What it means
A toque, also spelled tuque, is the everyday knitted winter hat Canadians pull on when the cold starts chewing on their ears. It rhymes with took. In Canada, this is the normal word for that warm woolly beanie-type hat, not a chef’s hat. You hear it at hockey rinks, schoolyards, bus stops, and Tim Hortons lines the second the weather goes full ice-goblin.
Usage examples
"We’re heading to the outdoor rink, bud, and it’s brutal out, so grab your toque before your ears freeze solid, eh."
"Eh bud, before you head out to the rink at Sault Ste Marie this morning, grab your toque from the closet because the windchill is brutal and your ears will fall off by the second period."
"The cashier at the Tim Hortons in Sudbury was wearing a Maple Leafs toque and a giant smile, served me a double-double, told me the highway was open again, and wished me a safe drive home."
"You can’t rock up to a Winnipeg bus stop in January with no toque on and act shocked when your whole head goes numb."
"Mum yelled from the door, put your toque on properly, I’m not raising a kid with frozen ears."
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Where it comes from
It comes from French toque. Over time, in Canadian French, the word narrowed into the warm knitted cap people actually wore out in the cold. The spelling tuque is especially common in Quebec, while toque spread widely in English-speaking Canada, with the pronunciation staying firmly took.
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