Ting

Literally "thing" in Patois, but used constantly for a romantic interest ("my ting") or just to refer to an unspecified person, object or situation.

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How it's used

This is relationship vocabulary — how people in the GTA refer to friends, crews, and showing respect.

“Is that your new ting I saw you with?”

Where it comes from

Origin: Jamaican Patois for "thing". It's one of many Toronto terms that trace back to Jamaican Patois, brought into the city through Toronto's Caribbean communities. Read the fuller story in our history of Toronto slang.

Sources

This entry was compiled through general research into Toronto/GTA slang rather than one single citable source — see the full bibliography in SOURCES.md and the wider context in our history of Toronto slang.

This word is a possible Torontle answer — the Wordle-style game built from this dictionary.

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Related words

See it in the full dictionary → Read the history of Toronto slang →