English dictionary — definitions & meanings

Dougie

noun

A hip-hop dance style involving a loose shimmying motion, often with a hand passed near the head.

Douglas

name

A male given name and habitational surname of Scottish Gaelic origin, also the name of the capital of the Isle of Man and of many other places worldwide.

Douglass

name

A surname, a less common spelling of Douglas, notably borne by the abolitionist Frederick Douglass.

dour

adjective

Stern, unfriendly, and serious in manner or expression.

douse

verb

To drench something thoroughly with liquid.

dousing

noun

The act by which something is doused.

douth

noun

Virtue; excellence; atheldom; nobility; power; riches.

Dov

name

A male given name of Hebrew origin, meaning "bear".

Dove

noun

A bird, typically white or grey, closely related to the pigeon and often used as a symbol of peace.

dovecot

name

An eastern suburb of Liverpool, Merseyside, England (OS grid ref SJ4191).

dovecote

noun

A small house or box, often raised to a considerable height above the ground, and having compartments (pigeonholes), in which domestic pigeons breed; a dove house.

dovelike

adj

Resembling or characteristic of a dove.

Dover

name

A port town in Kent, England, the closest point to France, and the name of numerous other towns worldwide including the capital of Delaware.

dovish

adjective

In economics, favouring low interest rates and looser monetary policy, typically because supporting employment and growth is treated as more pressing than the risk of inflation.

dow

noun

Short for the Dow Jones Industrial Average, a widely followed US stock market index.

dowager

noun

A widow who holds property, wealth, or a title inherited from her late husband.

dowd

noun

A person, especially a woman, who dresses in a dull, unfashionable, or frumpy way.

dowdy

adjective

Old-fashioned and unattractive in style, especially of clothing.

dower

noun

The part of or interest in a deceased husband's property provided to his widow, usually in the form of a life estate.

Dowling

name

An Irish surname, and the name of several small communities in North America.

down

adverb

From a higher place to a lower one.

down-to-earth

adjective

Practical, sensible and realistic, without pretension or grand ideas.

downbeat

noun

The accented beat at the beginning of a bar (indicated by a conductor with a downward stroke).

downcast

adj

Of the eyes, a facial expression, etc.: looking downwards, usually as a sign of discouragement, sadness, etc., or sometimes modesty.

downclock

verb

To reduce the clock speed of.

downcomer

noun

A pipe to conduct something downwards.

downed

adjective

Forced or knocked to the ground, especially by an attack or failure.

downer

noun

Something that makes people feel disappointed or depressed (informal).

Downey

name

A surname, and a city in Los Angeles County, California.

downfall

noun

A sudden loss of power, status, or success.

downgrade

noun

A reduction of a rating, as a financial or credit rating.

downgraded

adjective

Reduced in rank, quality, or rating.

downhearted

adj

Sad, discouraged, in low spirits, unhappy, having no hope

downheartedness

noun

The characteristic of being downhearted; sadness.

downhill

adverb

Towards the bottom of a slope.

downing

noun

The act of drinking something quickly, or of bringing something down.

downland

noun

An area of rolling hills (downs), often grassy pasture over chalk or limestone.

downlift

noun

A lowering of the ground caused by geological forces.

download

verb

To transfer data from a remote computer or server to your own device.

downloading

noun

The process of transferring a file from a remote source to your device.

downplay

verb

To de-emphasize; to present or portray as less important or consequential.

downpour

noun

A sudden, very heavy fall of rain.

downright

adverb

Thoroughly or absolutely — used to intensify an adjective.

downrightly

adv

clearly; plainly; directly; downright

downriver

adverb

In the direction that a river flows, toward its mouth.

