don.1
/duː/, U.S. /du/ 1.
a. The action of doing, or that which is done; action, business. Now chiefly in all talk and no do. Occasionally also as a count noun.fair do's: see fair adj. and n.1 Compounds 1b.
ΚΠ
1580 Edinb. Test. VIII. 189 in Dict. Older Sc. Tongue (at cited word) He left to Bessie Potter his spous his maling & steding,..and his sone to haif na do thairwith sa lang as scho is not cled with ane husband.
1590 in J. D. Marwick Extracts Rec. Burgh Glasgow (1876) I. 151 Scho being doing the said maister Dauid hir maisteris dois at the Skellis Myre.
1669 T. Gale True Idea Jansenisme 105 The will, and the doe.
1854 H. Strickland Trav. Thoughts Ded. Pref. p. iv Things were beginning to look excessively like all talk and no do.
1880 J. Morris New Nation I. i. 17 In refusing to listen to the arguments of so-called rationalists, these people do so from the conviction that ‘it is all talk and no do’.
1923 E. Gepp Essex Dial. Dict. (ed. 2) 40 All spuffle an' no do.
1988 J. Cartwright Interior viii. 90 Dreadful gas-bag... All talk and no do.
b. Originally English regional and nonstandard. A social event, a party; a performance or show. Also in extended use: spec. (originally humorous) a military engagement or raid (now rare).
ΘΚΠ
society > leisure > social event > [noun]
special occasion1574
affair1736
functiona1792
event1820
doa1824
socialities1825
occasion1855
time1878
society > armed hostility > armed encounter > [noun]
fightc893
coursec1325
stourc1325
acounterc1330
meetingc1330
setc1330
showera1375
brusha1400
semblya1400
hosting1422
poynyec1425
conflictc1440
militancea1460
grate1460
rencounter1471
chaplea1500
flitea1513
concourse?1520
concursion1533
rescounter1543
spurnc1560
rencontrea1572
discourse1573
action1579
combat1582
opposition1598
do1915
a1824 J. Briggs Remains (1825) 243 Such individuals should have their feast (or do, as it is called).
1828 W. Carr Dial. Craven (ed. 2) Do,..a fete, ‘a feaful grand do’.
1831 Lincoln Herald 15 July 4/3 At the great Do, or Doment, (as it was called in other days; and is now, in some places,) in honor of the Whig Ministry.
1894 H. Caine Manxman 260 ‘'Lowed her out to see the do, it's like’.
1915 ‘B. Cable’ Between Lines 110 We are about the first Terrier lot to be in a heavy ‘do’ in the forward trenches.
1918 ‘Serjeant-Major, R.A.M.C.’ With R.A.M.C. in Egypt iii. 64 The boom of the first great gun which was to be the signal for the ‘big do’.
1952 T. Armstrong Adam Brunskill vii. 208 Adam hasn't been to a big do like this afore, love.
1955 Times 18 May 14/2 Miss Margaret Herbison broadcast on behalf of the Labour Party last night a talk which she described as a ‘family do’.
1999 M. Syal Life isn't All Ha Ha Hee Hee (2000) ii. 60 Red Box are having a do upstairs... You ought to call in.
c. Originally English regional (northern). With modifying word. An affair, occurrence, experience, or situation (of the kind specified).shaky do: see shaky adj. 5e.
ΚΠ
1862 C. C. Robinson Dial. Leeds & Neighbourhood 282 ‘A shabby dew’, says a man who has had twopence given him for getting a waggon-load of coals in.
1877 E. Peacock Gloss. Words Manley & Corringham, Lincs. 86/2 ‘This is a poor do’ signifies that something has turned out much less successfully than was hoped for.
1882 I. Binns From Village to Town 8 in Eng. Dial. Dict. (1900) II. 99/2 It's a bonny do this, at you hevant a bit o' coil e all t' haase.
1882 J. Hartley Orig. Illuminated Clock Almanack 51 It'll be a rum do if a chap cannot get a ticket soa long as he has brass to pay for one.
1895 ‘M. E. Francis’ Daughter of Soil vi. 60 Eh, we had a gradely do yon time, sir, hadn't we?
1960 J. O'Toole Bush & Tree iii, in Six Granada Plays 41 It's a poor do if you can't do what you like with your own property.
1992 G. M. Fraser Quartered Safe out Here 160 I was startled to hear Grandarse..say in a grim harsh voice: ‘It's a bad do. By Christ, it's a bad do!’
2006 H. Whitehouse Strictest School in World 117 What's this about..your friend being trapped in a castle, then? It's a rum do, and no mistake.
2. Commotion, stir, trouble. Also: an instance of this: a fuss. Cf. ado n. 2, 4, to-do n. Now rare.Common in 17th cent., esp. in a deal of do.
ΘΚΠ
the world > action or operation > manner of action > vigour or energy > [noun] > briskness or activeness > bustle or fuss
to-doc1330
adoc1380
great (also much) cry and little woolc1460
feery-fary1535
fray1568
stirc1595
do1598
coil1599
hurl1603
ruffle1609
clutterment1611
buzz1628
bustle1637
paddle1642
racket1644
clutter1652
tracas1656
tracasserie1656
circumference1667
flutter1667
hurly-burly1678
fuss1701
fissle1719
fraise1725
hurry-scurry1753
fix-fax1768
fal-lal1775
widdle1789
touse1792
fuffle1801
going-on1817
hurry and scurry1823
sputter1823
tew1825
Bob's-a-dying1829
fidge1832
tamasha1842
mulling1845
mussing1846
fettling1847
fooster1847
trade1854
scrimmage1855
carry-on1861
fuss-and-feathers1866
on-carry1870
make-a-do1880
miration1883
razzle-dazzle1885
song and dance1885
to get a rustle on1891
tea-party1903
stirabout1905
whoop-de-do1910
chichi1928
production1941
go-go1966
1598 J. Marston Scourge of Villanie i. iv. sig. D5v Without much doe.
1601 A. Dent Plaine Mans Path-way to Heauen 393 What a marriage, what a meeting, what a doo.
1631 J. Mabbe tr. F. de Rojas Spanish Bawd i. 9 Heer's a deal of doo indeede!
1645 J. Burroughes Irenicum 5 There was a great deal of doe in Luthers time about the seamelesse coat of Christ.
1666 S. Pepys Diary 31 Mar. (1972) VII. 86 To my accounts..But Lord, what a deal of do I have to understand any part of them.
1694 P. A. Motteux tr. F. Rabelais Pantagruel's Voy.: 4th Bk. Wks. iv. lxiv. 255 We find..a..Parasite making a heavy do, and sadly railing.
1896 G. F. Northall Warwickshire Word-bk. 64 His little Joe had set Langley's rick afire: my! it was a do.
1955 D. Eden Darling Clementine (1959) 151 Such a do today with Brigit's accident.
1974 W. Foley Child in Forest 59 The other women made quite a do of how smart young Emma looked in her cap and apron.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > possession > taking > stealing or theft > defrauding or swindling > [noun] > instance or piece of
lurch1533
fool-finder1685
chouse1708
swindle1778
swindling1814
do1821
shave1834
steal1872
fiddle1874
diddle1885
ramp1888
tweedle1890
take-down1892
window dressing1892
gyp1898
bobol1907
flanker1923
hype1926
have-on1931
chizz1953
scam1963
rip-off1968
rip1971
1821 P. Egan Real Life in London I. 247 The seller has nothing to do with it, provided he has received the bit, but laughs at the do.
1836 C. Dickens Sketches by Boz 1st Ser. I. 56 I thought it was a do to get me out of the house.
1837 C. Dickens Pickwick Papers xlviii. 514 ‘A disgraceful imposition,’ observed the old lady. ‘Nothing but a do,’ remarked Martin.
1854 R. Doyle Brown, Jones, & Robinson 15 Expressing his opinion that the whole concern is a ‘do’ and a ‘sell’.
1910 Sunset Nov. 527/1 It's—it's a plain do... That go-between in Pacheco ought to be flogged.
4. An injunction to do something; something which should be done in a particular context. Usually in plural. Only when coupled with don't n., usually in dos and don'ts.
ΘΚΠ
the world > action or operation > behaviour > a standard of conduct > [noun] > prescribed rule of conduct > collectively
etiquette1757
dos and don'ts1885
1885 Manford's New Monthly Mag. Jan. 43/1 Do's and don'ts, gleanings from varied fields, sights and insights,—these are what I have to offer.
1902 ‘Stancliffe’ (title) Golf do's and don'ts.
1920 G. C. Bailey Compl. Airman 190 Between this and the next lesson the pupil should be encouraged to think well over the ‘dos’ and ‘don'ts’ of his trip.
1962 Y. Olsson in F. Behre Contrib. Eng. Syntax 91 There are certain do's and don'ts that he should keep in mind.
1999 A. Hadley Tough Choices 62 The surgeon told me the operation had gone well and gave me a leaflet on dos and don'ts for the next couple of days.
2001 S. Walton You heard it through Grapevine viii. 178 These are the reactions to be aware of, the Don'ts rather than the Dos, and there is more consistency here than there ever can be in deciding in what makes a positive juxtaposition.
5. U.S. colloquial. Also 'do. = hairdo n.Quot. 1901 shows the sense ‘a mass of hair at the back of a woman's head’, apparently isolated and unrelated to later hairdo n.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > attention and judgement > beautification > beautification of the person > beautification of the hair > styles of hair > [noun]
headc1450
coiffure1633
tiff1703
cock1768
top1780
Madonna style1818
Madonna front1849
hairstyle1871
Madonna coiffure1890
haircut1895
do1918
hairdo1932
1901 Dial. Notes 2 139 Do, n. In phrase, ‘a great do’, a child's word for a mass of woman's back hair. N.Y.]
1918 Green Bk. Mag. Sept. 511/2 The faithful one that screws her hair up in a do that's quick but unkind.
1966 J. Stevens Cox Illustr. Dict. Hairdressing & Wigmaking 48/1 Do, shortened form of Hairdo..Slang.
1972 C. Buchanan Maiden iv. 44 Dinah Shore do's side by side with Afros.
1986 Blactress July 9/3 This smooth, short 'do that swerves over to one side in a series of short waves over the brow.
2009 D. Dawson Better on Top 194 ‘Where is she?’ ‘Doing her do,’ was all he said, which Nick knew meant she was working on her favorite wig.
6. colloquial (originally Children's slang). Also doo. In singular and (occasionally) plural. Excrement, faeces. Usually with identifying word (see also dog do n. at dog n.1 Compounds 1b, doggy do n. at doggy n. Compounds). Cf. doo-doo n. 1, pooh n. 2a. O.E.D. Additions I (1993) comments: ‘remembered in use c1920 (private let. to Ed.)’.
ΘΚΠ
the world > life > the body > organs of excretion > excretions > faeces > [noun]
gorec725
mixeOE
quedeeOE
turdeOE
dungOE
worthinga1225
dirta1300
drega1300
naturea1325
fen1340
ordurec1390
fimea1475
merd1486
stercory1496
avoidc1503
siegec1530
fex1540
excrement1541
hinder-fallings1561
gong1562
foil1565
voiding1577
pilgrim-salvec1580
egestion1583
shita1585
sir-reverence1592
purgament1597
filinga1622
faecesa1625
exclusion1646
faecality1653
tantadlin1654
surreverence1655
draught1659
excrementitiousness1660
jakes1701
old golda1704
dejection1728
dejecture1731
shitea1733
feculence1733
doll1825
crap1846
excreta1857
excretes1883
hockey1886
dejecta1887
job1899
number two1902
mess1903
ming1923
do1930
tomtit1930
pony1931
No. 21937
dog shit1944
Shinola1944
big job1945
biggie1953
doo-doo1954
doings1957
gick1959
pooh1960
pooh-pooh1962
dooky1965
poopy1970
whoopsie1973
pucky1980
jobbie1981
1930 Fisherman in Lyra Ebriosa 21 Now the old woman rose for to do a little do And the sea-crab grabbed her by the flue.
1938 J. W. Daniels Southerner discovers South 5 The ubiquitous unpleasantness of chicken doos.
1957 J. M. Edmonds tr. Strattis in Fragments Attic Comedy I. 831 If time's not ev'n to be given for doing his do's [Gk. χέσαι].
1962 ‘A. Bannon’ Beebo Brinker 88 An alley full of donkey-do is too good for him.
1993 S. Dunbar Behind Eclaire's Doors (1998) xx. 149 A color that Charlo says looks fabulous on me but like baby doo on practically anybody else.
1994 T. Krisher Spite Fences iii. 42 One thing he didn't like was bird-do on his windshields.
Phrases
P1. Now chiefly U.S. regional. to do one's do: to do what one has to do; to do what one can do or all that one can do.
ΘΚΠ
the world > action or operation > carrying out > execute, perform, or carry out [verb (intransitive)]
dightc1275
dispensec1374
performa1382
to go througha1460
voyagec1500
to do one's do1650
to put down1943
society > morality > duty or obligation > recognition of duty > do one's duty [verb (intransitive)]
performc1300
fand1488
to do one's do1650
to do one's stuff1663
1650 O. Cromwell Let. 4 Sept. in Writings & Speeches (1939) (modernized text) II. 327 Surely it's probable the Kirk has done their do.
1664 S. Butler Hudibras: Second Pt. ii. iii. 199 No sooner does he peep into The World, but he has done his doe.
1840 Sporting Mag. July 236 He [sc. a buffalo] follows up his victory by ‘doing his do’ upon the females.
1850 T. Carlyle Latter-day Pamphlets iv. 54 [He] can very well afford to let innumerable ducal Costermongers..say all their say about him, and do all their do.
1916 Dial. Notes 4 411 The fall of the year is when sweet-potatoes does their do.
1966–8 in Dict. Amer. Regional Eng. (1991) 96/1 I'm..at the end of my strength... About done my do.
1992 Vibe Fall (Preview Issue) 99/3 This is where success brings you: from a cluster of projects in Roxbury, where pimps and dealers did their do out in the open.
1995 N. Jones in G. Smitherman Afr. Amer. Women speak out on Anita Hill–Clarence Thomas 143 I did my do quickly and left, now speeding for the campus.
