To·ry (tôr??)n. pl. To·ries 1. a. A member of a British political party, founded in 1689, that was the opposition party to the Whigs and has been known as the Conservative Party since about 1832.b. A member of a Conservative party, as in Canada.2. An American who, during the period of the American Revolution, favored the British side. Also called Loyalist.3. often tory A supporter of traditional political and social institutions against the forces of democratization or reform; a political conservative.[Irish Gaelic tóraidhe, robber, from Old Irish tóir, pursuit; see ret- in Indo-European roots.]To?ry adj.To?ry·ism n.American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.Tory (?t??r?) n, pl -ries1. (Government, Politics & Diplomacy) a member or supporter of the Conservative Party in Great Britain or Canada2. (Historical Terms) a member of the English political party that opposed the exclusion of James, Duke of York from the royal succession (1679?80). Tory remained the label for subsequent major conservative interests until they gave birth to the Conservative Party in the 1830s3. (Historical Terms) an American supporter of the British cause; loyalist. Compare Whig4. (Government, Politics & Diplomacy) (sometimes not capital) an ultraconservative or reactionary5. (Historical Terms) (in the 17th century) an Irish Roman Catholic, esp an outlaw who preyed upon English settlersadj6. (Government, Politics & Diplomacy) of, characteristic of, or relating to Tories7. (Government, Politics & Diplomacy) (sometimes not capital) ultraconservative or reactionary[C17: from Irish t?raidhe outlaw, from Middle Irish t?ir pursuit] ?Toryish adj ?Toryism nCollins English Dictionary ? Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014To?ry (?t?r i, ?to?r i) n., pl. -ries, adj. n. 1. a member of the Conservative Party in Great Britain or Canada. 2. a member of a British political party formed in the late 17th century, favoring royal authority and opposing reform: succeeded by the Conservative Party about 1832. 3. (often l.c.) an advocate of conservative principles. 4. a person who supported the British cause in the American Revolution; a loyalist. 5. (in the 17th century) one of a class of dispossessed Irish, nominally royalists, who became outlaws. adj. 6. of, belonging to, or characteristic of the Tories. 7. being a Tory. 8. (often l.c.) conservative. [1640?50;