Meaning of do in English
Table of contents
Pronunciation
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to browse different examples of pronunciation.Verb
doEtymology
Old English dōn, of Germanic origin; related to Dutch doen and German tun, from an Indo-European root shared by Greek tithēmi‘I place’ and Latin facere‘make, do’Definitions
1. engage inExamples
- « make love, not war »
- « make an effort »
- « do research »
- « do nothing »
- « make revolution »
- 2. carry out or perform an action
Examples
- « John did the painting, the weeding, and he cleaned out the gutters »
- « the skater executed a triple pirouette »
- « she did a little dance »
Derived terms
- 3. get (something) done
Examples
- « I did my job »
Derived terms
- 4. proceed or get along
Examples
- « How is she doing in her new job? »
- « How are you making out in graduate school? »
- « He's come a long way »
- 5. give rise to
Examples
- « cause to happen or occur, not always intentionally »
- « cause a commotion »
- « make a stir »
- « cause an accident »
Derived terms
- 6. carry out or practice
Examples
- « as of jobs and professions »
- « practice law »
Derived terms
- 7. be sufficient
Examples
- « be adequate, either in quality or quantity »
- « A few words would answer »
- « This car suits my purpose well »
- « Will $100 do? »
- « A 'B' grade doesn't suffice to get me into medical school »
- « Nothing else will serve »
Derived terms
- 8. create or design, often in a certain way
Examples
- « Do my room in blue »
- « I did this piece in wood to express my love for the forest »
Antonyms
- 9. behave in a certain manner
Examples
- « show a certain behavior »
- « conduct or comport oneself »
- « You should act like an adult »
- « Don't behave like a fool »
- « What makes her do this way? »
- « The dog acts ferocious, but he is really afraid of people »
- 10. spend time in prison or in a labor camp
Examples
- « He did six years for embezzlement »
- 11. carry on or manage
Examples
- « We could do with a little more help around here »
- 12. arrange attractively
Examples
- « dress my hair for the wedding »
Derived terms
- 13. travel or traverse (a distance)
Examples
- « This car does 150 miles per hour »
- « We did 6 miles on our hike every day »
Noun
doEtymology
mid 18th century: from Italian do, an arbitrarily chosen syllable replacing ut, taken from a Latin hymn (see solmization)Definitions
1. an uproarious party- 2. the syllable naming the first (tonic) note of any major scale in solmization
- 3. doctor's degree in osteopathy
Famous quotes
- « I have the freedom to do what I want... bright people to talk to every day. » Freeman Dyson
- « A nation' s strength ultimately consists in what it can do on its own, and not in what it can borrow from others. » Indira Gandhi
- « I do like to write nasty songs. It's a useful weapon to have, and it's cathartic as well, because I create art out of anger, something positive out of something negative. » Lisa Marie Presley
- « What makes my approach special is that I do different things. I do jazz, blues, country music and so forth. I do them all, like a good utility man. » Ray Charles
- « Good people do not need laws to tell them to act responsibly, while bad people will find a way around the laws. » Plato