[kwoit, koit] 
| 1. | quoits, (used with a singular verb ) a game in which rings of rope or flattened metal are thrown at an upright peg, the object being to encircle it or come as close to it as possible. |
| 2. | a ring used in the game of quoits. |
| 3. | to throw as or like a quoit. |
| 4. | to play quoits. |
| quoit (kwoit, koit) n. Upper Northern U.S.
[Middle English coyte, flat stone, quoit, from Old French coilte, coite, from Latin culcita, cushion.] The game quoits derives its name from quoit, specifically denoting a heavy iron ring slightly convex on the outside and concave inside, configured so as to give it an edge for cutting into the ground. Both the game and the term are associated almost exclusively with the Upper North (the northernmost tier of states from New York State westward to North Dakota). In fact, quoits is one of a dozen terms that are most reliable for delineating the Upper North dialect boundary. |