- toll (n.)
- "tax, fee," O.E. toll, variant of toln, cognate with O.N. tollr, O.Fris. tolen, O.H.G. zol, Ger. Zoll, representing an early Gmc. borrowing from L.L. tolonium "custom house," from L. telonium "tollhouse," from Gk. teloneion "tollhouse," from telones "tax-collector," from telos "tax" (see tele-; for sense, cf. finance). Originally in a general sense of "payment exacted by an authority;" meaning "charge for right of passage along a road" is from 1477. Tollbooth is attested from 1314, originally meaning a tax collector's booth.
- toll (v.)
- "to sound with single strokes," 1452, probably a special use of tollen "to draw, lure," c.1220 variant of O.E. -tyllan in betyllan "to lure, decoy," and fortyllan "draw away, seduce," of obscure origin. The notion is perhaps of "luring" people to church with the sound of the bells, or of "drawing" on the bell rope.