tonga
1 Americannoun
-
a light, two-wheeled, horse-drawn vehicle used in India.
noun
-
a Polynesian kingdom consisting of three groups of islands in the S Pacific, NE of New Zealand: a former British protectorate. About 270 sq. mi. (700 sq. km). Nukualofa.
noun
-
a member of a Negroid people of S central Africa, living chiefly in Zambia and Zimbabwe
-
the language of this people, belonging to the Bantu group of the Niger-Congo family
noun
-
Also called: Friendly Islands. a kingdom occupying an archipelago of more than 150 volcanic and coral islands in the SW Pacific, east of Fiji: inhabited by Polynesians; became a British protectorate in 1900 and gained independence in 1970; a member of the Commonwealth. Official languages: Tongan and English. Religion: Christian majority. Currency: pa'anga. Capital: Nuku'alofa. Pop: 106 322 (2013 est). Area: 750 sq km (290 sq miles)
noun
-
a light two-wheeled vehicle used in rural areas of India
Etymology
Origin of tonga
First recorded in 1870–75, tonga is from the Hindi word tāṅgā
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
I suppose their might be a risk of some of the potential GB players competing for their home countries - tonga, samoa, south africa, new zealand, holland etc. but i'm sure it'll be good.
From The Guardian • Aug. 7, 2012
"Na, na, damchee, na, na, damchee! " wailed the tongawalla to a British officer, who was trying to rent his two-wheeled tonga at an air base in India.
From Time Magazine Archive
It's a shorter cut down to the maharajah's stables in Darpore town than by the tonga road.
From The Three Sapphires by Fraser, W. A.
"Observe," said he, "there can be only one road, and if I hit it we are all right, and I'll show you what the tonga can do."
From From Sea to Sea Letters of Travel by Kipling, Rudyard
He was to see my family driven quietly over to Sumbalpar in the tonga.
From McClure's Magazine, Vol. 1, No. 4, September 1893 by Various
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.