Timo

Timo is a term with several distinct meanings across languages and contexts. It can refer to a plant (thyme in Italian), a masculine given name in several European countries, or, in Spanish, a word meaning a scam.

In Italian, timo denotes the herb thyme, a small, perennial plant in the mint family used to flavor food and in traditional medicine. Thyme (Thymus vulgaris) has fragrant, woody stems, tiny leaves, and pink to purple flowers, and it is widely cultivated in warm temperate regions for culinary and medicinal purposes.

As a given name, Timo is common in Finland and parts of Germany. It is typically masculine and often derived from Timothy (Timotheos) or Tim, though it is also used as a standalone name. Notable people named Timo include the Finnish politician Timo Soini, the German DJ Timo Maas, and the German table tennis player Timo Boll.

In Spanish, timo means a scam or swindle, used to describe fraud or a deception. The word is unrelated to the herb or the given name, and it appears in everyday language to indicate an act of cheating or gullibility.