Why do we say "Fits to a T"?

Meaning:

Something is said to “fit to a T” when it’s exactly perfect for a use or situation (e.g., “This room’s color scheme is ideal; it fits to a T”).

Background:

This phrase’s past is somewhat murky, and pinpointing its origin isn’t helped by the confusion many have with the spelling of “T”: Is the proper form “fit to a tee,” “fit to a tea” or “fit to a T”?

Some mistakenly feel that the “T” refers to T-shirt (“tee”), since an article of clothing’s fit is an important consideration, but the saying is definitely older than the existence of that piece of attire.

Others feel “T” should rightfully be spelled “tea,” and refers to one hosting a proper tea service. There’s no evidence the phrase ever had anything to do with the hot beverage, though.

Another possibility is that the letter refers to sports; golf, baseball and curling use a tee (in curling, the tee is the exact center of the “house,” or the target one is aiming for). There’s no indication the phrase references any of these games, however.

It’s also been suggested that “T” refers to a T-square, a tool used by draftsmen to draw straight lines or, perhaps more aptly, test an angle to see if it’s a true 90-degrees. But again, there’s no documentation that would point to this as the saying’s source.

Most historical linguists refer to a 17th century play written by James Wright as the phrase’s earliest appearance in print. The satire, The Humours and Conversations of the Town (1693), contains the line: “All the under Villages and Towns-men come to him for Redress; which he does to a T.” Furthermore, it’s believed that the “T” in question refers to the word, “tittle,” which was originally defined as a small mark over a letter, such as the dot over a lower-case i or j. The saying “fit to a tittle” was in wide use early in the century, but the word “tittle” itself became less common by the end of the century, hence the likelihood that that “T” is an abbreviation of “tittle,” and the origin of the phrase “Fits to a T.”

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