teetotum
Lettered spinning top
A teetotum is a small spinning top with letters or numbers on its sides, spun with the fingers and used in games of chance.
The top face showing when it falls determines the outcome.
The word comes from the letter T marked on one side, standing for the Latin *totum* (take all).
Teetotums were common gambling toys before dice dominated.
Hebrew-lettered spinning top
- gyroscopeSpinning disc measuring orientation
- playthingObject for amusement
- spinnerThing that rotates
- whirligigToy that rotates
wooden · Victorian · parlor-game · children · nursery · collectible · miniature · novelty
Rotate rapidly, often playfully
- rotateTurn about an axis
- gyrateMove in spirals
- revolveTurn around center
- pirouetteBallet turn on one foot
axis · momentum · wobble · balance · fingertip · tabletop · centrifugal · rotation
Old valued collectible
- VictorianOf a prim era
- EdwardianOf early twentieth-century Britain
- heirloomInherited family treasure
- parlorFormal room for visitors
old-fashioned · nostalgic · bygone · period · traditional · quaint · curio · collectible
dreidel
Hebrew-lettered spinning top
whirligig · wooden · Victorian · parlor-game · children · nursery · collectible · miniature · novelty · fortune-telling
twirl
Rotate rapidly, often playfully
pirouette · axis · momentum · wobble · balance · fingertip · tabletop · centrifugal · rotation · spinning
antique
Old valued collectible
parlor · old-fashioned · nostalgic · bygone · period · traditional · quaint · curio · collectible · memorabilia
gambling
Betting on uncertain results
- lotteryRandomized prize distribution
- wageringRisking money on outcomes
- randomOccurring without pattern
luck · fortune · odds · betting · stakes · letters · outcome · unpredictable · fate