P2. colloquial (now chiefly Australian and New Zealand). to make a do of: to make a success of. Now rare.
ΘΚΠ
the world > action or operation > prosperity > success > make a success of [verb (transitive)]
shift?1533
to pass muster1573
to give a good account of (something, often oneself)1601
to hit off1700
to make a job of1736
to make a do of1834
to make a go of it1836
cut1900
1834 W. Jones Mem. R. Hill v. 118 Immediately a bookseller bade for him, promising that if he would turn writer.., they might make a do of it together.
1899 A. H. Japp Cuckoo i. 6 Blackcaps often remain in this country all the winter, managing to ‘make a do of it’, as London working women say, by aid of elderberries.
1902 N.Z. Illustr. Mag. 5 381/1 Your poor, rough, back section. It has been forfeited twice, and you'll never make a do of it.
1910 R. Kipling Rewards & Fairies 149 I don't uphold smuggling for the generality o' mankind—mostly they can't make a do of it.
1945 N.Z. Geographer 1 i. 36 High-country men..take to the back-country because they can make a better ‘do’ of it than on a mixed farm down-country.
1947 D. M. Davin Gorse blooms Pale 91 Another go at making a do of things with his wife.
P3. poor do: see poor adj. and n.1 Compounds 1c.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, March 2014; most recently modified version published online June 2022).
do.n.2
= ditto n. 2a.
ΘΚΠ
the world > relative properties > relationship > identity > [noun] > the same thing or person > the same thing as mentioned before > ditto
same1486
ditto1678
do.1722
1722 C. Carroll in Maryland Hist. Mag. (1925) 20 64 To Corded Dimothy..To I Sea Sucker D°.
1736 N. Bailey et al. Dictionarium Britannicum (ed. 2) Do, is frequently us'd by merchants and tradesmen for Ditto.
1788 Calcutta Chron. 3 Jan. Madeiras: London Particular, at 400 Sa. Rs. per pipe. London Wine, 350 do.
1813 J. Austen Let. 15 Sept. (1995) 219 Very pretty English poplins at 4.3—Irish D° at 6.0.
1895 Army & Navy Co-op. Soc. Price List 15 Sept. 308 Dariols, Plain. Do. Fluted.
1940 D. M. DeLong Stud. Methods & Materials for Control Leafhopper Emposaca fabae (U.S. Dept. Agric.) 2 2-4-50. High mortality... 3-3-50. do.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, March 2014; most recently modified version published online September 2021).
dov.
/duː/, U.S. /du//dəʊnt/, U.S. /doʊnt/; 2nd singular (archaic) doest Brit. /ˈduːəst/, U.S. /ˈduəst/, dost Brit. /dʌst/, U.S. /dəst/; 3rd singular does Brit. /dʌz/, U.S. /dəz/, (archaic) doeth Brit. /ˈduːəθ/, U.S. /ˈduəθ/, doth Brit. /dʌθ/, U.S. /dəθ/; negative doesn't Brit. /ˈdʌznt/, U.S. /ˈdəznt/; past indicative: 1st, 2nd, and 3rd singular and plural did Brit. /dɪd/, U.S. /dɪd/; negative didn't Brit. /ˈdɪdnt/, U.S. /ˈdɪd(ə)n(t)/; 2nd singular (archaic) didst Brit. /dɪdst/, U.S. /dɪdst/; past participle: done Brit. /dʌn/, U.S. /dən/;α. Old English dem, Old English doam (Northumbrian), Old English doem (Northumbrian), Old English dom (Anglian), Old English doom (Northumbrian). eOE (Mercian) Vespasian Psalter (1965) xi. 6 Fiducialiter agam in eo : getrewlice ic dom in hine.OE (Northumbrian) Lindisf. Gospels: Matt. xxvii. 22 Quid igitur faciam de iesu : hwæt ðonne dom [OE Rushw. dom, OE West Saxon Gospels: Corpus Cambr. do] ic of ðæm hælende?OE (Northumbrian) Lindisf. Gospels: John xi. 41 Gratias ago tibi : ðoncunge ic doem ðe.OE (Northumbrian) Lindisf. Gospels: John xiv. 14 Hoc faciam : ðis ic doam [OE Rushw. dom] uel ic uyrco.OE St. Christopher (Vitell. A.xv) in S. Rypins Three Old Eng. Prose Texts (1924) 75 He cwæð, on naman cristoforus godes ic þis dem.
β. Old English doa (Northumbrian), Old English ðoa (Northumbrian, transmission error), Old English (rare) Middle English–1600s doo, Old English (Northumbrian) Middle English–1700s (1800s (nonstandard)) doe, Old English– do, 1500s dooe; English regional 1700s dov (Cumberland), 1800s de (Northumberland), 1800s dif (Lincolnshire), 1800s– deea (northern), 1800s– deeah (Yorkshire), 1800s– dew (Yorkshire), 1800s– diu (Yorkshire), 1800s– div (northern), 1800s– doo, 1800s– dow (Staffordshire), 1800s– du, 1800s– duv (northern); U.S. regional 1800s doo; Scottish pre-1700 doo, pre-1700 dou, pre-1700 doue, pre-1700 1700s doe, pre-1700 1700s– do, 1800s dee, 1800s dui, 1800s dyv, 1800s– dae, 1800s– div, 1900s– dú (Orkney); also Irish English (northern) 1800s– dae, 1900s– dee, 1900s– div, 1900s– duv. OE (Northumbrian) Lindisf. Gospels: Matt. xxi. 24 In qua potestate haec facio : in huelc mæht ðas ic doa.OE (Northumbrian) Lindisf. Gospels: Luke xviii. 11 Gratias ago tibi : ðoncuncgo ic doe ðe.OE Ælfric Gram. (St. John's Oxf.) 210 Facio, ic do oððe wyrce.c1225 (?c1200) St. Juliana (Bodl.) 431 Ich do as þu dest.c1275 (?a1200) Laȝamon Brut (Calig.) (1963) l. 1580 Ac ich do þe wel to witene hær bi mine writ rith.a1425 (c1395) Bible (Wycliffite, L.V.) (Royal) (1850) John xiii. 7 What Y do, thou wost not now.c1450 (?a1400) Sege Melayne (1880) l. 369 I doo ȝowe wole to wytt.1535 Bible (Coverdale) 1 Sam. iii. 11 Beholde I do a thinge.a1616 W. Shakespeare Tempest (1623) i. ii. 52 That I doe not.1663 in W. Fraser Memorials Family Wemyss (1888) III. 110 I doue asheuer your Lordship.1727 in H. Marwick Merchant Lairds (1936) I. 124 I doe not care to appeir over fond that way.1816 W. Scott Old Mortality viii, in Tales of my Landlord 1st Ser. IV. 164 Div I ken ony thing o' Lord Evandale?—Div I no?1862 Monthly Packet Apr. 377 ‘Dost thou see yon espin tree..?’ ‘Ay dif I.’1879 W. G. Lyttle Humorous Readings by Robin 66 I dae think I niver felt as hungry in a' my life.1963 H. Orton & W. J. Halliday Surv. Eng. Dial. I. iii. 1035 You don't care for things like that, but I..[Northumberland] div.2000 You & your Wedding Mar. 288/1 Will your bride still say ‘I do’?
γ. late Middle English duse (northern), 1800s– does (regional); English regional (Yorkshire) 1800s– diz; Scottish pre-1700 doys. c1450 Alphabet of Tales (1904) I. 21 I sit in my cell & duse noght.c1450 Alphabet of Tales (1904) I. 80 What is he þis at syttis att supper & I holde candell vnto and duse such serves?a1522 G. Douglas tr. Virgil Æneid (1957) ii. vii. 124 Heir I Drawis ȝow to witnes and doys testyfy.1828 D. M. Moir Life Mansie Wauch v. 30 So what does I,..but up I speels upon the stone.1896 G. Ade Artie v. 44 Who does I meet comin' out o' the house but a cheap gazabo that was with her the first time I see her.1954 J. R. R. Tolkien Two Towers iv. iv. 260 I does ask. And if that isn't nice enough, I begs.1993 F. Collymore Day at Races 159 Does I onderstand you to remark that the favour of your judgement is given to the horse, Silver Star?
(ii). With personal pronoun affixed English regional (Northumberland) 1800s– divaa; Scottish 1800s dui-aa, 1800s dyv-aa. 1873 J. A. H. Murray Dial. S. Counties Scotl. 222 Dyv-aa syng?1894 R. O. Heslop Northumberland Words 239 ‘D'ye hear us?’—‘Aye, divaa.’ (iii). With negative particle affixed 1600s donnot, 1600s–1700s do'nt, 1600s– don't, 1700s (1800s– nonstandard) dont; English regional 1700s doant (Westmorland), 1800s dinn't (northern), 1800s divn't (Cumberland), 1800s donna (Staffordshire), 1800s doo-an't (Northamptonshire), 1800s dunno (Yorkshire), 1800s dunt (Gloucestershire), 1800s– daun't (Cornwall), 1800s– deeant (Yorkshire), 1800s– dinnit (Northumberland), 1800s– dinnot (northern), 1800s– divint (northern), 1800s– divvent (northern), 1800s– doan't (northern), 1800s– dun (Surrey), 1800s– dunna (chiefly west midlands and north-western), 1800s– dunnad-I (Shropshire, with personal pronoun affixed), 1800s– dunner (Cheshire), 1800s– dunnet (Cumberland), 1800s– dunnot (west midlands and north-western), 1800s– dunnut (Cheshire), 1800s– durnd (Lancashire), 1800s– dwon't (Wiltshire), 1800s– dwun't (Oxfordshire), 1900s– dinna (northern), 1900s– diven't (northern), 1900s– divva (northern), 1900s– divven't (northern), 1900s– divvenut (northern), 1900s– divvint (northern), 1900s– doona (chiefly midlands), 1900s– doonat (northern), 1900s– junt (Herefordshire); U.S. regional 1900s– don', 1900s– non't; also Scottish 1700s– dinna, 1700s– divna, 1800s dinnot, 1800s din-not, 1800s döna (Shetland), 1800s dynna, 1800s– dunna (Shetland), 1900s– dinnae, 1900s– dinny, 1900s– düna (Shetland); also Irish English (northern) 1800s– dinnae, 1900s– daeny, 1900s– dinna, 1900s– dinny, 1900s– divnae, 1900s– doannae, 1900s– don'. 1620 I. C. Two Merry Milke-maids i. i. sig.B2 I donnot care for Treasure.1640 R. Brome Sparagus Garden iii. vii. ig. G 2 But if I don't your errand to your brother, and tell'n how you doe vlout'n behinde's back, then say Cut's a Curre.1693 W. Congreve Old Batchelour i. i. 5 Faith I don't know.a1774 R. Fergusson Poems (1785) 177 I dinna care a single jot.1790 A. Wheeler Westmorland Dial. (1821) 12 I doant like cocklin.1874 T. Hardy Far from Madding Crowd I. vi. 75 ‘Whose shepherd is he?’ said the equestrian... ‘Don't know, ma'am.’ ‘Don't any of the others know?’a1880 W. Robbie Mains of Yonderton (1928) xviii. 91 Aw din-not believe 'at I can gie ye the cheenge.1901 W. J. Milne Reminisc. 63 I'm fair ramfoozled, an' divna ken.1976 R. Bulter Shaela 2 Bit, peerie bird, I dunna envy dee gaet.1977 G. Todd Geordie Words & Phrases 14 Aa divvint mind o' thon.2002 S. McKay Northern Protestants (new ed.) 275 I dinny know. b. 2nd singular. (i).α. Old English (Anglian) Middle English–1600s (1700s– (archaic)) doest, Middle English doyst, Middle English doyste, Middle English þoyst, Middle English–1500s doist, Middle English–1500s doiste, 1500s doeste. eOE (Mercian) Vespasian Psalter (1965) cxviii. 84 Quando facies de persequentibus me iudicium : ðonne ðu doest of oehtendum mec dom.OE (Northumbrian) Lindisf. Gospels: Luke xx. 2 In qua potestate haec facis : in huælc mæht ðas ðu doest.a1275 in C. Brown Eng. Lyrics 13th Cent. (1932) 41 Þenc þou, mon, þat tou ne bee lorn for alle dedis þat tou doest.?c1335 in W. Heuser Kildare-Gedichte (1904) 82 Þou doist no streinþ of god is hest.a1425 (a1400) Titus & Vespasian 908 in Archiv f. das Studium der Neueren Sprachen (1903) 111 297 Þou doyst him no profyte.a1500 (?c1400) Sir Triamour (Cambr.) (1937) l. 1675 What doyst þou here?1531 G. Joye tr. Prophete Isaye ii. sig. B.4 But doiste thou (o man) faldowne befor these Idols & worshipest them?1579 G. Harvey Let.-bk. (1884) 60 Doist thou not verelye suppose I shalbe utterlye discredditid and quite disgracid for ever?1611 Bible (King James) John xiii. 27 That thou doest [Tyndale dost], doe quickly.1653 H. Holcroft tr. Procopius Gothick Warre iv. 153 in tr. Procopius Hist. Warres Justinian Doest thou run after thine owne Master?1727 D. Defoe Ess. Hist. Apparitions iii. 23 Doest thou know I am a roaring Lion?1820 W. Scott Monastery I. ix. 245 Doest thou menace the holy Church's patrimony with waste and fire-raising?1951 R. Jarrell in Poetry Apr. 7 If someone questioned you, What doest thou here? You'd knit your brows like an orangoutang..And answer..: I'm studying.1977 A. A. Jahadhmy tr. Anthol. Swahili Poetry 75 O my heart, why doest thou not awake?
