toilet may refer to:

• Toilet, a sanitation fixture used primarily for the disposal of human excrement and urine.
  • Toilet room, the one that contains a toilet and sometimes a sink
• Toilet or toilette, to dress and groom oneself
  • Toilet service a luxurious set of boxes, brushes and the like for use at the dressing-table
• Toileting, the act of assisting a dependent patient with his/her elimination needs
• Toilet paper, (also toilet roll in the UK) is a soft tissue paper product used to maintain personal hygiene
• "Toilet Paper" (South Park episode), episode 703 of the Comedy Central series South Park
• Toilet water, perfumed water
• TOIlet (“The Other Implementation’s letters”), a software tool that renders ASCII art by using the libcaca library to achieve various text-based effects.
• The toilet circuit, a network of small music venues in the UK which are frequently played by rising bands before they achieve mainstream fame.
• wound toilet, the practice or act of cleansing a wound before applying a dressing
• Captain Underpants and the Attack of the Talking Toilets, the second novel of the Captain Underpants book series by Dav Pilkey.

A toilet is a sanitation fixture used for the storing or disposal of human urine and feces. In developed countries, different forms of porcelain flush toilets are common: seats are usually used in the West while squat toilets are common in East Asia. These are connected to a sewer system in most urban areas and to septic tanks in less built-up areas. In many developing countries, especially in rural areas, dry toilets such as pit latrines and composting toilets remain common. Dry toilets are usually placed in outhouses, i.e. not inside the dwelling, and are ideally located away from sources of drinking and bathing water.

In many countries, private homes are designed with the flush toilet and the bath or shower in the same room, the bathroom, to simplify plumbing and reduce cost. Other cultures find this insanitary, and have one room for body-washing and a separate room for excretion. Public toilets are installed where their use is expected on a permanent basis, while portable toilets may be brought in for large but temporary gatherings. Chemical toilets are also used in various contexts, such as passenger trains and airplanes.

Serious waterborne diseases such as cholera and diarrhea occur when open defecation or poor sanitation permits human waste to pollute water supplies. Historically, sanitation has been a concern from the earliest stages of human settlements. The Indus Valley Civilization is particularly notable for its extensive sanitation works, including private flush toilets. For the most part, early cities emptied their waste into rivers or seas manually or via open ditches. Sanitation in ancient Rome was notably advanced, as were some of the reredorters of medieval monasteries, but emptying of chamber pots into city streets continued into the modern era. A precursor to the modern flush toilet system was designed by John Harington in 1596 but did not become common until the late 19th century. Even London, at that time the world's largest city, did not require indoor toilets in its building codes until after the First World War.

A toilet is a room used for urination and defecation. It may include one or more flush toilets, a pit toilet over a cesspool, or a latrine. It may be private or public; in public toilets, urinals may be open but proper toilets are typically separated into private cubicles. Toilets often include a sink for handwashing and may also be part of a bathroom. It is commonly known as a bathroom in American English (even where no bathtub or shower is present) and a WC (an abbreviation of "water closet") in British English, as well as by other many names.