Downs

name

A surname, and the name of the South Downs, a range of chalk hills in southern England.

downside

noun

A disadvantage or negative aspect of something otherwise good.

downsizing

noun

The act of reducing the size of a company's workforce, often to cut costs.

downsome

adj

Low-spirited; melancholy.

downstairs

adverb

On or to a lower floor of a building.

downstream

adj

Further along in the direction a river or fluid is flowing.

downswing

noun

The portion of any movement along an arc or curve, heading in a lower direction.

downtime

noun

A period when a system or machine is out of action, often due to a fault.

Downton

name

A surname, and the name of several villages and hamlets in England, made famous by the television series "Downton Abbey".

downtown

noun

A city's central business and shopping district.

downtrodden

adj

Treated unfairly and kept powerless by those in charge; oppressed.

downturn

noun

A decline in economic activity, business, or some other measurable trend.

downward

adv

Moving or pointing toward a lower position, level, or amount.

downwards

adv

Toward a lower place or position; downward.

downwind

adv

In the direction the wind is blowing toward.

downy

adj

Covered with soft, fine fluff or fine hair, like young feathers.

dowry

noun

Money or property a bride's family traditionally gives to the groom at marriage.

dowse

verb

To use the dipping or divining rod, as in search of water, ore, etc.

dox

verb

To publish someone's private personal information online without their consent, typically their home address, workplace, phone number or real name, so that others can harass them.

doxology

noun

An expression of praise to God, especially a short hymn sung as part of a Christian worship service.

doxy

noun

A sweetheart, a prostitute, a mistress or kept woman.

doy

intj

Used sarcastically to point out that what someone just said was completely obvious.

doyen

noun

A commander in charge of ten men.

Doyle

noun

Slang for a foolish or stupid person.

doze

verb

To sleep lightly for a short time; to nap.

dozen

noun

A group of twelve.

dozens

noun

Many; a large but unspecified number (plural use of dozen).

dozer

noun

Short for bulldozer, a heavy machine used to push earth and debris.

dozing

verb

Sleeping lightly or briefly; napping (present participle of doze).

dozy

adj

Sleepy or drowsy.

DP

abbreviation

Display picture: the small profile photo shown beside your name on a messaging app or social network.

DR

noun

Abbreviation for "debit," used in accounting.

drab

adj

Dull and lacking in colour or interest.

drachm

noun

A small unit of weight, variously:

drachma

noun

The currency of Greece in ancient times and again from 1832 until 2001, with the symbol ₯, since replaced by the euro.

draco

noun

A short-barrelled rifle built on the AK-pattern (Kalashnikov) design.

draconian

adj

Extremely harsh or severe, especially regarding laws or punishment.

draconic

adj

Relating to or suggestive of dragons.

draconine

adj

Of or pertaining to dragons.

dracontine

adj

of, related to, or depicting a dragon.

Dracula

name

Bram Stoker's fictional vampire, and the novel of the same name.

dracunculus

noun

A dragonet, a fish of families Callionymidae or Draconettidae.

draff

noun

A byproduct from a brewery, a distillery, or both, often fed to pigs or cattle as part of their ration; often synonymous with distillers' grains, brewers' spent grains, or both (when not differentiated); usually differentiated from potale, at least in technical use, although broad, nontechnical use has often lumped all such byproducts together, especially in the past.

draft

noun

An early, unfinished version of a piece of writing.

drafted

adj

Called up for compulsory military service.

drafter

noun

A person who prepares technical drawings and plans.

drafting

noun

The skill or profession of producing precise technical drawings for building, engineering, or manufacturing.

draftsman

noun

US standard spelling of draughtsman.

draftsmanship

noun

The art or craft of a draftsman.

drafty

adj

Letting in unwanted currents of cold air.

drag

verb

To pull something heavy along a surface, often with effort.

dragger

noun

Something that drags.

dragging

adj

Slow-moving and tedious; feeling like it goes on too long.

draggy

adj

Moving or developing very slowly; tending to drag on; dull.

dragnet

noun

A large net dragged along a riverbed or seabed to catch fish or find objects.