β. (chiefly southern and south midlands in later use) Old English–Middle English dest, late Old English dæst, early Middle English diest (Essex), Middle English deist, Middle English deste, 1500s dest (perhaps transmission error); English regional (Devon and Cornwall) 1700s–1800s dest. OE West Saxon Gospels: John (Corpus Cambr.) vi. 30 Hwæt dest þu?lOE King Ælfred tr. St. Augustine Soliloquies (Vitell.) (1922) ii. 61 Þu dest eac swiðe rihte.a1225 (?OE) MS Lamb. in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1868) 1st Ser. 23 An sunne wule amerran..þa dedbote þe þu dest of þam oðer.a1225 (c1200) Vices & Virtues (1888) 103 Gif ðu ðis ȝeliefst, and swa diest, bie ðu siker, ne mai þe non þing to harme.c1350 (a1333) William of Shoreham Poems (1902) 63 Ich wille þe haue Ȝef þou deist suche a dede Of queade.a1450 (?c1405) in J. Kail 26 Polit. Poems (1904) 30 Whanne þou dest þyn almesdede, Crie, ‘god mercie it is so lite.’1593 W. Shakespeare Venus & Adonis sig. Biijv But hauing no doefects, why dest abhor me? 1746 Exmoor Scolding in Gentleman's Mag. July 353/1 Dest thee tell me o' Dick Vrogwill?1846 J. Trenoodle Spec. Dial. 28 Dest a like men?
γ. Old English dyst (rare), Middle English dist, Middle English doust, Middle English douste, Middle English dowst, Middle English dust, Middle English duste; English regional (Devon) 1700s–1800s dist; Welsh English 1900s– dust. OE Wærferð tr. Gregory Dialogues (Corpus Cambr.) (1900) i. iv. 37 Hwæt is þis, þæt þu dyst [OE Otho dest, Hatton dest]? a1400 (c1303) R. Mannyng Handlyng Synne (Harl.) 12491 What doust þou byfore þe prest, And hast deseyt yn þy brest??a1450 in H. Sandison Chanson d'Aventure in Middle Eng. (1913) 124 Thow dust hym sore yllure.c1450 Bk. Marchalsi (Harl. 6398) f. 24v Yf þat þu dist prikkyn ouerwert þe woundis wyth þi launcet, þu myst keruyn the veynis in to. 1746 Exmoor Scolding in Gentleman's Mag. July 353/1 Dist hire ma?1860 H. Baird Song Solomon (1862) v. 9 Thow dist zo chearge es.1984 C. Kightly Country Voices i. 27 Dust 'ee want a job, boy?
δ. Old English doæs (Northumbrian), Old English doas (Northumbrian), Old English (Anglian)–Middle English does, early Middle English dus (south-west midlands), Middle English dois, Middle English dooes, Middle English doos, Middle English dos, Middle English dose, Middle English dosse, Middle English dotȝ (north-west midlands), Middle English dous, Middle English doyse (northern), Middle English duse (northern); English regional (chiefly northern) 1800s dos, 1800s dus, 1800s– dis (northern and south-western), 1800s– diz, 1800s– does (west midlands and northern), 1800s– duz; Scottish pre-1700 dois, pre-1700 1800s does, 1900s– dis. eOE (Mercian) Vespasian Psalter (1965) xxxv. 7 Homines et iumenta saluos facies : men & neat hale ðu does.OE (Northumbrian) Lindisf. Gospels: Matt. vi. 2 Cum ergo facies elemosyna : miððy ðonne ðu doas ælmessa.OE (Northumbrian) Lindisf. Gospels: John vi. 30 Quid operaris : þæt uel huęd wyrcas ðu uel þæt ðu doæs.a1250 (?a1200) Ancrene Riwle (Titus) (1963) 7 Þu vnhules te put, þu þat dos ani þing þurh hwat mon is of þe fleschliche ifondet.a1275 (?c1200) Prov. Alfred (Trin. Cambr.) (1955) 131 Sone þu best dus [printed bus] þe sot of bismare-word. ▸ c1300 Havelok (Laud) (1868) l. 2390 Wat dos þu here?c1390 in F. J. Furnivall Minor Poems Vernon MS (1901) ii. 505 Such þing as þou seyst and doos, Þi Neiȝebor wol þerof make Roos.c1400 (?c1380) Pearl 556 Þou dotȝ hem vus to counterfete.c1450 Alphabet of Tales (1905) II. 349 Whi duse þou so mekull ill?a1500 (a1460) Towneley Plays (1994) I. i. 6 So thynke me that thou doyse.1568 (a1500) Freiris Berwik 517 in W. T. Ritchie Bannatyne MS (1930) IV. 276 Gif thow dois not on thy awin perrel beid [= be it].a1595 W. Cullen Chron. Aberdeen in J. Stuart Misc. Spalding Club (1842) II. 50 Thow does nocht delytt In mone wordis wayne.a1612 W. Fowler Wks. (1914) I. 279 My sinnis, Which thow dois mak me throughlye feale.1841 R. Skimming Lays 5 Vile swearing, tearing, blackguard musock, On ilka subject rude thou does yoke.1892 M. C. F. Morris Yorks. Folk-talk 112 Diz tha see? Lawks a massy! it swizzens!1956 C. M. Costie Benjie's Bodle 200 Little dis thoo ken hoo muckle A'm vooed for yin aald ‘durk’.1963 H. Orton & W. J. Halliday Surv. Eng. Dial. I. iii. 1038 Jack, how much rent..pay?..[Lancashire] does thou.
ε. early Old English des (Mercian, rare). eOE (Mercian) Vespasian Psalter (1965) xxxviii. 11 Tabescere fecisti sicut aranea animam eius : aswindan ðu des swe gongeweafran sawle his.
ζ. Old English (rare) Middle English–1600s (1700s– (archaic)) dost, Middle English–1500s dooste, Middle English–1500s doste, Middle English–1600s doost, 1500s–1600s dust, 1500s–1700s (1800s– nonstandard) do'st, 1600s doo'st. OE Homily (Somerset Rec. Office: DD/SASC/1193/77) in Anglo-Saxon Eng. 33 (2004) 157 Forþon ær þu þis gedost ne helpeð þin bene toforen gode.] c1175 Ormulum (Burchfield transcript) l. 15587 Tu..þatt dost tuss þise dedess.a1225 MS Lamb. in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1868) 1st Ser. 67 For ȝef þu þus dost, þu quemest god.c1300 St. Kenelm (Laud) 161 in C. Horstmann Early S.-Eng. Legendary (1887) 350 Þou trauailest..a-boute nouȝt, and þine ȝwyle þou dost spille.c1380 Sir Ferumbras (1879) 3889 How dost þow, harlot, þyn erand bede?1447 O. Bokenham Lives of Saints (Arun.) (1938) 2256 Þou in þyne herte doost suppryse And tendryst oo god..for hym all oþir þou doste dyspise.a1500 (?c1450) Merlin (1899) i. 18 I know better my fader than thou doste thyn.1534 Bible (Tyndale rev. Joye) John ix. 34 And dost thou teache vs? [1611 King James doest].1566 T. Drant tr. Horace Medicinable Morall sig. Biijv Doste thou not know thy selfe.a1616 W. Shakespeare Tempest (1623) i. ii. 78 Do'st thou attend me?1697 T. Dilke City Lady iv. 33 What do'st think, Lucinda, can become of the young Oxonian, that doughty Lover of yours?1733 J. Bramston Man of Taste 15 Say thou that do'st thy father's table praise, Was there Mahogena in former days?1812 J. Wilson Isle of Palms i. 223 Fair creature! Thou dost seem to be Some wandering spirit of the sea.1907 G. P. Upton tr. Frithiof Saga vii. 49 So thou dost threaten my castle, Björn!1993 P. Ackroyd House of Dr. Dee (1994) ii. 71 The old hanging tune, ‘Fortune my foe, why dost thou frown on me?’
η. late Middle English doȝth, late Middle English doth (perhaps transmission error), 1500s dooth (perhaps transmission error). Slightly earlier evidence is provided by Ling. Atlas Late Mediaeval Eng., which records a form doȝth from the mid 15th-cent. MS Stockholm, Royal Library 10.90 (whose scribal language is placed in Norfolk).?a1475 Ludus Coventriae (1922) 163 A gode god in trinite Whow longe xal I abyde the tyl þat þou þi son [þou] doth sende þat I in erth myght hym se.1509 Kynge Rycharde Cuer du Lyon (de Worde) sig. C.i Thou dooth [1448 Arms, a1500 Douce dost, c1450 BL Add. dose, a1500 Harl. doest] vnryght, thynketh me, Palmers that gone by the waye, Them to pryson.
θ. English regional (south-western) 1900s– do. For examples of do (now the standard form of the 2nd singular) with ye or you (originally polite form) see Forms 2d and compare note at that section.1968 H. Orton & M. F. Wakelin Surv. Eng. Dial. IV. iii. 1109 Jack, how much rent..pay?.. [Devon] do thee.
ι. English regional (west midlands) 1900s– don. 1971 H. Orton & M. V. Barry Surv. Eng. Dial. II. iii. 1026 Jack, how much rent..pay?.. [Cheshire] don thee.
(ii). With personal pronoun affixed Old English–Middle English destu, Middle English deistowe, Middle English destou, Middle English destow, Middle English doostou, Middle English dostou, Middle English dostow, Middle English dostu, 1600s dos't; English regional (chiefly northern) 1700s– dosta, 1800s dusto, 1800s– dista, 1800s– dost, 1800s– dost', 1800s– dusta, 1800s– dus'ta; Scottish (southern) 1900s– dista. OE Ælfric Lives of Saints (Julius) (1881) I. 84 Hwæt destu gif ic to mergen middeges gebide?OE Old Eng. Hexateuch: Exod. (Claud.) v. 15 Hwi destu þus wiþ ðine þeowas?c1225 (?c1200) St. Juliana (Royal) 150 Hwi destu us ba so wa þurh þi muchele unwit?c1275 (?c1250) Owl & Nightingale (Calig.) (1935) 563 Wat dostu godes among monne?c1330 Otuel (Auch.) (1882) 228 Þanne dostou a god dede.c1400 (?a1300) Kyng Alisaunder (Laud) (1952) 877 What doostou here, þou mysbiȝete gome?a1450 (c1386) G. Chaucer Legend Good Women (Tanner) (1879) Prol. l. 315 What dostow her.c1450 (c1400) Sowdon of Babylon (1881) 1193 What deistowe, manne?a1475 (?a1430) J. Lydgate tr. G. Deguileville Pilgrimage Life Man (Vitell.) 15432 What dostow thanne with hys name?1694 L. Echard in tr. Plautus Comedies Pref. sig. a 4v Dos't think, Boy, we shall be able to squeeze out a swinging sum of Money of this old Gripes?1778 C. Graham Misc. Pieces 65 How dosta, honest lad?a1849 Shevvild Ann. in Eng. Dial. Dict. (1900) II. 96/2 Dusta loike winter 't best nah, thinks ta?1884 R. Holland Gloss. Words County of Chester (1886) 110 ‘Dusta hear?’ or as frequently ‘dost' hear.’1905 Border Mag. Dec. 231 What wages dista ask?1943 Folk-lore 54 259 By gum! thou's as good a lookin' as thi mother. Dosta mind if I gi'e thee yan?2002 W. Woodruff Road to Nab End (2003) 250 Which dusta want? (iii). Contracted 1600s (1800s– regional) -'st. 1607 T. Tomkis Lingua i. vii. B 4 Momus himselfe can find no fault with thee Thou'st make a passing live Anatomie.1641 T. Herbert Answer to Mercuries Message Thomason Tracts CLVII. No. 7. 2 Thou'st buy new shooes, and eke scrape to the Altar.1677 Lovers Quarrel 278 in W. C. Hazlitt Remains Early Pop. Poetry Eng. (1864) II. 264 Thou'st have the horse with all my heart, And my Plate Coat of silver free.1880 T. Hardy Trumpet-major III. xxxix. 208 It depends on how thou'st behave in the future.1904 T. Hardy Dynasts: Pt. 1st ii. v. 64 There thou'st stand, glowering and staring with all thy eyes at Kingsbere!1974 W. Foley Child in Forest i. iii. 34 Dance round thic [sic] tree so I can see how thee'st look when they ribbons do flare out. (iv). With negative particle affixed 1600s–1700s (1800s– chiefly regional) dostn't; English regional 1800s doesn (Lincolnshire), 1800s doos'tna' (Derbyshire), 1800s dosn't, 1800s– daun't (Cornwall), 1800s– dis-n (Somerset), 1800s– disn't (northern), 1800s– doesna (Shropshire), 1800s– doesno' (Lancashire), 1800s– doesn't, 1800s– doos'n (Somerset), 1800s– doosn'st (Somerset), 1800s– doosn't (Oxfordshire), 1800s– dostna, 1800s– dunna (Shropshire), 1800s– dush'n't (Yorkshire, with personal pronoun affixed), 1800s– dustno (Lancashire), 1800s– dwon't (Wiltshire), 2000s– dustn't (Cornwall); also Scottish 1700s disna, 1800s dinna, 1800s doesna. 1694 P. A. Motteux tr. F. Rabelais 5th Bk. Wks. xxxvi. 178 Take heed thy self, dear Frater, lest..thou wedst's something thou dostn't like.1724 in Ramsay's Tea-t. Misc. (1733) II. 119 Why dost thou pleen? I thee maintain, For meal and mawt thou disna want.1734 C. Bodens Mother-in-Law iii. ii. 34 Dostn't consider that sick People are not to be bawl'd to at such a rate?1860 J. Young Lays from Poorhouse 91 A' lanie! lanie! my wee pet, An' see thou dinna fa'.1872 ‘Agrikler’ Rhymes 38 Ye ould fool—Why doosn'st [1875 doos'n] get up astride on un?1876 C. C. Robinson Gloss. Words Mid-Yorks. at Glum If thou doesn't want it, say thou doesn't.a1903 S. P. Unwin in Eng. Dial. Dict. (1903) IV. 416/1 [West Yorkshire] Thou doesn't pan in to t'wark as I should like to see thee.1992 G. M. Fraser Quartered Safe out Here 176 Ah want Choorchill oot, an' his whole fookin' gang. Ah remember the 'thirties, marra, if thoo doesn't.2000 Cornish World Oct. 10/3 Tidn the saame now; everybody's 'ome cluckied down roun' the Tav-v en the ayvnins, an theese dustn't see a sawle. c. 3rd singular. (i).α. Old English (rare)–early Middle English dæþ, Old English (rare)–early Middle English (chiefly south-west midlands) det, Old English–early Middle English deð, Old English–Middle English deþ, early Middle English deaþ, late Old English ðeþ (probably transmission error), late Old English–early Middle English dæð, late Old English–early Middle English deað, late Old English ðeð (transmission error), early Middle English deet (south-west midlands), early Middle English deit (south-west midlands), early Middle English deoð (south-west midlands), early Middle English dethþ, early Middle English dez (south-western), early Middle English ðe (transmission error), Middle English deeþ, Middle English deþe, Middle English deth, Middle English deyt (Essex); English regional (Devon) 1700s deth; N.E.D. (1897) also records a form late Middle English–1500s dethe. Later Middle English evidence is provided by Ling. Atlas Late Mediaeval Eng., which records a form deyt from the mid 15th-cent. MS Oxford, Bodleian Library, Add. C.280.eOE (Kentish) Glosses to Proverbs of Solomon (Vesp. D.vi) in U. Kalbhen Kentische Glossen (2003) 131 Qui gerit : se ðe det.OE Lambeth Psalter lxvii. 20 Prosperum iter faciet nobis : gesundful siðfæt he dæþ us.OE West Saxon Gospels: Matt. (Corpus Cambr.) v. 19 Soþlice se ðe hit deð [OE Lindisf. doeð] & lærð, se biþ mycel genemned on heofonan rice.a1225 (?OE) MS Lamb. in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1868) 1st Ser. 51 Al swa me deað bi þe deade.a1225 (?OE) MS Vesp. in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1868) 1st Ser. 233 Hwat deð si moder hire bearn?..Hi hit..dieð under hire arme.c1300 Holy Cross (Laud) 202 in C. Horstmann Early S.-Eng. Legendary (1887) 7 Fram ȝwam alle þe wateres on eorþe comiez, ase þe boc us dez telle.1340 Ayenbite (1866) 68 In al þet god deþ.c1390 Castle of Love (Vernon) (1967) l. 1470 Vnwrestliche he deeþ.a1400 in 6th Rep. Royal Comm. Hist. MSS: Pt. I (1877) App. 320 in Parl. Papers (C. 1745) XLVII. 1 Ffor sor of here wombe ich wot sche it deþ.a1400 MS Merton 248 in Anglia (1974) 92 73 It deþ þe for to sike sore. 1746 Exmoor Scolding (ed. 3) ii. 13 Than tha wut..roundshave enny body deth bet zey Ay to thee.1771 Exmoor Courtship in Exmoor Scolding (ed. 7) 24 If he deth, chell ha' as good a Varrant vor he, as he can for me.1795 ‘P. Pindar’ Royal Visit Exeter 17 Thoff we've rak'd up zom vieow pence, It deth not vollow we've the sence To make the King a speech.
