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This line is said in the very first episode of a cartoon show, Total Drama Island.

This is the first time the characters are introduced. I assume the comment is about their clothing being out of place.

But I can't find out what "T.O.ed" means.

Chris Mclean (The host) says:

We told them they'd all be staying at a 5 star resort, so if they seem a little T.O.ed, that's probably why.

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    Do you have access to a script or (official) transcript of the show, or was it captioned?   If you’re reporting what you heard, are you sure it wasn’t ‘‘P.O.ed’’? Oct 30, 2019 at 3:12
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    I'll point out that short acronyms like this can have multiple meanings depending on context. For instance, in Magic the Gathering, TO is short for Tournament Organizer.
    – nick012000
    Oct 30, 2019 at 9:48
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    Some context sentence is used in: fanfiction.net/s/13191549/1/The-Death-of-a-Warrior Oct 30, 2019 at 12:26
  • Terrell Owens???
    – hfontanez
    Oct 31, 2019 at 13:13
  • @Scott, it's "T.O.ed" not "P.O.ed". It's on Netflix, and has subtitles. Now since I'm sure it's "Ticked off", I know why they didn't use "Pissed off" even though that's more commonly used. It's because they needed to find kids' friendly word.
    – D.W.
    Dec 20, 2019 at 18:52

3 Answers 3

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Looks like T.O. could be tick off:

Definition of tick off
transitive verb
1: to make angry or indignant
the cancellation really ticked me off
(M-W)

The language is flexible enough to allow us to say T.O.’d. This kind of usage is not unprecedented (e.g. K.O.’d for knocked out). We understand T.O.’d to mean ticked off.

It seems to fit, as the plot suggests the characters are deceived:

Total Drama Island is set in the fictional titular reality show, which follows the competition of 22 unsuspecting and unknowing teenagers at Camp Wawanakwa, the most rundown, bug-infested, disgusting island located in an unspecified area in Muskoka, Ontario. The campers participate in competitions and challenges which get more insane and dangerous each week to avoid being voted off the island by their fellow campers and teammates.
(Wikipedia)

They were expecting a 5-star resort, but ended up in rundown dump. Hence, they were T.O.’d, ticked off.

To me, tick off is a milder version of piss off. Also, we sometimes use acronyms or abbreviations to soften or censor a word or phrase (e.g. F off, a steaming pile of S, an M-Fer, that S.O.B.). The usage of abbreviations like this is informal.

I was able to find a clip here (the line in question begins around 2:40). The host talks in an informal, slangy way that appeals or mimics the way teens and young audiences speak. The choice to use T.O.’d here, I think, not only serves to soften the language, but also to sound catchy or slangy (maybe even jocular).

All in all, the usage of T.O.’d makes sense in this context. In general though, I’m not sure how common T.O.’d is, but I think P.O.’d (pissed off) is somewhat common.

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    "ticked off" is not a very common phrase - definitely a heavy AmE bias (the show in question is Canadian, and I do hear this expression here and there in Canada), and very regional and generational at that. You'll hear it more from generally older folks and more in rural areas. It's not a phrase I would suggest an English learner use - it's good to understand the meaning when you hear it, but it's certainly not a staple in the vocabulary of most fluent speakers.
    – J...
    Oct 30, 2019 at 12:40
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    @QuoraFeans compare K.O.'d at freedictionary, or dictionary.com for knocked out in boxing, MMA etc
    – mcalex
    Oct 30, 2019 at 13:57
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    @J...: It may be regional, but it's not particularly generational, at least where I live (Mid-Atlantic U.S.). I'm in my 30s and it's a perfectly naturally way to describe being annoyed/irritated below the level of acting out based on it (versus "mad as hell"/"blown a gasket" where you might attack someone verbally or physically, "ticked off" might just be snippy). It might be used more by the older generation only because the younger generation doesn't mind using the essentially identical "pissed off", while the older generation is more inclined to treat words related to toilet use as taboo. Oct 30, 2019 at 18:14
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    @J.. "Ticked off" is in common currency here in the central U.S., and I haven't noticed a generation difference. "T.O.ed" is something I've never heard, though "ticked" is common and I have heard "T'd", both without "off".
    – gormadoc
    Oct 30, 2019 at 18:17
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    @Barmar and Em are correct, I think. P.O.-ed is a very common abbreviation of pissed off, often used (in my experience) by children who want to express that sentiment but are hesitant to use "bad" language (though that seems mild by modern standards!). But even P.O.-ed may be too much for a children's cartoon, and ticked off is used in the same way as pissed off but is commonly viewed as less vulgar.
    – Upper_Case
    Oct 30, 2019 at 20:49
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As in Em's answer, it's short for "ticked off", which in turn is a common euphemism for "pissed off", meaning angry (as an adjective or rather participle) or "made angry" (as a verb), to avoid saying the word "piss" (urine/to urinate).

"P.O.'d" is also a euphemism of sorts for "pissed off", and "T.O.'d" seems to be following the same pattern. It might even be poking fun at avoiding the word "pissed" by (rather pointlessly) avoiding the word "ticked" in the same manner.

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    In the region in which the show in question is set the word 'piss' is at the mild end of the Very Rude Word spectrum. 'Pissed off' is an inappropriate phrase for children to utter, especially on family-oriented television. 'Ticked off' is the acceptable euphemism, often abbreviated TOed, which would the simple past conjugation of the verbed initialism. To add to confusion, TO is also a local colloquialism for Toronto, the nearest major city. Oct 30, 2019 at 19:34
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"Teed off" maybe?

teed off (idiomatic, slang) Annoyed, upset, angry

It's not a phrase you hear that much these days (in the UK at least), and I've never heard it as an acronym, but it seems to fit the context.

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    "teed off" also has a meaning of what someone who is "ticked off" does to the object of their "ticked off"ness. For example, "The boss really teed off on Johnson when he came in late for the 3rd time this week, he really let him have it!" This meaning derives from the golfing term of to "tee off", which is when you would usually hit the ball your hardest, this lends to the sense of not holding back, really hitting hard, etc.
    – Glen Yates
    Oct 30, 2019 at 20:49

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