token

English Online Dictionary. What means token‎? What does token mean?

English

Etymology

From Middle English token, taken, from Old English tācn (“sign”), from Proto-West Germanic *taikn, from Proto-Germanic *taikną, from Proto-Indo-European *deyḱ- (“to show, instruct, teach”) with Germanic *k rather than *h by Kluge's law. The verb is from Middle English toknen, from Old English tācnian. Cognate with German Zeichen, Dutch teken and Danish tegn.

Pronunciation

• (UK) IPA^(key): /ˈtəʊkən/
• (US) enPR: tōk′ən IPA^(key): /ˈtoʊkən/
• Rhymes: -əʊkən

Noun

token (plural tokens)

1. Something serving as an expression of something else.

   Synonyms: sign, symbol

2. A keepsake.

   Synonyms: memento, souvenir

3. A piece of stamped metal or plastic, etc., used as a form of currency; a voucher that can be exchanged for goods or services.

4. A small physical object, often designed to give the appearance of a common thing, used to represent a person or character in a board game or other situation.

5. A minor attempt for appearance's sake, or to minimally comply with a requirement; a formality.
   1. A member of a group of people that is included within a larger group to comply with a legal or social requirement.
6. (obsolete, sometimes figurative) Evidence, proof; a confirming detail; physical trace, mark, footprint.
7. Support for a belief; grounds for an opinion.

   Synonyms: reason, reasoning

8. An extraordinary event serving as evidence of supernatural power.

   Synonym: miracle

9. An object or disclosure to attest or authenticate the bearer or an instruction.

   Synonym: password

10. A seal guaranteeing the quality of an item.
11. Something given or shown as a symbol or guarantee of authority or right; a sign of authenticity, of power, good faith.
12. A tally.
13. (philosophy) A particular thing to which a concept applies.
14. (computing) An atomic piece of data, such as a word, for which a meaning may be inferred during parsing.

    Synonym: symbol

    Coordinate term: placeholder
15. (computing) A conceptual object that can be possessed by a computer, process, etc. in order to regulate a turn-taking system such as a token ring network.
16. (computing) A meaningless placeholder used as a substitute for sensitive data.
17. (grammar) A lexeme; a basic, grammatically indivisible unit of a language such as a keyword, operator or identifier.
18. (corpus linguistics) A single example of a certain word in a text or corpus.

    Antonym: type

19. (medicine) A characteristic sign of a disease or of a bodily disorder, a symptom; a sign of a bodily condition, recovery, or health.
20. (medicine, obsolete) A livid spot upon the body, indicating, or supposed to indicate, the approach of death.
21. (printing) Ten and a half quires, or, commonly, 250 sheets, of paper printed on both sides; also, in some cases, the same number of sheets printed on one side, or half the number printed on both sides.
22. (mining) A bit of leather having a peculiar mark designating a particular miner. Each hewer sent one of these with each corf or tub he had hewn.
23. (mining) A thin bed of coal indicating the existence of a thicker seam at no great distance.
24. (rail transport) A physical object used for exchange between drivers and signalmen on single track lines.
25. (weaving) In a loom, a colored signal to show the weaver which shuttle to use.
26. (Church of Scotland) A piece of metal given beforehand to each person in the congregation who is permitted to partake of the Lord's Supper.

Derived terms

Translations

See also

• (philosophy): particular, universal, type

References

Adjective

token (comparative more token, superlative most token)

1. Done as an indication or a pledge.
2. Perfunctory or merely symbolic; done or existing for appearance's sake, or to minimally comply with a requirement.

   a token gesture
3. (of people) Included in minimal numbers in order to create an impression or illusion of diversity, especially ethnic or gender diversity.

Translations

Verb

token (third-person singular simple present tokens, present participle tokening, simple past and past participle tokened)

1. To betoken, indicate, portend, designate, denote
   • 1398, in Hans Kurath & Sherman M. Kuhn, eds., Middle English Dictionary, Ann Arbor, Mich.: University of Michigan Press 1962, [[Special:BookSources/978-0-472-01044-8|→ISBN]], page 1242:

     dorrẹ̅, dōrī adj. & n. […] Golden or reddish-yellow […] (a. 1398) *Trev. Barth. 59b/a: ʒelouʒ colour [of urine] […] tokeneþ febleness of hete […] dorrey & citrine & liʒt red tokeneþ mene.
2. To betroth
3. (philosophy) To symbolize, instantiate

Derived terms

• betoken
• foretoken

References

• “token”, in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: G. & C. Merriam, 1913, →OCLC.
• Century Dictionary and Cyclopedia

Dutch

Etymology

From English token.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈtoːkə(n)/

Noun

token m or n (plural tokens, diminutive tokentje n)

1. (computing) token, an atomic piece of data

Usage notes

There is no general agreement about the gender. In the south, people tend to use neuter, whereas in the north, masculine is preferred.

Anagrams

• knoet

Middle English

Etymology 1

From Old English tācn, from Proto-Germanic *taikną (“sign, token, symbol”).

Noun

token (plural tokenes)

1. token (a physical object representing an action, concept, etc.)
2. omen, portent
3. token (support for a belief)
4. prearranged signal
5. token (momento, keepsake)
6. A flag, banner, standard associated with a person or event.
7. model, example
8. guarantee
9. (astronomy) celestial body
10. (astrology) astrological sign

Alternative forms

• tokene, tokin, tokine, tokon, tokne, tocne, toquen
• taken, takein, takin, takine (Northern)
• taken, takein, takin, takine, tacn, tacne, tacnæ, tockne (Early Middle English)

Descendants

• English: token
• Scots: taiken

References

• “tōken, n.”, in MED Online, Ann Arbor, Mich.: University of Michigan, 2007.

Etymology 2

Noun

token (uncountable)

1. (before g-) Alternative form of tukinge

Etymology 3

Verb

token

1. simple past plural of taken

Alternative forms

• toke, tok, tokon, teken, takede
• tocken (early southwest Midlands)
• tocan (Early Middle English)

Verb

token

1. Alternative form of taken: past participle of taken

Polish

Etymology

Borrowed from English token. Doublet of cecha and cych.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈtɔ.kɛn/
• Rhymes: -ɔkɛn
• Syllabification: to‧ken

Noun

token m inan

1. (computing) security token (peripheral device used to gain access to an electronically restricted resource)

   Hypernym: urządzenie

Declension

Further reading

• token in Wielki słownik języka polskiego, Instytut Języka Polskiego PAN
• token in Polish dictionaries at PWN

Spanish

Noun

token m (plural tókenes)

1. token

Swedish

Noun

token

1. definite singular of tok

Anagrams

• keton