β. Old English doæð (Northumbrian), Old English doað (Northumbrian), Old English doeð (chiefly non-West Saxon), Old English (Mercian)–Middle English doeþ, Middle English doiþ, Middle English doiþe, Middle English doyt, Middle English doyþ, Middle English doyþe, Middle English þoyt, Middle English–1500s doethe, Middle English–1500s doithe, Middle English–1500s doyth, Middle English–1500s doythe, Middle English–1600s doith, Middle English–1600s (1700s– archaic) doeth, 1500s dooeth; Scottish pre-1700 doeth, pre-1700 doethe, pre-1700 doith, pre-1700 doithe, pre-1700 doyth. eOE (Kentish) Charter: Oswulf & Beornðryð to Christ Church, Canterbury (Sawyer 1188) in F. E. Harmer Sel. Eng. Hist. Docs. 9th & 10th Cent. (1914) 2 Mon geselle cxx gesuflra hlafa to aelmessan for hiora saula suae mon aet hlaforda tidum doeð.OE (Northumbrian) Lindisf. Gospels: Mark iv. 32 Et cum seminatum fuerit ascendit..et facit ramos magnos : & miððy gesauen wæs astag..& doæð uel wyrcað telgo uel twiggo miclo.OE (Northumbrian) Lindisf. Gospels: Luke ix. 24 Nam qui perdiderit animam suam propter me saluam faciet illam : forðon seðe losað sawel his fore mec hal doað ðailca.OE (Mercian) Rushw. Gospels: Matt. v. 32 Qui dimisserit uxorem suam..facit eam mechari : æghwilc þara þe forleteþ his wif..he doeþ þæt hiu dernunge licgæ.a1300 in C. Brown Eng. Lyrics 13th Cent. (1932) 125 To drupe and dar we athe wel mare, alse for þe hondis doyt þe har. ▸ c1384 Bible (Wycliffite, E.V.) (Royal) (1850) 1 John iii. 8 He that doith synne, is of the deuel.?a1425 MS Hunterian 95 f. 171v, in Middle Eng. Dict. at Much(e Kinde..fulfilleþ þat is to litel and doeþ aweie þat is superflue oþere to moche.a1500 in Archiv f. das Studium der Neueren Sprachen (1932) 161 195 He doyþ but selle hys corne on gresse.1543 ( Chron. J. Hardyng (1812) 20 To you, my lorde of Yorke, this dooeth appent.a1595 W. Cullen Chron. Aberdeen in J. Stuart Misc. Spalding Club (1842) II. 70 This presentt wardle doithe pas.a1652 I. Jones in B. Allsopp & R. A. Sayce Inigo Jones on Palladio (1970) II. iv. 38 This singell trayler doith well because of the distance.1775 W. Romaine Ess. Psalmody iii. 50 For Jehovah is good and doeth good.1846 W. S. Landor Citation & Exam. Shakespere II. 278 He who blinketh the eyes of the poor wretch about to die doeth it out of mercy.1990 D. Rutherford Game of Sudden Death (BNC) 321 Maskirovka, Richie. The left hand knoweth not what the right hand doeth.
γ. Old English doæs (Northumbrian), Old English doas (Northumbrian), Old English ðoes (Northumbrian, probably transmission error), Old English (Northumbrian) Middle English– does, Middle English doez, Middle English dois, Middle English dooz, Middle English dotȝ (north-west midlands), Middle English dotz, Middle English dous, Middle English doys, Middle English dus (northern), Middle English duse (northern and south-west midlands), Middle English (1800s nonstandard) doos, Middle English–1500s dose, Middle English–1600s dos, 1500s doose, 1600s–1700s do's; English regional 1800s dis (Cumberland), 1800s doez (south-western), 1800s– diz (northern), 1800s– doos, 1800s– duz (northern and north midlands); U.S. regional 1800s dooz, 1800s duse, 1800s– doos; Scottish pre-1700 doise, pre-1700 dos, pre-1700 doyis, pre-1700 doys, pre-1700 1700s dois, pre-1700 1700s– dis, pre-1700 1700s– does, 1700s dise, 1800s duis, 1800s dyz, 1800s– daes, 1800s– diz; also Irish English (northern) 1800s– diz. OE (Northumbrian) Lindisf. Gospels: Matt. vi. 3 Nesciat sinistra tua quid faciat dextera tua : nyta winstra ðin huæt wyrcas uel doas suiðra ðin.OE (Northumbrian) Lindisf. Gospels: Matt. vii. 24 Qui audit uerba mea haec et facit ea : se ðe geheres uorda mina ðas & does ða ilco.OE (Northumbrian) Lindisf. Gospels: Matt. viii. 9 Dico..seruo meo fac hoc et facit : ic cueðo..ðeua minum do ðis & does [OE Rushw. he doeþ].a1250 (?a1200) Ancrene Riwle (Titus) (1963) 40 Godd..teide for þi a clot of heui eorðe to hire, as mon dos þe custel to þe ku. ▸ c1300 Havelok (Laud) (1868) 1994 He folwede hem so hund dos hare.c1390 (?c1350) Joseph of Arimathie (1871) l. 233 He dos as he bad.a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Fairf. 14) l. 2908 Hit dose [Vesp. dos] mony in syn to fal.a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Vesp.) l. 5208 He dus [Fairf. dos] nakins thing.?c1450 Life St. Cuthbert (1891) l. 7291 Wha so dose agayne þe saynte.a1500 (a1460) Towneley Plays (1994) I. xii. 115 How thynk ye this doys??1567 M. Parker Whole Psalter xxii. 50 My hart..doth melt and pyne, as waxe by fier dose.1598 W. Shakespeare Henry IV, Pt. 1 iii. i. 168 Faith he does.a1616 W. Shakespeare All's Well that ends Well (1623) iv. iii. 214 Our Interpreter do's it well.1661 A. Marvell Let. 6 Apr. in Poems & Lett. (1971) II. 22 Longer then your businesse usually dos.1677 in W. Fraser Stirlings of Keir (1858) 513 So dis your..humble servant.1745 in Misc. Spalding Club (1841) I. 430 Which Im told Lord Lewis dise not admit.1858 Dark Night xix. 212 Worryin' up the thing that way daes nae guid.1880 W. H. Patterson Gloss. Words Antrim & Down 68 [Citing Poor Rabbin's Ollminick.] Ye shud still ax a frien' t' take a bit o' whativver's goin', if he diz, why A wish him his health.1939 C. Odets Rocket to Moon in Six Plays 332 I'll eat my hat if she does.1985 L. Lochhead tr. Molière Tartuffe 55 Mr Orgon? Live here, diz he?2005 Independent 19 May 35/5 I've no idea what it does.
δ. late Old English dyð (Kentish), early Middle English dieð (south-eastern, south-east midlands, and south-west midlands), early Middle English dieth (south-east midlands and south-western), Middle English dieþ (west midlands), Middle English dyth (south-west midlands), Middle English dythe (south-west midlands); English regional (Devon) 1800s dith. Later Middle English evidence is provided by Ling. Atlas Late Mediaeval Eng., which records a form dyth from MS Oxford, Bodleian Library, Add. B.107 (first half of the 15th cent.).lOE Canterbury Psalter lxxi. 18 Benedictus dominus deus israel qui facit mirabilia magna solus : gebletsod dryhten god isræhele se dyð wundor micele ænæ.a1225 (?OE) MS Vesp. in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1868) 1st Ser. 233 Hwat deð si moder hire bearn?..Hi hit..dieð under hire arme.a1225 (c1200) Vices & Virtues (1888) 5 He..almesse doð, ðat he ofte biȝelpð, oðer on swilche wise hes dieð, ðat he herienge ðar of hafð.a1225 (?c1175) Poema Morale (Egerton) 235 in J. Zupitza & J. Schipper Alt- u. Mitteleng. Übungsbuch (1904) 87 Æiðer heom dieð wa inoh.c1300 St. James Great (Laud) 308 in C. Horstmann Early S.-Eng. Legendary (1887) 43 Seint Ieme me halt up and Ioye i-novȝ me dieth make. 1860 H. Baird Song Solomon (1862) ii. 6 Es rite han dith imbrace ma.1867 W. F. Rock Jim an' Nell 6 Et dith more gude than kautchy vizzick.
ε. early Middle English doð, early Middle English douþ (south-east midlands), early Middle English dowth (East Anglian), Middle English doh, Middle English doht, Middle English dohy, Middle English dooht, Middle English doot, Middle English dooþ, Middle English dooþe, Middle English dot, Middle English doþ, Middle English doþe, Middle English dotȝ (East Anglian), Middle English dothþ, Middle English dotþ, Middle English doy, Middle English doyt, Middle English–1500s doothe, Middle English–1600s dooth, Middle English–1600s (1700s archaic) dothe, Middle English–1600s (1700s– archaic) doth. c1175 Ormulum (Burchfield transcript) l. 17058 He þatt ifell doþ, Aȝȝ hateþþ lihht & leme.a1200 MS Trin. Cambr. in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1873) 2nd Ser. 53 He doð alse holie write seið.a1300 (c1275) Physiologus (1991) 595 Wið oðre briddes ȝe [sc. a dove] doð as moder.c1330 Sir Degare (Auch.) 137 in W. H. French & C. B. Hale Middle Eng. Metrical Romances (1930) 292 Ȝhe..doht hem to horse anon, And gonne to ride euerichon.a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Trin. Cambr.) l. 11838 Þis caitif..Dooþ [Vesp. dos] him leches for to seke.1429–30 Rolls of Parl.: Henry VI (Electronic ed.) Parl. Sept. 1429 §36. m. 8 He þat doy þe contrarie to damage of þe seller, shal forfete to þe kyng, þe value of þe godis so weied.c1455 Speculum Misericordie in PMLA (1939) 54 764 Ioye it is To thee Awngelys of hevene..Offe a man that..dooht penawnce wt greet hertis moone.c1500 Melusine (1895) 371 Yf a man dooth as wel as he can.1569 A. Golding tr. N. Hemmingsen Postill f. 27v The thirde thing that Christ dooth heere, is that he dooth Peter too vnderstand.1598 W. Shakespeare Love's Labour's Lost i. ii. 47 It doth amount to one more then two.1665 Bill of Sale 2 Oct. in B. D. Hicks Rec. N. & S. Hempstead, Long Island (1896) I. 212 The saied Joseph genens..dooth ingage the premesses to be farme and athentick in law.a1770 T. Chatterton Compl. Wks. (1971) I. 211 The dethe-owle loude dothe synge, To the nyghte-mares as heie goe.1819 P. B. Shelley Cenci iv. iv. 70 I must speak with Count Cenci; doth he sleep?1870 E. H. Pember Trag. of Lesbos iv. 73 How very far she doth outstature me.1920 C. M. Doughty Mansoul v. 136 He eternally doth remain.2003 J. Murray Jazz xii. 239 Ah, I see, vibes as in the vibraphone. What a pretty conceit that doth sound, the concert piano and the vibraphone zusammen.
ζ. 1500s do (perhaps transmission error), 1500s doe; English regional 1800s– do, 1900s– don (Shropshire); U.S. regional 1900s– duh (in African-American usage). 1547 J. Bale Lattre Examinacyon A. Askewe f. 57 No godlye instytucyon nor ordynaunce..do [perh. read doth] thys faythfull woman contempne, but reverentlye submytteth herself therunto.1559 W. Cuningham Cosmogr. Glasse 6 Geographie doe deliniat, and set out the universal earth. 1888 F. T. Elworthy W. Somerset Word-bk. at Rape He do blid like a pig.1930 in B. A. Botkin Folk-say 355 De win' duh blow.1997 J. Whinray Down 'long weth We 31 And he do try and drenk up es licker en the mean time.