Drago

name

An Italian surname.

dragon

noun

A mythical, usually giant reptilian creature, often depicted breathing fire and guarding treasure in Western folklore.

dragonback

noun

The back of a dragon (for riding).

dragonet

noun

A small dragon.

dragonette

noun

A small or female dragon.

dragonfly

noun

A flying insect with a long, slender body and two pairs of transparent wings held out flat at rest.

dragonnade

noun

A policy by Louis XIV to intimidate Huguenots to reconvert to Roman Catholicism.

dragoon

noun

Historically, a mounted soldier who could fight on foot or on horseback.

drain

noun

A pipe or channel that carries away unwanted liquid.

drainage

noun

The process or system of removing excess water or liquid from an area.

drained

adj

Exhausted; completely lacking energy.

drainer

noun

That which drains.

draining

adj

Tiring; steadily using up energy or strength.

drainout

noun

A channel for the purpose of draining liquid out of a system.

drainpipe

noun

A pipe that carries away rainwater or waste liquid, often running down the side of a building.

drainplug

noun

A plug for a drain; especially, one on an oil pan, transmission, gearbox, or differential case.

drake

noun

A male duck.

dram

noun

A small measure or drink of liquor, especially whisky.

drama

noun

A play written for the stage, television, radio, or film, acted out by performers taking on characters.

dramamine

noun

A brand name commonly used for the anti-nausea drug dimenhydrinate, used to treat motion sickness.

dramatic

adj

Sudden, striking, or intense in a way that grabs attention.

dramatically

adv

In a way that is sudden, striking, or extreme.

dramatics

noun

The art and practice of acting and staging plays.

dramatize

verb

To adapt a literary work so that it can be performed in the theatre, or on radio or television.

dramaturgy

noun

The art of dramatic composition for the stage.

drank

noun

Slang for a drink, especially an alcoholic one, or a codeine-based cough syrup mixture.

drape

noun

A curtain, or heavy cloth hung over a window or doorway.

draped

adj

Covered or wrapped loosely in fabric that hangs softly.

draper

noun

A person who sells cloth or textiles for a living.

drapery

noun

Cloth draped gracefully in folds.

drapes

noun

Heavy curtains hung over a window.

drastic

adj

Extreme or severe, especially describing an action taken to fix a serious problem.

drastically

adv

In an extreme or severe way; to a great degree.

drat

intj

Used to express mild annoyance or frustration.

dratted

adj

Expressing annoyance or irritation towards the mentioned thing.

draught

noun

A current of cool air moving through a room, usually coming in through a gap around a door, window or chimney.

draughtboard

noun

A checkerboard on which draughts is played, resembling a chessboard but (depending on the game variation) often having a side length of ten squares rather than eight.

draughts

noun

The British English name for checkers: a board game for two players who try to capture all of the opponent's pieces by jumping over them.

draughty

adj

Standard spelling of drafty.

Draupadi

name

A central female figure in the Hindu epic the Mahabharata, wife of the five Pandava brothers.

draw

verb

To create a picture using a pencil, pen, or similar tool.

drawback

noun

A disadvantage or downside to something otherwise good.

drawbridge

noun

A bridge that can be raised or lowered, traditionally to block access to a castle or let boats pass beneath.

drawdown

noun

In investing, the fall in value from a peak to the following trough, usually given as a percentage. Maximum drawdown is a standard measure of how much an investor would have lost at the worst point.

drawer

noun

An open-topped box that can be slid in and out of the cabinet that contains it, used for storing clothing or other articles.

drawers

noun

Underwear worn on the legs, especially loose-fitting undergarments.

drawing

noun

A picture made with a pencil, pen, or similar tool, without paint.

drawl

verb

To drag on slowly and heavily; to dawdle or while away time indolently.

drawn

adj

Looking tired, strained, or unwell, especially in the face.

drawnwork

noun

The ornamental working of linen or other fabric by drawing out threads according to a pattern.