tea

Pronunciation

• (General American) IPA^(key): /ti/
• enPR: tē, IPA^(key): /tiː/

• Audio (US)

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• Audio (UK)

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• Rhymes: -iː
• Homophones: T, te, tee, ti

Noun

tea (countable and uncountable, plural teas)

1. (uncountable) The dried leaves or buds of the tea plant, Camellia sinensis.

   Synonym: tea leaves

   Go to the supermarket and buy some tea.

2. (uncountable) The drink made by infusing these dried leaves or buds in hot water.

   Synonyms: cha, char

   Would you like some tea?

   • 1922, Ben Travers, chapter 2, in A Cuckoo in the Nest‎:

     Mother […] considered that the exclusiveness of Peter's circle was due not to its distinction, but to the fact that it was an inner Babylon of prodigality and whoredom, from which every Kensingtonian held aloof, except on the conventional tip-and-run excursions in pursuit of shopping, tea and theatres.

3. (countable) A variety of the tea plant.

   Darjeeling is a tea from India.

4. (uncountable) By extension, any drink made by infusing parts of various other plants. Also, meat stock served hot as a drink, often as a stimulant or restorative.

   Synonyms: herb tea, herbal tea, infusion, tisane

   camomile tea; mint tea; beef tea

5. (countable, Australia, Britain, Canada, New Zealand, northern US) A cup of any one of these drinks, often with a small amount of milk or cream added and sweetened with sugar or honey.
6. (countable, Southern US) A glass of iced tea, typically served with ice cubes and sometimes with a slice or wedge of lemon.
7. (uncountable, Britain) A light meal eaten mid-afternoon, typically with tea; afternoon tea.
8. (uncountable, Commonwealth of Nations) The main evening meal, irrespective of whether tea is drunk with it.

   The family were sitting round the table, having their tea.

9. (cricket) The break in play between the second and third sessions.

   Australia were 490 for 7 at tea on the second day.

   • 2009, Guardian Media Group, in The Guardian, “What do cricketers eat at tea? When is it safe to flush on the train? What's a plujit?”, in (Please provide the book title or journal name)‎:

     As recently as the mid-80s the players would be given a bottle of beer at lunchtime at some county grounds, and "tea" still meant a cup of tea into the 90s.

10. (slang, dated) Marijuana.
    • 1940, Raymond Chandler, Farewell, My Lovely, Penguin 2010, page 103:

      So they were evidence. Evidence of what? That a man occasionally smoked a stick of tea, a man who looked as if any touch of the exotic would appeal to him. On the other hand lots of tough guys smoked marijuana […] .

    • 1946, Mezz Mezzrow and Bernard Wolfe, Really the Blues, Payback Press 1999, page 74:

      Tea puts a musician in a real masterly sphere, and that's why so many jazzmen have used it.

    • 1947, William Burroughs, letter, 11 March 1947:

      Here in Texas possession of tea is a felony calling for 2 years.

11. (slang, especially African American Vernacular) Information, especially sensitive and/or juicy gossip. (Connected to the idea of sipping tea while listening to such information.)
    • 2015, Sonya Shuman, Doors of the Church Are Open: Smoke & Mirrors by Sonya Shuman:

      "What's the tea on you and China? Where she at Alicia? You should know where ya baby at."

    spill the tea on that drama

Verb

tea (third-person singular simple present teas, present participle teaing, simple past and past participle teaed)

1. To drink tea.
2. To take afternoon tea (the light meal).
   • 1877, The Bicycling Times and Tourist's Gazette (page 38)

     The wind was high and the hills ditto, and both being against us we were late in reaching Hitchin (30 from Cambridge), so giving up the idea of reaching Oxford we toiled on through Luton, on to Dunstable (47), where we teaed moderately […]

Noun

tea (plural teas)

1. A moment, a historical unit of time from China, about the amount of time needed to quickly drink a traditional cup of tea. It is now found in Chinese-language historical fiction.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈtea̝/

Noun

tea f (plural teas)

1. (uncountable) cloth
2. (countable) a piece of cloth
   • 1326, Antonio López Ferreiro (ed.), Galicia Histórica. Colección diplomática. Santiago: Tipografía Galaica, page 300:

     It. mando que todollos lenços delgados et teas de rens que os tome Garcia perez. et que faça delles fazer uestimentas para o altar de Sta Maria.

     Item, I command that every fine linen and the clothes of Reims to be taken by Garcia Perez, who should make them into clothes for the altar of Saint Mary

3. spiderweb

   Synonym: arañeira

4. canvas

   Synonym: lenzo

5. film (skin)

   Synonym: película

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈtea̝/

Noun

tea f (plural teas)

1. torch

   Synonyms: facha, fachuzo

Declension

Derived terms

• teás
• teázik

(Compound words):

• teaház
• tealevél
• teaszűrő

(Expressions):

• zöld tea

Derived terms

• Aotearoa

Derived terms

• tea tea