η. English regional (Worcestershire) 1900s– dost. 1971 H. Orton & M. V. Barry Surv. Eng. Dial. II. iii. 1027 How much rent..pay?.. [Worcs.] dost he.
(ii). With personal pronoun affixed 1600s dos't, 1600s 1800s (1900s– Scottish) does't, 1800s dyz-hey (Scottish (southern)), 1800s– dissha (English regional (Yorkshire)). 1631 B. Jonson Bartholmew Fayre ii. v. 26 in Wks. II Her language growes greasier then her Pigs... Dos't so, snotty nose?1691 W. Wollaston Design Part of Bk. Ecclesiastes 107 As I turn the Pencil of my eye From Fate and Nature to Society, What terrifying stories does't portray Upon the table of the Retina!1832 J. Lawson Giordano v. i. 85 What does't portend?1873 J. A. H. Murray Dial. S. Counties Scotl. 219 Interrog[ative]..dyz-hey.1888 in Eng. Dial. Dict. (1900) II. 96/2 Dissha [does she] knaw he's there.a1930 N. Munro How Jinnet saw King in B. D. Osborne & R. Armstrong Erchie & Jimmy Swan (1993) i. x. 47 Does't no' put ye in mind o' Rubbert's wee Hughie? (iii). Contracted 1900s– -'s (nonstandard). 1934 ‘N. Bell’ Winding Road xxii. 611 When's Parliament reassemble, Stephen?1938 N. Marsh Artists in Crime xvii. 253 What's he know about it?1966 ‘J. Hackston’ Father clears Out 22 That fellow was most disheartening. What's he know about gold!1980 ‘M. Underwood’ Crime upon Crime i. 7 What's he do?.. I wondered if he belonged to one of those hush-hush outfits? (iv). With negative particle affixed.α. 1600s– doesn't, 1900s– doesn (regional and nonstandard), 1900s– does'nt (nonstandard); English regional 1600s dozn't (south-western), 1800s disna (northern), 1800s dithn't (Devon), 1800s– disn't (northern), 1800s– dissent (northern), 1800s– dithen (Devon), 1800s– dith'n (Devon), 1800s– dizna (northern), 1800s– doth'n (Devon), 1800s– dud'n (Devon), 1800s– dusna (Cheshire), 1800s– duzn't (Lincolnshire), 1900s– disno' (northern), 1900s– doesno', 1900s– dudn't (Lincolnshire); U.S. regional 1900s– dassent, 1900s– dudn', 1900s– dudn't; also Scottish 1700s– disna, 1800s dyzna, 1800s– disnae, 1800s– doesna, 1900s– disnin, 1900s– disno, 1900s– dizna, 1900s– doesnae, 1900s– doesni, 1900s– doesny, 1900s– düsno; also Irish English (northern) 1900s– disna, 1900s– disnae, 1900s– diznae, 1900s– dizn't. 1678 T. Duffett Psyche Debauch'd i. i. 13 My love's zoo bomination strong, That 'twill hold buckle and thong; And if dozn't get thee vurder aveel, shat zee' can strick vyre with my steel.1694 L. Echard tr. Plautus Epidicus i. iii, in tr. Plautus Comedies 89 I shall send him to Bridewel with his Skin stript o're his Ears, if he doesn't procure the hundred Pounds as soon as the last Word's pronounc'd.1719 A. Ramsay Epist. to J. Arbuckle 5 Errant knight..disna care for A how, a what way, or a wherefore.1788 E. Picken Poems & Epist. 148 Hard is the fate o' ony doless tyke, That's forc't to marry ane he disna like.1823 ‘R. M'Chronicle’ Legends Scotl. III. 97 He'll be in a het skin or this time, if he disnae find the laigh road langer than the new road ti Stirling.1891 R. P. Chope Dial. Hartland, Devonshire Dud'n, does not. Not so common as Dith'n or Doth'n.1947 M. Hamilton in M. Lindsay & F. Urquhart No Sc. Twilight i. 16 Ye're weel rid o' him if he doesny think enough o' ye to come back.1960 in Sc. National Dict. (1965) VI. 35/3 If he düsno come til a wrang end, I'se lee da less.2000 M. Fitt But n Ben A-go-go xx. 158 Somebody in a muckle touer somewhere really doesna like you, lieutenant.
β. regional and nonstandard 1700s– don't, 1700s– dont, 1900s– dunnit (with personal pronoun affixed); English regional 1800s– dunna, 1800s– dunnad-a (Shropshire, with personal pronoun affixed), 1800s– dwon't (Wiltshire), 1800s– dwun't (Oxfordshire), 1900s– dinna (Cheshire), 1900s– dinnit (with personal pronoun affixed), 1900s– doona (west midlands), 1900s– dunt; U.S. regional 1900s– don', 1900s– non't; Scottish 2000s– dinnit (with personal pronoun affixed). Compare dunnit int.1660 J. Bellamy tr. Origen Against Celsus i. xiii. 70 He don't simply say, that Wisdom is Foolishness with God.1675 Woman turn'd Bully ii. ii. 30 Pick this Pipe; it don't come worth a Rush.1706 G. Farquhar Recruiting Officer iv. ii. 50 Don't the Moon see all the World?1713 R. Nelson Life Bp. Bull 81 Why, said the Preacher, Solomon don't say so.1740 S. Richardson Pamela I. xxiv. 65 He don't know you.1762 Gentleman's Mag. Jan. 38/1 It don't regard the present war.1774 P. V. Fithian Jrnl. & Lett. (1900) 202 A Sunday in Virginia dont seem to wear the same Dress as our Sundays to the Northward.1813 ‘H. Bull-Us’ Diverting Hist. John Bull & Brother Jonathan ii. 9 The old saying that a man don't know when he is well off.1835 R. M. Bird Hawks of Hawk-hollow I. xi. 143 I wonder she don't sing; for a speaking voice, she has the richest soprano.1862 O. W. Norton Army Lett. (1903) 120 It don't take ten thousand acres here to support one family.1893 G. E. Dartnell & E. H. Goddard Gloss. Words Wilts. 192 He does..hissel well, dwon't he?1919 H. L. Mencken Amer. Lang. vi. 210 Don't has also completely displaced doesn't, which is very seldom heard. ‘He don't’ and ‘they don't’ are practically universal.1946 K. Tennant Lost Haven (1947) i. 15 A man what don't profit from all a woman's telling and hiding the bottles ain't worth the trouble.2001 H. Collins No Smoke ii. 24 Keeps hur mooth shut, dinnit?
d. Plural.Since the Middle English period also used for the 2nd singular with ye or you (originally polite form); see esp. section (i)γ. (do is now the standard form). (i).α. Old English doaþ (Mercian), Old English doað (Northumbrian), Old English doeþ (Mercian), Old English doeð (Northumbrian), Old English doęð (Northumbrian), Old English dooð (rare), Old English–early Middle English doð, Old English–Middle English doþ, early Middle English boþ (transmission error), early Middle English dod, early Middle English doh, early Middle English doit (south-west midlands), early Middle English dot, early Middle English dothz, Middle English doȝ (south-eastern), Middle English doght, Middle English doiþ, Middle English dooþ, Middle English dooth, Middle English doþe, Middle English doth, Middle English dothe, Middle English doyth, Middle English doz (southern), Middle English (1500s Scottish) doith, Middle English 1600s doeth. OE (Mercian) Rushw. Gospels: Matt. v. 46 Nonne et puplicani hoc faciunt : ah gæfelgeroefe þæt ne doeþ?OE (Mercian) Rushw. Gospels: Matt. v. 47 Quid amplius facietis : hwæt doaþ ge marae?OE West Saxon Gospels: Matt. (Corpus Cambr.) v. 47 Gyf ge þæt an doð þæt ge eowre gebroðra wylcumiaþ, hwæt do ge mare?a1225 (?OE) MS Lamb. in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1868) 1st Ser. 9 Bet heo heolden heore wurðing dei þene we doð.c1300 All Souls (Laud) 297 in C. Horstmann Early S.-Eng. Legendary (1887) 429 Ȝongue children..ne berez with heom no sunne..Also quicliche ase liȝhttingue þoru purgatorie huy doz gon.1340 Ayenbite (1866) 69 Hi doþ..þe contrarye.a1375 (c1350) William of Palerne (1867) 1788 Whilum þei went on alle four, as doþ wilde bestes.c1422 T. Hoccleve Dialogus (Durh.) l. 826 in Minor Poems (1970) i. 139 Þat shal pourge..My gilt as cleene as keuerchiefs dooth sope.c1450 in T. Austin Two 15th-cent. Cookery-bks. (1888) 84 Dresse hit into a dissh as ye doeth a colde creme.c1500 (?a1437) Kingis Quair (1939) xcvi Noght suich sighis as hertis doith manace, Bot suich as dooth lufaris to be glad.1556 W. Lauder Compend. Tractate Dewtie of Kyngis sig. C2v For gredie Iugis, I ȝow assure Doith sell the causis, of the pure.1664 Churchwardens' Accts.: Minchinhampton, Gloucestershire in B. Cusack Everyday Eng. 1500–1700 (1998) 85 The seate wheare Phillip Vezy Steven Wood and Thomas Hayward doeth vsily sit in.
β. Old English doæs (Northumbrian), Old English doas (Northumbrian), Old English (Northumbrian)–Middle English (1800s– regional and nonstandard) does, Middle English deose, Middle English dois (northern), Middle English doos, Middle English doose, Middle English dose, Middle English dosse, Middle English dous, Middle English douse, Middle English–1500s dos; English regional 1800s– diz (Yorkshire), 1800s– doos (southern); Scottish pre-1700 does, pre-1700 dois, pre-1700 doise, pre-1700 doys, 1800s dis. OE (Northumbrian) Lindisf. Gospels: Matt. v. 47 Quid amplius facitis : huæt forðor gie doas uel wyrcas?OE (Northumbrian) Rushw. Gospels: John xv. 21 Haec omnia facient uobis propter sermonem meum : ðas alle does iow fore worde minum. ▸ 1357 J. Gaytryge Lay Folks' Catech. (York Min.) (1901) 498 The ferthe dedeli syn is glotony..And this trespas dos men opon sere wise.a1425 (a1400) Prick of Conscience (Galba & Harl.) (1863) l. 4146 Swilk men..Þat mykel dus [?a1500 Harl. 6923 dose] ogayns Goddes lawe.?a1425 Mandeville's Trav. (Egerton) (1889) 10 Þai sell benificez of haly kirk, and so duse men in oþer placez.a1500 (c1400) Vision of Tundale (Adv.) (1843) 1390 He þrystede hem in sonder as men doose Grapys to þryste oute þe wose.1533 J. Bellenden tr. Livy Hist. Rome (1822) ii. 109 Tak away that odius name..and, gif you dois it plesandlie, thy cieteyanis sal, [etc.].c1580 ( tr. Bk. Alexander (1921) II. ii. 2479 Quhat tua thingis dois ȝow to dre Sorrow and pane?1655 in W. Fraser Chiefs of Grant (1883) III. 243 To give..our bodilie service..as the other gentlemen wedsettarres..does.1848 ‘N. Buntline’ Mysteries & Miseries N.Y. ii. x. 64 They does keep their peeps purty vide hopen.1871 W. Alexander Johnny Gibb x. 72 Dis lawvyers need muckle o' 't noo?1892 M. C. F. Morris Yorks. Folk-talk 125 They nivver diz neea good.1932 W. Faulkner Light in August xiii. 277 I dont know who they is nor what they does.1934 T. S. Eliot Rock i. 40 On Christmas Day we can organize a Anti-God procession, same as they does in Russia.1998 R. Antoni in S. Brown & J. Wickham Oxf. Bk. Caribbean Short Stories (1999) 404 Before Guy Fawkes they does start selling the rockets, and the starlights, and the bombs and different things.
γ. Old English (before personal pronoun) Middle English– do, Middle English don, Middle English donn, Middle English doone, Middle English doyn (northern), Middle English (1500s archaic) doen, Middle English (1500s archaic) done, Middle English (1600s archaic) doon, Middle English–1600s doo, Middle English–1700s doe, 1500s dooe; English regional 1700s dya (Cumberland), 1800s da (Devon), 1800s dune (Shropshire), 1800s– deea (Yorkshire), 1800s– dew (Suffolk), 1800s– di (Yorkshire), 1800s– don (west midlands and northern), 1800s– done (Lancashire and Staffordshire), 1800s– dow (Staffordshire), 1800s– du, 1800s– dun (chiefly north-west midlands and north-western), 1800s– duv (Yorkshire), 1900s– div (Cumberland); U.S. regional 1800s dew; Scottish pre-1700 due, pre-1700 1700s dow, pre-1700 1700s– do, 1700s– dee, 1800s dui, 1800s dyv, 1800s– dae, 1800s– div, 1800s– dü (Shetland), 1900s– deu (Orkney), 1900s– duv (Argyll); also Irish English 1800s– div, 1800s– duv, 1900s– dae, 1900s– dee. eOE King Ælfred tr. Gregory Pastoral Care (Hatton) (1871) xlv. 337 Gif we nauht ðæs ne dooð ðe us mon mid goode leanian ðyrfe, ne do we [L. perpetramus] eac nan woh ðe us mon fore tælan ðurfe.OE West Saxon Gospels: Matt. (Corpus Cambr.) v. 47 Gyf ge þæt an doð þæt ge eowre gebroðra wylcumiaþ, hwæt do ge [L. facitis] mare?c1175 Ormulum (Burchfield transcript) l. 379 Swa ne don nohht alle þa Þatt follȝhenn rihhtwisnesse.a1200 MS Trin. Cambr. in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1873) 2nd Ser. 19 Þese two þing don alle heðen men.a1225 (?OE) MS Lamb. in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1868) 1st Ser. 51 Þene we to sunbote cumeð, þenne do we bi ure sunne al swa me deað bi þe deade.a1375 (c1350) William of Palerne (1867) 3952 Ȝe don a gret deshonour wiþ þat to ȝou-selue. ▸ c1384 Bible (Wycliffite, E.V.) (Douce 369(2)) (1850) Mark vii. 8 Manye othere thingis lyke to thes ȝe don [a1425 L.V. doon].c1405 (?c1375–90) G. Chaucer Monk's Tale (Hengwrt) (2003) l. 740 Fader,..Is ther no morsel breed þt ye do kepe. ▸ c1426 J. Audelay Poems (1931) 12 Þai done hym deme.a1500 (a1460) Towneley Plays (1994) I. xxiii. 296 Thay wote not what thay doyn.1576 A. Fleming tr. Cicero in Panoplie Epist. 89 What you doe, and what other do.1584 G. Peele Araygnem. Paris i. iii. sig. Aiij Nor doth the milke white way in frostie night, Appeare so faire and beautifull in sight: As done these fieldes and groues.1606 N. Baxter Sir Philip Sydneys Ouránia sig. I2v Where Birds doon drink for sustentation, Where Nimphes and Graces, take their recreation.1660 Bp. J. Taylor Worthy Communicant i. §2. 39 We do it also, and doe it much more.1721 J. Kelly Compl. Coll. Scotish Prov. 400 How dee yee.a1788 I. Ritson Copy of Let. 7 Tha feed tem wi beck-sand, as tha dya at Whitehebben wi cwols.1860 W. White All round Wrekin 350 People dune loike to set comf'table.1866 W. Gregor Dial. Banffshire 22 Gehn ye dee that.1895 J. B. Webber Rambles 175 He said we sma' respeck dae pay Tae God and his most holy laws.a1917 E. C. Smith Braid Haaick (1927) 21 Div ee leike ti beide up Ingland?1998 Prospect Mar. 69/3 The capital markets do not move quickly and smoothly enough towards equilibrium.
