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# taffy

«taffy» in Mova's school dictionary: **A soft, chewy sweet made by boiling sugar or molasses and…** — its meaning for a pupil, its sense in the lessons and examples, with 5 sentences of Mova's corpora that use it.

### part of speech

noun (taffy, taffies; uncountable for the sweet); Taffy — a name

### meaning for a pupil

1) (US, Canada) A soft, chewy sweet made by boiling sugar or molasses and pulling it until it is shiny and stretchy; salt-water taffy is a famous kind. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/T/taffy/#m1)

2) (UK, old) Another word for toffee in some places. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/T/taffy/#m2)

3) (a name) Taffy is the little girl in two of Kipling's Just So Stories, «How the First Letter Was Written» and «How the Alphabet Was Made»; her full name is Taffimai Metallumai, which she says means «Small-person-without-any-manners-who-ought-to-be-spanked». [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/T/taffy/#m3)

4) (UK, old, rude) An old nickname for a Welsh person; many Welsh people find it insulting, so do not use it. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/T/taffy/#m4)

### sense in the lessons

In everyday life taffy is a seaside sweet in the USA and Canada, often sold at fairs and boardwalks. In «Reading children's books» Taffy is a clever, cheeky Stone-Age girl who draws a picture-letter for her mother and helps her father Tegumai invent the alphabet — the story is about how writing began. Phrases: «salt-water taffy», «taffy pull» (a party where people pull warm taffy).

### examples

- We bought a bag of salt-water taffy on the boardwalk. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/T/taffy/#x1)
- The taffy stuck to my teeth. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/T/taffy/#x2)
- Grandma showed us how to pull taffy until it went pale and shiny. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/T/taffy/#x3)
- Taffy drew a picture on birch bark to send a message to her mother. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/T/taffy/#x4)
- Taffy and her daddy Tegumai made the first letters together. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/T/taffy/#x5)
- Taffy was not very good at sitting still and being quiet. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/T/taffy/#x6)
- In the story, nobody could read Taffy's picture properly, so there was a big muddle. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/T/taffy/#x7)
- Still the turtle-dove cried: “Take two, Taffy, take two-o-o-o.” [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/T/taffy/#x8)

### note

Taffy the sweet is uncountable («some taffy»), but «a taffy» or «taffies» can mean single pieces in the US. The girl's name starts with a capital letter. In the UK people usually say toffee, which is often harder. Do not call Welsh people «Taffy».

### In the corpora

- [Teshumai says: «Really, my Tegumai, you're no better than my Taffy.»](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/84-justso-first-letter-1-a-broken-spear/14/)
- [Taffy draws lying flat on her tummy with her legs in the air.](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/84-justso-first-letter-1-a-broken-spear/23/)
- [Taffy finishes her picture, proud of it, and asks if the Stranger-man understands.](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/85-justso-first-letter-2-the-whole-tribe-comes/0/)
- [There they find Taffy making daisy-chains and Tegumai happily spearing small carp with his mended spear.](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/85-justso-first-letter-2-the-whole-tribe-comes/9/)
- [Teshumai hugs Taffy, and the Head Chief grabs Tegumai by his top-knot feathers and shakes him.](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/85-justso-first-letter-2-the-whole-tribe-comes/11/)

### Trees and pragmatics

[Every meaning and example of «taffy» parsed by Mova](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/T/taffy/), each sentence with its dependency tree and frames.