Toilet (room)

In English, all generally used terms for toilets were originally euphemisms.[1] It is generally considered coarse or even offensive to use such direct terms as "shitter",[2] although they are used in some areas. Formerly, broadcast censorship even banned mentions of the euphemisms: Jack Paar temporarily quit the Tonight Show in February 1960 when NBC broadcast news footage in place of a joke he had taped involving the term "WC".

"Toilet" originally referred to personal grooming and came by metonymy to be used for the personal chambers used for bathing, dressing, &c. It was then euphemistically used for the similarly private rooms used for urination and defecation. By metonymy, it then came to refer directly to the fixtures in such rooms.[3][1] At present, the word refers primarily to such fixtures and using "toilet" to refer to the room or activity ("use the toilet") is somewhat blunt and may be considered indiscrete.[4][n 1] It is, however, a useful term since it is quickly understood by English-speakers across the world, whereas more polite terms vary by region.

Since "toilet" has come to refer primarily to the fixtures, toilets are generally referenced by a variety of newer regional euphemisms. "Lavatory" (from the Latin lavatorium, "wash basin" or "washroom")[5] was common in the 19th century and is still broadly understood, although it is taken as quite formal in American English and more often refers to public toilets in Britain. The contraction "lav"[6] is peculiar to British English.[7] In American English, the most common term for a private toilet is "bathroom", regardless of whether a bathtub or shower is present.[8][9] A public toilet is typically referred to as a "restroom"[10] or by its assigned sex, often "men's room"[11] or "ladies' room".[12] In Canadian English, public toilets are more commonly known as a "washroom".[4][13] In British English, "bathroom" is a common term but is typically reserved for private rooms primarily used for bathing; rooms without a bathtub or shower are more often known as "WCs", an abbreviation for water closet,[14] or "loos".[15] The slang term variously spelled "khazi", "karzy", "carsey", &c. derives from a 19th-century Cockney corruption of the Italian casa ("house") in reference to outhouses;[16][17] it's now most common in Liverpudlian use.[18] Other regional names include "privy" in Scotland and northern England and "netty" in Northeast England. WC is also a widely used international abbreviation for public toilets, although its pronunciation varies by language.[n 2] In Philippine English, the abbreviation CR (for "Comfort Room") is the common marking for public toilets.[19] Some forms of jargon have their own terms for toilets, including ""lavatory" on commercial airplanes, "head" on ships,[20] and "latrine" in military contexts.[21][n 3]

Larger homes often have a secondary small toilet with a toilet and sink for use by guests.[22] These are typically known as "half baths" in North America[23] and "cloakrooms" in Britain.

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 stalls. 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.