δ. south-west midlands early Middle English ded, early Middle English deht (probably transmission error), early Middle English det, early Middle English deð. a1225 (?c1175) Poema Morale (Lamb.) l. 235 in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1868) 1st Ser. 173 Hi hem deð wa inoch nabbeð hi nane blisse.a1225 (?c1175) Poema Morale (Egerton) 79 in J. Zupitza & J. Schipper Alt- u. Mitteleng. Übungsbuch (1904) 83 He wat hwet deð [?c1250 Egerton deht] end ðenchet ealle quike wihte.a1250 (?a1200) Ancrene Riwle (Titus) (1963) 74 Weneð þat ha wel do as dusie men & dotede deð [c1230 Corpus Cambr. doð] hire to vnderstonde.c1250 in K. Reichl Relig. Dichtung im Eng. Hochmittelalter (1972) 307 So det þe riche þat boc of rad: From gode dede hoe bet ilad Ant leuere werkes ha wollet don.a1300 (?a1200) Ancrene Riwle (Caius) 24 Ofte we wened forto don alutel uuel & ded [c1230 Corpus Cambr. doð] a great sunne.
(ii). With personal pronoun affixed English regional 1800s– do't, 1900s– dunneh (Lancashire); Scottish pre-1700 does't, 1800s dui-thay, 1800s dui-wey, 1800s dui-ye, 1800s dyv-thay, 1800s dyv-wey, 1800s dyv-ye. a1634 A. Gardyne Theatre Scotish Worthies (1878) 27 Wee by tradition does't [rhyme ws'd].1873 J. A. H. Murray Dial. S. Counties Scotl. 219 Interrog[ative]..dui-wey or dyv-wey, dui-ye..dyv-ye, dui-thay or dyv-thay.1891 R. P. Chope Dial. Hartland, Devonshire 105 They do't out o' play, I s'pose.1900 Eng. Dial. Dict. II. 96/2 [Lancashire] Dunneh? do you? (iii). Contracted (regional and nonstandard) 1600s– d'-, 1600s– d-. 1611 G. Chapman May-day ii. i. 23 And how dee Sir?1632 R. Brome Northern Lasse i. ii Dee hear?1639 J. Mayne Citye Match v. ii. 53 D'you think I'le have your Factor move before me, Like..Some grave Clock wound up to a regular pace?1697 J. Vanbrugh Æsop ii. i There, how d'ye do now?1773 O. Goldsmith She stoops to Conquer iii. 60 What d'ye call it?1853 Harper's Monthly Jan. 193/2 How dee do, John?1866 J. W. Graves in People's Eng. Songs (1903) 9 D'ye ken John Peel..?1894 A. Morrison Tales Mean Streets 41 Which d'yer like, Lizer?—..I'll sport yer one.1922 J. Joyce Ulysses ii. 406 D'ye ken bare socks?1992 I. Pattison More Rab C. Nesbitt Scripts 107 D'yi think yi could maybe phone an ambulance, ya bastards that yeez are!2005 W. Wall This is Country 41 What d'you expect? (iv). With negative particle affixed 1600s donnot, 1600s– don't, 1700s (1800s– nonstandard) dont; English regional 1700s dant (Dorset), 1700s dunnet (Westmorland), 1800s den't (Essex), 1800s dinn't (northern), 1800s donna (Lancashire), 1800s doo-an't (Northamptonshire), 1800s dunno (Yorkshire), 1800s– daun't (Cornwall), 1800s– deeant (Yorkshire), 1800s– dinnot (northern), 1800s– din't (chiefly northern), 1800s– divn't (northern), 1800s– doan't, 1800s– doesn't (Yorkshire), 1800s– don'ut (Surrey), 1800s– dun (Staffordshire), 1800s– dunna, 1800s– dunnad-a (Shropshire, with personal pronoun affixed), 1800s– dunner (Cheshire), 1800s– dunnot, 1800s– dunnut, 1800s– durnd (Lancashire), 1800s– durn't (Lancashire), 1800s– dwon't (Wiltshire), 1800s– dwun't (Oxfordshire), 1900s– dinna (northern), 1900s– dinnet (Durham), 1900s– dint (Yorkshire), 1900s– divvent (northern), 1900s– divvenut (northern), 1900s– doona (midlands); U.S. regional 1800s– doan', 1900s– don', 1900s– non't; also Scottish 1700s– dinna, 1700s– dinnae, 1800s den no', 1800s diven, 1800s divent, 1800s divnin, 1800s donna, 1800s dynna, 1800s– divna, 1800s– dunna, 1900s– daena, 1900s– dain't, 1900s– dinny, 1900s– düna (Shetland); also Irish English (northern) 1900s– daeny, 1900s– dinna, 1900s– dinnae, 1900s– dinny, 1900s– divnae, 1900s– doannae, 1900s– don'. 1620 I. C. Two Merry Milke-maids i. ii. sig. C1 What, you donnot meane to goe see the Duke, Brother?a1643 W. Cartwright Ordinary (1651) i. ii. 8 Don't you see December in her face?1670 in Coll. Rhode Island Hist. Soc. (1902) X. 102 Evidence of..River being more than 11 Miles Long but how Much More dont say, but some say 2 Miles Making 13.1730 A. Gordon tr. F. S. Maffei Compl. Hist. Anc. Amphitheatres 108 Why don't they consider?1731 Keller's Rules Thorow-bass in W. Holder Treat. Harmony 172 Play common Chords on all Notes where the following Rules dont direct you otherwise.1777 Whole Proc. Jockey & Maggy (rev. ed.) ii. 13 They dinna ken whether they be able for it or no.1872 W. Philip It'll a' come Richt 132 Diven ye ken that a lass may be meryt in a natril kin o' wye?1935 A. McArthur & H. K. Long No Mean City xi. 158 You like me a wee bit, dain't you, Johnnie?1985 A. Blair Tea at Miss Cranston's xxiii. 199 Medals dinnae compe'sate you, for seventy year of your lungs still pechin' from the gas. 3. Present subjunctive. a. Singular Old English doa (chiefly Anglian), Old English ðo (probably transmission error), Old English ðoe (Northumbrian, probably transmission error), Old English (rare) Middle English–1500s doo, Old English (chiefly Anglian) Middle English–1600s doe, Old English– do, early Middle English dov (south-western), Middle English don (perhaps transmission error), 1500s dooe, 1700s– deet (English regional (Cheshire), with personal pronoun affixed); also Scottish pre-1700 do, pre-1700 dow. OE (Northumbrian) Lindisf. Gospels: Mark x. 35 Uolumus quodcumque petierimus facias nobis : woe wallað þætte suae huæt we willniað ðu doe us.OE (Mercian) Rushw. Gospels: Matt. vi. 3 Nesciat sinistra quid faciat dextera tua : nyte se winstrae hond þin hwat þin sio swiþre doa.OE Ælfric Catholic Homilies: 1st Ser. (Royal) (1997) i. 195 Beheald þæt ðu ðas dæde ne do.c1225 (?c1200) St. Margaret (Royal) (1934) 47 Ich bidde..þat tu do baldeliche.a1300 in K. Reichl Relig. Dichtung im Eng. Hochmittelalter (1973) 334 Loke þat þov ne sle no man, Ne lecherie dov bi no wiman.a1375 (c1350) William of Palerne (1867) 315 God do his wille!?a1425 (c1400) Mandeville's Trav. (Titus C.xvi) (1919) 20 Ȝif ony man do þere jnne ony maner metall.a1500 (?c1450) Merlin (1899) vi. 101 And thow do lye..neuer shall I the love.1577 B. Googe tr. C. Heresbach Foure Bks. Husbandry i. f. 15v That he doo not thinke him selfe wyser then his maister.1591 H. Savile tr. Tacitus Ende of Nero: Fower Bks. Hist. i. 5 Doe he wel doe he ill, al is ill taken.1605 Play Stucley in R. Simpson School of Shakspere (1878) I. 254 We'll spur your Iennet..Until with yarking she do break her girths.1685 P. Henry Diaries & Lett. (1882) 344 Hee..sayes, hee wil stand suit, which if he doe, I know who wil get the better.1791 S. Kyd Treat. Law of Awards v. 135 An award..is sufficiently certain, though it do not say for what term the reassignment shall be.1836 R. Wilbraham Attempt Gloss. Cheshire (ed. 2) 32 Much good deet you.1861 G. Ross W. Bell's Dict. Law Scotl. (rev. ed.) 291 If he do not renounce the succession.1928 D. Barnes Ryder xxxviii. 213 May I rot like a duchess if it do not reline me with sweetness and light.1983 R. Copeland & M. Cohen What is Dance? v. 370 The crucial thing is not that the ballerina perform the thirty-two fouettés.., but that she do something that creates a similar effect of..virtuosity. b. Plural early Old English doen (non-West Saxon), Old English doa (Mercian), Old English doan (Mercian), Old English doe (Northumbrian), Old English doon (rare), Old English–early Middle English don, Old English (chiefly before personal pronoun)–Middle English do, Middle English doo. In later use not distinguished formally from the indicative (see Forms 2d(i)γ).OE (Mercian) Rushw. Gospels: Matt. vi. 1 Adtendite ne iustitiam uestram faciatis coram hominibus : behaldeþ þæt ge eowre soþfestnisse ne doan fore monnum.OE Paternal Precepts 70 Ne habbað wiht for þæt, þeah hi wom don ofer meotudes bibod.OE Ælfric Catholic Homilies: 1st Ser. (Royal) (1997) xviii. 318 Hu do we ymbe ðe?a1275 in C. Brown Eng. Lyrics 13th Cent. (1932) 56 We biddit hire in ure song, he yef us god hendinke þau ve don wrong.c1275 (?a1200) Laȝamon Brut (Calig.) (1963) l. 1692 Do we awai þane twenti, a tene beoð inohȝe.1340 Ayenbite (1866) 145 Saynte paul..ous amonesteþ and bit þet we do oure payne þet we by al on ine god.c1465 (c1390) G. Chaucer Parson's Tale (Christ Church Oxf.) (1877) §717 They shulle be turmentyd with the del in helle but if they doo penitence. 4. Imperative. a. Singular. (i). Old English doa (chiefly Anglian), Old English (rare) Middle English–1500s doo, Old English (rare) Middle English–1700s doe, Old English– do, early Middle English don, Middle English doon, 1500s–1600s dooe; English regional 1700s dean (Yorkshire), 1800s deue (Devon), 1800s dow (Derbyshire), 1800s– deea (Yorkshire); also Scottish 1800s deu (Orkney), 1800s dui (southern), 1800s– dae, 1900s– dee; also Irish English (northern) 1900s– dut (with personal pronoun affixed). eOE (Mercian) Vespasian Psalter (1965) xxxvi. 3 Spera in domino et fac bonitatem : gehyht in dryht' & doa godnisse.eOE King Ælfred tr. Gregory Pastoral Care (Hatton) (1871) xliv. 325 Doo wel ðæm eaðmodum, & ðam arleasum nanwuht.OE Genesis A (1931) 2227 Do swa ic þe bidde.c1175 Ormulum (Burchfield transcript) l. 5139 Ne do nan ifell dede.?c1225 (?a1200) Ancrene Riwle (Cleo. C.vi) (1972) 95 Do as deð þe pellican.a1300 in C. Brown Eng. Lyrics 13th Cent. (1932) 129 No god ne haue þov boten on, Hys name þov naȝt an ydel don.a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Vesp.) l. 15306 Fra mi fete do þin hand.1447 O. Bokenham Lives of Saints (Arun.) (1938) 2242 Doo now as þou hast doon here-before.?1523 J. Fitzherbert Bk. Husbandry f. lvv Do well and worke rightwisly.1534 T. Elyot tr. Isocrates Doctr. Princes 9 b Dooe thou nothyng in furie.1611 Bible (King James) Jer. xliv. 4 Oh doe not this abominable thing.a1728 W. Kennett MS Coll. Provinc. Words in Eng. Dial. Dict. (1900) II. 97/2 ‘Prithee dean,’ pray doe.1860 G. P. R. Pulman Song of Solomon viii. 9 Deue let ai year'n teue!1880 W. T. Dennison Orcadian Sketch-bk. 8 Deu weel an' f'are nee man.1927 G. R. Harvey Shepherds 12 Be quate, Joseph, an' dee fit yer tell't.1996 C. I. Macafee Conc. Ulster Dict. 100/2 Dut, do it.1999 C. Mendelson Home Comforts lxiii. 739/1 Do your best to convince them to reform. (ii). With negative particle affixed 1600s do'nt, 1600s–1700s (1800s– nonstandard) dont, 1600s– don't, 1800s– doan't (regional); English regional 1800s deant (Yorkshire), 1800s dinna (northern), 1800s dinn't (northern), 1800s doo-an't (Northamptonshire), 1800s dooke (Wiltshire, with personal pronoun affixed), 1800s dunno (Yorkshire), 1800s d'wye (Gloucestershire, with personal pronoun affixed), 1800s– daun't (Cornwall), 1800s– deeant (Yorkshire), 1800s– deeant'ee (Yorkshire, with personal pronoun affixed), 1800s– dee'n't (Yorkshire), 1800s– dinnet (northern), 1800s– dinnot (northern), 1800s– divent (northern), 1800s– div'nt (Northumberland), 1800s– divvent (northern), 1800s– donna, 1800s– dooat (Westmorland), 1800s– dunna, 1800s– dunner (Cheshire), 1800s– dunnot (Lancashire and Cheshire), 1800s– dunnut (Cheshire), 1800s– durnd (Lancashire), 1800s– dusna (Cornwall), 1800s– dwoan't (Somerset), 1800s– dwo-ant (Berkshire), 1800s– dwon't (Wiltshire), 1800s– dwunt (Berkshire), 1800s– dwun't (chiefly south-western), 1800s– dwunty (Gloucestershire, with personal pronoun affixed), 1900s– daint (Northumberland), 1900s– dee-ant (northern), 1900s– dinit (northern), 1900s– din't (northern), 1900s– divint (northern), 1900s– divvenut (northern), 1900s– durd (northern); U.S. regional 1900s– doan, 1900s– don'; also Scottish 1800s divna, 1800s donna, 1800s dynna, 1800s– dinna, 1800s– dinnae, 1800s– dinnie, 1800s– dunna, 1900s– dinny, 1900s– düna (Shetland); also Irish English (northern) 1900s– daeny, 1900s– doannae. 