tout

Etymology 1

From a dialectal form of toot (“to stick out; project; peer out; peep”), itself from Middle English toten, totien, from Old English tōtian (“to peep out; look; pry; spectate”). Merged with Middle English touten (“to jut out, protrude, gaze upon, observe, peer”), from Old English *tūtian, related to Old English tȳtan (“to stand out, be conspicuous, shine”). Compare Icelandic túta (“a teat-like prominence”), tútna (“to be blown up”).

noun

1. Someone advertising for customers in an aggressive way.
   Be careful of the ticket touts outside the arena, they are famed for selling counterfeits.
2. A person, at a racecourse, who offers supposedly inside information on which horse is likely to win.
   No one, however, would have anything to do with him, as Mr. Keeson's orders in those respects were very strict ; he had often threatened any one of his employés with instant dismissal if he found him in company with one of these touts. 1905, Baroness Emmuska Orczy, chapter 2, in The Hocussing of Cigarette
3. (colloquial) An informer in the Irish Republican Army.
   The Derry Brigade of the IRA thought it had got rid of its informer problem when earlier that year it executed Paddy Flood as a tout, after holding him for six weeks. 2011, Hugh Jordan, Milestones in Murder: Defining Moments in Ulster's Terror War
4. (colloquial, archaic) A spy for a smuggler, thief, or similar.

verb

1. (transitive) To flaunt, to publicize/publicise; to boast or brag; to promote.
   Mary has been touted as a potential succesor to the current CEO.
   China has touted its policy of non-interference for decades. January 25 2016, “Why Arabs would regret a toothless Chinese dragon”, in The National, retrieved 2016-01-25
   For the 75 years since a district rebellion was put down, The Games have existed as an assertion of the Capital’s power, a winner-take-all contest that touts heroism and sacrifice—participants are called “tributes”— while pitting the districts against each other. 2012, Scott Tobias, “The Hunger Games”, in The A.V. Club
   Newspaper articles also were generally positive in tone, although a tendency towards sensationalism means that the spread of hybrid forms is occasionally touted as the universal language of the future. 2018, James Lambert, “A multitude of ‘lishes’: The nomenclature of hybridity”, in English World-Wide, page 9
2. (UK, slang, horse-racing, transitive) To spy out information about (a horse, a racing stable, etc.).
3. (US, slang, horse-racing, transitive) To give a tip on (a racehorse) to a person, with the expectation of sharing in any winnings.
4. (UK, slang, horse-racing, intransitive) To spy out the movements of racehorses at their trials, or to get by stealth or other improper means the secrets of the stable, for betting purposes.
5. (US, slang, horse-racing, intransitive) To act as a tout; to give a tip on a racehorse.
6. (intransitive) To look for, try to obtain; used with for.
   To understand the new London, I lived it. I slept rough with Roma beggars and touted for work with Baltic laborers on the kerb. March 1, 2016, Ben Judah on BBC Business Daily
7. (obsolete) To look upon or watch.
   Nor durst Orcanes view the Soldan's face, / But still upon the floor did pore and tout. 1600, Edward Fairfax, The Jerusalem Delivered of Tasso, X, lvi

Etymology 2

Probably from French tout (“all”).

noun

1. (card games) In the game of solo, a proposal to win all eight tricks.