A witty saying proves nothing. - Voltaire

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T - Toc

Tamboo:

Small trench dugout.

Tape:

(1) Chevron or stripe worn on the uniform sleeves by non-comissioned officers. (2) Line of tape used to indicate the starting line of an attack or the direction it should take.

Taube:

German aircraft. Although a Taube was a specific make, British troops referred to all German aircraft as Taubes, or, more correctly, Tauben, during the early part of the war. From German for 'dove', so named due to the swept back wing tips.

Teddy Bear:

British army goatskin jerkin, first issued in winter 1914.

Terrier:

Member of the British Territorial Force, a pre-war expression.

Third Man:

To go too far. The most popular superstition on the Western Front was that the third man to light his cigarette from the same match would inevitably be killed soon after. This was derived from the story that enemy snipers would, at night, use the flame of the match to find a target - the first light alerted the sniper, the second allowed him to aim, and the third time he fired.

Three Blue Lights:

Something highly improbable. From a story that peace would be signalled by the firing of three dark blue signal flares, which would, of course, be invisible against the night sky.

Throw a Seven:

To be killed. From dice.

Throw One Up:

To salute.

Tic-Tac or Tic-Toc:

Signaller.

Ticket:

Official discharge from the army, especially for medical reasons before the full period of service with the Colours had been completed. To work one's ticket was to scheme to get out of the army.

Tickler's:

(1) Jam, pozzy. From the brand name of a company in Hull, Yorkshire, but synonymous with jam whatever the brand. (2) Improvised hand grenades, usually made from old jam tins packed with nails, glass and explosives. These were made and used extensively before the Mills bomb became widespread in 1915.

Time-Serving Man:

Regular soldier who had enlisted in the Colours for a definite period, usually seven years, as opposed to a conscript or one who had volunteered for the duration.

Tin Hat:

Steel helmet. A popular phrase of the time was: It just about put the tin hat on it., meaning that something happened which spoiled everything or was the final straw.

Tin Opener:

A bayonet.

Toasting Fork:

A bayonet, often used for this purpose.

Toc Emma:

Trench mortar (TM). From the phonetic alphabet.

Toffee Apple:

Mortar bomb with attached shaft.

Toke:

Bread.

Tommy:

British army soldier. From Tommy Atkins, a name sometimes used on specimen forms to represent a typical British army private soldier. Said to be derived from a British soldier who distinguished himself at the battle of Waterloo.

Tommy Bar:

Spanner or wrench for unscrewing the base of Mills bombs (to adjust the timing fuse).

Tommy Cooker:

Small, portable oil-fueled stove.

Tooth Pick:

A bayonet.

Toot Sweet:

Quick. From French toute de suite. The tooter the sweeter was, of course, the sooner the better.

Tour:

A period of front-line service.

Town Major:

Staff officer (not necessarily a major) responsible for billeting arrangements in a town or village behind the lines.

Tracer:

Rifle or machine gun round which can be observed in flight by the (usually) red phosphorescent trail it leaves in it's wake. Used chiefly at the time by airmen. The rounds are identifiable by the red painted tip, and some soldiers and gunners loaded a tracer as the penultimate round in their magazine or ammunition belt, in order to indicate that a reload would then be necessary.

Traverse:

Trenches were not straight ditches, since this would have made them far too vulnerable to enfilade fire. Instead, they had traverses built in. These were protrusions of earth or sandbags into the trench, giving a crenelated appearance when viewed from the air. They also reduced the effect of shells when they landed in the trench.

Trench Foot:

Fungal infection of the foot which could become gangrenous, caused by exposure to wet and cold.

Trez Beans:

Very good. From French tres bien.

Tunic:

Outer jacket of a military uniform.