1633 J. Fisher Fuimus Troes i. iv. sig.B2v False Eccho, don't blaspheme that glorious sexe.1680 School of Venus i, in B. K. Mudge When Flesh becomes Word (2004) 11 But pray do'nt talk of such kind of thing before Company.1694 J. Collier Misc. iv. 21 Don't stake your Life against a Nutshell.1722 R. Wodrow Corr. (1843) II. 638 Let me know how your eyes are. Dont stress them.1771 T. Smollett Humphry Clinker I. 2 Don't say a syllable of the matter to any living soul.1822 W. Scott Fortunes of Nigel I. v. 143 Donna tell me of what the city is.1886 R. L. Stevenson Kidnapped iii. 18 Dinnae fly up in the snuff at me.1908 in A. W. Johnston & A. Johnston Old-lore Misc. I. vii. 272 Dunna let da fools truck troo da grice's truss.1998 Evening News (Edinb.) 13 Feb. 11 Och, dinny be silly, Ian. b. Plural.Now merged formally with the singular in all varieties of English. (i).α. early Old English dood (Mercian, probably transmission error), Old English doæð (Northumbrian), Old English doaþ (Mercian), Old English doað (Anglian), Old English doeþ (Mercian), Old English doeð (Northumbrian), Old English dooð (rare), Old English ðoeð (Northumbrian, probably transmission error), Old English–early Middle English doð, Old English–Middle English doþ, early Middle English dod (south-west midlands), Middle English doith, Middle English dooþ, Middle English dooþe, Middle English dooth, Middle English doþe, Middle English doth, Middle English dothe, Middle English doyth. OE (Northumbrian) Lindisf. Gospels: Matt. v. 44 Benefacite his qui oderunt uos : uel doeð [OE Rushw. doeþ] uel doas ðæm ða ðe læðas uel laeðedon iuih.OE (Mercian) Rushw. Gospels: Matt. iv. 17 Penetentiam agite : doaþ hrewnisse.OE West Saxon Gospels: Matt. (Corpus Cambr.) iii. 3 Doþ [OE Lindisf. doeð] his siðas rihte.c1175 Ormulum (Burchfield transcript) l. 14024 Doþ þatt tatt he shall biddenn ȝuw.c1275 (?a1200) Laȝamon Brut (Calig.) (1963) l. 2850 Doð up an [MS and] waritreo, þer-on heo scullen winden.a1375 (c1350) William of Palerne (1867) l. 3807 Doþ ȝour dede to-day.c1400 (?c1308) Adam Davy's 5 Dreams (1878) l. 154 Dooþ me in-to prisoun.c1460 (?c1400) Tale of Beryn Prol. 163 Goith vp & doith yeur offerynge!a1500 (?a1400) Morte Arthur (1903) 3883 Syr..for crosse on Rode, Dothe suche wordys clene A-way.
β. northern and north midlands Old English doas (Northumbrian), Old English does (Northumbrian), Middle English dooz, Middle English dos, Middle English dose, Middle English dotȝ (north-west midlands), Middle English doz; Scottish pre-1700 dois; N.E.D. (1897) also records a form Middle English dus. OE (Northumbrian) Lindisf. Gospels: Matt. iii. 2 Paenitentiam agite : hreonisse doas uel wyrcas.OE (Northumbrian) Lindisf. Gospels: John vi. 10 Facite homines dicumbere : uyrcas uel does þætte ða menn gesitta.c1300 Evangelie (Dulwich Coll.) 406 in Publ. Mod. Lang. Assoc. Amer. (1915) 30 572 Mi leue frend, doz alle away! Jon he schal bi-hote. ▸ c1300 Havelok (Laud) (1868) l. 2592 Dos nu als ich wile yow lere.a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Vesp.) l. 2792 Tas and dos [Fairf. take an and do] your will wit þaa.a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Fairf. 14) l. 5090 Make ȝou redy..and dose ȝou hame.c1400 (?c1380) Pearl 521 Gos into my vyne, dotȝ þat ȝe conne.c1450 Speculum Christiani (Harl. 6580) (1933) 72 Knowleche ȝoure synnes and dooz penaunce [L. agite penitentiam].1489 (a1380) J. Barbour Bruce (Adv.) xvi. l. 628 Now dois weill, for men sall se Quha luffis ye kingis mensk today.c1540 (?a1400) Gest Historiale Destr. Troy (2002) f. 173 Dos of þis dede as you dere thinke.
γ. Old English (before personal pronoun) Middle English– do, Middle English don, Middle English–1500s doo, Middle English–1600s doe. In later use not distinguished formally from the singular (see section a(i) above for forms later than the 15th cent.). In some early examples indistinguishable from the jussive subjunctive.OE Ælfric Catholic Homilies: 2nd Ser. (Cambr. Gg.3.28) iv. 38 Doð swa swa hi tæcað, and ne do ge swa swa hi doð.OE Ælfric Gram. (St. John's Oxf.) 228 Imperativum age do ðu, agite do ge [Corpus Cambr. doð ge, Durh. doþ ge].c1175 Ormulum (Burchfield transcript) l. 9306 Nohht elless. ne nohht mare. Þann þatt tatt ȝuw iss sett to don, Ne do ȝe. þiss icc lære.c1230 (?a1200) Ancrene Riwle (Corpus Cambr.) (1962) 28 I bedd se uorð se ȝe mahen ne do [?c1225 Cleo., a1250 Nero do] ȝe ne ne þenchen [a1250 Nero þencheð] na þing bute slepen.c1350 (a1333) William of Shoreham Poems (1902) 96 Do ȝe nauȝt so, par charyte, Ac ȝoure tongen ȝe wealde. ▸ c1384 Bible (Wycliffite, E.V.) (Douce 369(2)) (1850) Matt. iii. 8 Therfore do ȝee worthi fruytis of penaunce [L. facite ergo fructum dignum paenitentiae].a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Fairf. 14) l. 4893 Do folow ham.a1450 (c1395) Bible (Wycliffite, L.V.) (Pepys) (1850) Laod. 439 Do ȝe withouten ony withdrawinge, what soeuere ȝe doon.a1500 in Englische Studien (1885) 8 280 Do purvey you..of fressh brede and erbage.1582 Bible (Rheims) Rom. xiii. 14 Doe ye on our Lord Jesus Christ.1611 Bible (King James) Matt. vii. 12 Doe [earlier 16th c. vv. do] ye even so to them.1682 J. Norris tr. Hierocles Golden Verses 32 That doe.a1774 R. Fergusson Poems (1785) 192 Ye royit louns! just do as he'd do.1819 W. S. Rose Court & Parl. Beasts i. 8 Bethink ye of the fable of the frog. Beasts, do not let us re-enact King Log.1986 M. Ivins Practicing Nuance down at Luby's in Molly Ivins can't say that, can She? (1991) 48 Do yourselves a favor, friends.
(ii). With negative particle affixed.Not distinguished formally from the singular (see section a(ii) above for forms).1663 T. Jordan Royal Arbor Loyal Poesie 19 Pray keep your places Gentlemen, don't rise.1700 W. Burnaby Reform'd Wife iii. i. 21 Come Ladies don't be frighten'd, here's enough of us to deal with one Man.1802 W. Scott Minstrelsy Sc. Border I. Introd. p. lxxxiii Gang a' to your beds, Sirs, and dinna put out the wee grieschoch (embers).1846 J. J. Hooper Some Adventures Simon Suggs x. 129 Ante up! ante up, boys—friends I mean—don't back out!1860 J. P. Robson Song Solomon i. 6 Divent glower it us, becas' aw's black.1891 T. Allan & G. Allan Tyneside Songs 47 'Bout Lunnun then div'nt ye mak' sic a rout.1911 Z. Grey Young Pitcher xvi. 208 Steady, boys, play it safe, play it safe!—don't let them double you!1994 P. Grescoe Blood Vessel 142 Don't lump me in with you. 5. Past indicative (and subjunctive). a. 1st and 3rd singular. (i).Already in Old English, the subjunctive is no longer formally distinct from the indicative (cf. quots. OE3 at α. forms, OE3 at β. forms).α. early Old English dydede (transmission error), Old English dyd (probably transmission error), Old English dydæ (rare), Old English–1600s dide, Old English–1600s dyde, late Old English dydo, early Middle English deode (south-western and south-west midlands), early Middle English diden (East Anglian), Middle English deude (south-western), Middle English didide (transmission error), Middle English dode (chiefly south-western), Middle English doede (south-west midlands), Middle English doude (south-western), Middle English dud (chiefly south-western and west midlands), Middle English dudd (south-western and west midlands), Middle English dudde (chiefly south-western), Middle English dude (chiefly south-western and west midlands), Middle English dued, Middle English dwde (south-eastern), Middle English dyede (west midlands), Middle English dyt, Middle English þude (south-western), Middle English–1500s didd, Middle English–1500s dydd, Middle English–1500s dydde, Middle English–1600s didde, Middle English–1600s dyd, Middle English– did; English regional 1700s– dud (chiefly northern), 1900s– doed (Cheshire); Scottish pre-1700 didde, pre-1700 dide, pre-1700 doid, pre-1700 dyde, pre-1700 1700s– did, pre-1700 1800s dyd, 1800s– deud (Orkney), 1900s– duid (Orkney). OE Ælfric Catholic Homilies: 1st Ser. (Royal) (1997) xxii. 359 He dyde [a1225 Lamb. dude] þæt hi wæron byrnende on godes willan.OE Old Eng. Hexateuch: Gen. (Corpus Cambr.) xxxix. 3 Ealle þa þingc þe he dide he dyde be his dihte.OE tr. Chrodegang of Metz Regula Canonicorum (Corpus Cambr. 191) xlii. 253 And þeah hit man ælce sunnandæge..dyde, þæt wære betere.lOE Anglo-Saxon Chron. (Laud) (Peterborough contin.) anno 1127 Se kyng hit dide for to hauene sibbe of se eorl of Angeow.c1175 ( Homily: Hist. Holy Rood-tree (Bodl. 343) (1894) 10 Ða dude þe cniht swa he him bead.c1250 Godefrey þe Gnede (Trin. Cambr. B.14.39) (Ling. Atlas Early Middle Eng. transcript) Godefrey þe gnede, he deode asse vnlede.c1300 11000 Virgins (Laud) 113 in C. Horstmann Early S.-Eng. Legendary (1887) 90 Þis ȝongue with gret ioye dude þat þe Aungel him gan lere. ▸ a1387 J. Trevisa tr. R. Higden Polychron. (St. John's Cambr.) (1876) VI. 465 He was þe firste þat dued [c1400 Tiber. dude, a1425 Harl. dide] monkes in stede of clerkes.a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Vesp.) l. 1608 He to pin him-selfen did [Gött. didd, Trin. Cambr. didde].a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Trin. Cambr.) l. 6270 Þe brode watir he dud [Vesp. did, Fairf. dide] him ynne.a1450 St. Edith (Faust.) (1883) l. 3743 To his mowthe þo his honde he dode.a1500 (?c1400) Sir Triamour (Cambr.) (1937) l. 495 He dyd hym faste away.1564 Extracts Rec. in W. Chambers Charters Burgh Peebles (1872) 299 The counsall..ordanis the said master to wait himself better on the bairnis nor he doid affor tyme.1590 E. Spenser Faerie Queene ii. i. sig. N3v All I did, I did but as I ought.1609 W. Shakespeare Louers Complaint in Sonnets sig. K3v Hee didde in the general bosome raigne Of young, of old.1652 Ripley's Compend of Alchemy in E. Ashmole Theatrum Chemicum Britannicum 191 Many Amalgame dyd I make.1722 D. Defoe Moll Flanders 5 I did nothing but Work and Cry all Day.a1789 I. Ritson Borrowdale Let. 11 in Misc. Wks. Tim Bobbin (1793) I hardly knew what I dud or sed.1791 E. Nairne Poems 78 Yes, he dud.1880 W. T. Dennison Orcadian Sketch-bk. 106 Wi' joy mae vero he'rt deud tift.1924 R. Macaulay Orphan Island xvi. 212 Or did she?1971 H. Orton & M. V. Barry Surv. Eng. Dial. II. iii. 1028 Well, I can truthfully say I..[Cheshire] never doed it.2013 N.Y. Times Mag. 20 Jan. 51/1 When he called it ‘dead salad’, he said, it did not sell.
β. Old English–1500s dede, Old English dæde, Middle English dedd, Middle English dedde, Middle English deed, Middle English deede, Middle English deyd (south-western), Middle English deyde (south-eastern), Middle English deyede (west midlands), Middle English–1500s ded; English regional 1800s– ded (Essex, Isle of Wight, and Cornwall), 1800s– deed (Northumberland); Scottish pre-1700 dede, pre-1700 deid. OE Old Eng. Martyrol. (Julius) 5 Jan. 11 Butan þe ic dede þone halgan dæg æt drihtnes acennisse.OE Monastic Canticles (Durh. B.iii.32) (1976) ix. 10 In terra sanctorum inique gessit : on eorþan halgena unrihtwise þing he dede.OE Homily: Sunnandæges Spell (Tiber. A.iii) in A. S. Napier Wulfstan (1883) 220 Þa het Moyses, þæt hine mon gebunde, and þæt hine mon dede in carcern.lOE Canterbury Psalter lvi. 3 Qui benefecit michi : se ðæ god dæde me.a1225 (?c1175) Poema Morale (Lamb.) 3 in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1868) 1st Ser. 159 Ich welde mare þene ich dede.c1275 Kentish Serm. in J. Hall Select. Early Middle Eng. (1920) I. 215 Þo dede he somoni alle þo wyse clerekes þet kuþe þe laghe.a1325 (c1250) Gen. & Exod. (1968) l. 762 Quer abram is bigging dede. ▸ a1387 J. Trevisa tr. R. Higden Polychron. (St. John's Cambr.) (1865) I. 215 Þerynne Romulus dede his owne ymage.c1400 (?c1380) Patience 443 God of his grace ded growe of þat soyle Þe fayrest bynde.1461 C. Paston in Paston Lett. & Papers (2004) I. 197 I dede..Hanswm goo to my lord.c1480 (a1400) St. Ninian l. 944 in W. M. Metcalfe Legends Saints Sc. Dial. (1896) II. 331 A wikit man..gret myse dede.a1500 (a1450) Generides (Trin. Cambr.) 1051 All that he dede was done..wittely.1525 in B. Cusack Everyday Eng. 1500–1700 (1998) 109 The seid george villeris went to the ende of the stokkis wher the lokke ded ange.1562 in B. Cusack Everyday Eng. 1500–1700 (1998) 290 This Newcomes wyffe ded dwell in Sibble hedingham. 1844 in H. Smith & C. R. Smith Isle of Wight Words (1881) 53 I ded zay I thought zhe waan't zoo tall.1892 R. O. Heslop Northumberland Words Dee, De to do—p.t. deed; p.p. deen (heard at Wooler); and deeun, or deughn.1997 J. Whinray Down 'long weth We 13 Wat ded th'ould Decky do but clap a g'aate ould keeve clain down ovver un!
γ. regional 1800s– done; English regional 1800s dun (Cornwall), 1800s– done (chiefly southern), 1800s– doon (Leicestershire), 1800s– dunt (Yorkshire, with personal pronoun affixed); Scottish (rare) 1900s– din, 1900s– dune; Irish English (northern) 1900s– daen, 1900s– din. 1831 S. Lover Leg. & Stories Irel. 13 He done the owld king out iv his property.1839 G. C. Lewis Gloss. Words Herefordshire Done, part. used for the preterit, as ‘I done it’ for ‘I did it.’1847 in D. Drake Pioneer Life Kentucky (1870) iii. 63 The weavil..‘done’ great injury to that grain.1849 N. Kingsley Diary (1914) 56 Anna done the fair thing last night.1873 ‘M. Twain’ & C. D. Warner Gilded Age xxxiii. 307 I think it done him good.1924 W. M. Raine Troubled Waters xxi. 226 The little boss done right not to take that Cheyenne bid for the doggies.1969 Listener 4 Sept. 312/3 After what they've done to me, I never could forgive them. And I never done anybody any harm.2008 J. Kelman Kieron Smith, Boy (2009) 7 He done stuff and she kidded on he did not.
δ. English regional (Somerset) 1800s– don'd, 1800s– doned. 1895 F. T. Elworthy Evil Eye i. 4 I knows very well who don'd it.
ε. Caribbean 1900s– do. 1981 West Indian World 31 July 4/2 King should be grateful fe all that him do fe him in de past.
(ii). With personal pronoun affixed early Middle English dedi, early Middle English didi, early Middle English dudi. c1300 Body & Soul (Laud Misc. 108) (1889) 41 Mittis dedi [printed ded i] alle mine, To porveȝe þe rest and ro.c1300 Body & Soul (Laud Misc. 108) (1889) 43 Nevere didi [printed did i] þing ne spac.c1300 Body & Soul (Laud Misc. 108) (1889) 47 Þanne dudi [printed dud i] al my miȝth Anoþer time to have my wone. (iii). With negative particle affixed 1600s– didn't, 1800s– didn (regional), 1800s– didn' (regional), 1800s– didnt (regional and nonstandard), 1900s– din't (regional and nonstandard), 1900s– dint (regional and nonstandard); English regional 1700s duddnt (Cumberland), 1800s dudn (Lancashire), 1800s dud'n (Kent), 1800s– daint (Leicestershire), 1800s– dain't (Warwickshire), 1800s– dent (Essex), 1800s– den't (Essex), 1800s– didden (south-western), 1800s– diddent (Yorkshire), 1800s– didener (Dorset, with personal pronoun affixed), 1800s– did'n, 1800s– didna, 1800s– didnad-a (Shropshire, with personal pronoun affixed), 1800s– didnad-I (Shropshire, with personal pronoun affixed), 1800s– did'ner (Wiltshire, with personal pronoun affixed), 1800s– duddent (Cumberland), 1800s– dun't (Berkshire), 1900s– dedn (Cornwall); U.S. regional 1800s din't, 1900s– didn, 1900s– din, 1900s– din', 1900s– dittent; also Scottish 1700s– didna, 1700s– didnae, 1800s didnin, 1800s dyd-n', 1800s dydna, 1900s– didni, 1900s– didny, 2000s– didn'a; also Irish English (northern) 1900s– deddin, 1900s– didna, 1900s– didnae; also Manx English 1900s– diddin. 1650 in N. Murford Fragmenta Poetica sig. C2 God didn't give thee a reprieve For some few years.1738 J. Swift Compl. Coll. Genteel Conversat. 70 Miss, didn't your Left Ear burn last Night?1789 A. Steel Shepherd's Wedding (ed. 2) 14 I hae lang, altho' I didna tell, Had a strang notion o' the lass mysel'.1839 C. Clark John Noakes & Mary Styles 10 It now dent seem so wusser.1871 W. Alexander Johnny Gibb iv. 33 Nyod didnin he tak' a gey fling at the 'lectioneerin' the day?1880 Folk-lore Rec. 3 109 Didener [didn't he] gee [give] thee norry [ne'er a] quid, Bet?1967 ‘A. Blaisdell’ Something Wrong (1968) xiv. 162 I dint know her.1968 Punch 14 Feb. 227/3 'Course, I 'ad to 'elp her with joining the letters up, din't I?1988 C. M. Fraser Storm over Rhanna (1990) 252 He didny say eechie or ochie at the time.1997 J. Whinray Down 'long weth We 24 I dedn want to be killed twice ovver, an' so I 'greed to sign un, an' sign un I ded. b. 2nd singular. (i).α. Old English dydost (rare), Old English–1500s dydest, Old English–1500s dydyst, Old English–1600s didest, early Middle English deodest (south-west midlands), early Middle English didesst ( Ormulum), Middle English diddist, Middle English diddyst, Middle English didist, Middle English dodest (south-west midlands), Middle English duddyst (west midlands and south-western), Middle English dudest (chiefly west midlands), Middle English dudust (west midlands), Middle English dudyst, Middle English dyddyst, Middle English dydeste, Middle English dydist, Middle English–1500s dyddest, Middle English–1500s dyddeste, Middle English–1600s diddest, Middle English– didst, 1500s dydst, 1500s dydste, 1600s– did'st, 1700s dids't, 1700s dodst. OE Andreas (1932) 927 No ðu swa swiðe synne gefremedest swa ðu in Achaia ondsæc dydest.OE tr. Apollonius of Tyre (1958) viii. 12 Þæt wyrreste þingc þu didest þæt þu me warnodest.c1175 ( Homily: Hist. Holy Rood-tree (Bodl. 343) (1894) 20 Ȝecuð ðine mihte..alswa ðu dudest innan þam scræfe ðær ic..læȝ.c1225 (?c1200) Hali Meiðhad (Bodl.) (1940) 86 Þet te schal..bireowe þi sið þet tu eauer dudest [a1250 Titus dides] te in to swuch þeowdom.?c1225 (?a1200) Ancrene Riwle (Cleo. C.vi) (1972) 227 Þis þu dudest þer. ▸ a1382 Bible (Wycliffite, E.V.) (Bodl. 959) (1963) 2 Kings xii. 12 Þou forsoþe didist hidyngeli.?c1425 Crafte Nombrynge in R. Steele Earliest Arithm. in Eng. (1922) 15 Þou schalt do ryȝt as þou diddyst in addicion. ▸ c1443 R. Pecock Reule of Crysten Religioun (1927) 453 Whanne euere..þou..helidist hem or eny oþer þing didst for hem.a1500 (?a1390) J. Mirk Festial (Gough) (1905) 288 I wold neuer haue turned as þou duddyst.1545 Primer Kynges Maiestie (STC 16034) sig. M.iiv The noble workes that thou diddest in their daies.1592 B. Rich Aduentures Brusanus ii. iv. 57 If thou didest knowe Brusanus, the ioy, the comforte, and recreation that is conuersante with beautye.1611 Bible (King James) 2 Sam. xii. 12 Thou diddest it secretly.1700 W. Congreve Way of World iv. i. 61 Thou dodst bite my dear Mustard-seed.1725 A. Ramsay Gentle Shepherd ii. iv. 31 When thou didst wrestle,..my Heart was flightering fain.1819 P. B. Shelley Julian & Maddalo 459 Thou..didst speak thus and thus.1879 G. F. Jackson Shropshire Word-bk. lx Thee did'st.1908 J. Lumsden Doun i' th' Loudons 245 As thou didst, whan thou jee'd a-gley.1922 J. Joyce Ulysses ii. 403 Thou sawest thy America, thy lifetask, and didst charge to cover like the transpontine bison.1997 A. Waldman Iovis: Bk. 2 127 Though thou didst smite Lotan the Primeval Serpent,..thou shalt wilt.
β. Old English–Middle English dedyst, late Old English (Kentish)–Middle English dedest, Middle English dadest (south-western), Middle English deddist, Middle English dedist, Middle English dediste, Middle English dedust, Middle English deduste, Middle English dedyste, Middle English deþyst (perhaps transmission error), Middle English þedyst (perhaps transmission error); English regional 1700s– dedst (south-western), 1800s– ded'st (Isle of Wight). OE Cambridge Psalter (1910) xxxviii. 10 Non aperui os meum quoniam tu fecisti : ne ontynde muð min forðon þu dedyst.lOE Canterbury Psalter lxxvi. 15 Notam fecisti in populis virtutem tuam : cuþ þu dedest on folche megen þin.a1275 St. Margaret (Trin. Cambr.) l. 284 in A. S. M. Clark Seint Maregrete & Body & Soul (Ph.D. diss., Univ. of Michigan) (1972) 101 Þe tre þat tou dedest þi bodi on to maken us alle fre.c1275 (?a1200) Laȝamon Brut (Calig.) (1963) l. 5486 Þu us dedest [altered by a later hand to dodest] monscipe and god.c1330 (?c1300) Guy of Warwick (Auch.) 2014 Understond tow of þat felonie þat tow in Lombardi ous dedest.1340 Ayenbite (1866) 21 Þou dedest þine zennes beuore him.c1425 J. Lydgate Troyyes Bk. (Augustus A.iv) v. 1791 Þou dedist ordeyne..myȝty shippes.a1500 (?c1450) Merlin ii. 41 Thow dedist their brother to be slain. 1746 Exmoor Scolding (ed. 3) i. 7 And why dedst thee, than, tell me 'Isterday o' losting my Rewden Hat in the Rex-bush, out to whorting?1881 H. Smith & C. R. Smith Isle of Wight Words 8 Ded'st, did you? Dedsn't, did you not?1888 B. Lowsley Gloss. Berks. Words & Phrases Dedst, or Didst, did you?
γ. Old English dydes (chiefly non-West Saxon), late Old English (Kentish)–Middle English dides, Middle English dedes, Middle English dudes (north-west midlands). eOE (Mercian) Vespasian Psalter (1965) lxxiii. 16 Tu fecisti solem et lunam tu fecisti omnes terminos terrae aestatem et uer tu fecisti ea : ðu dydes sunnan & monan, ðu dydes all gemæru eorðan, sumur & lenten ðu dydes ða.OE (Northumbrian) Rushw. Gospels: Luke xi. 45 Nobis contumiliam facis : us scomu ðu does uel dydes.lOE Canterbury Psalter lxxxv. 9 Omnes gentes quascumque fecisti..honorificabunt nomen tuum : ealle þeoda ða midþy ðe ðu dides..wiorþiað noman þinne.a1250 Wohunge ure Lauerd in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1868) 1st Ser. 271 Þu mades al þis werld and dides hit under mine fet. ▸ c1300 Havelok (Laud) (1868) 2393 Hwat þu him dedes, Hwan þu reftes with a knif Hise sistres here lif.a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Trin. Cambr.) 9057 Whi..dudes þou so?
δ. Chiefly southern and south midlands Middle English deoste (south-western), Middle English dest, Middle English deste, Middle English dist, Middle English dost (south-western), Middle English dust (chiefly south-western), Middle English dyst, Middle English dyste. c1300 Body & Soul (Laud Misc. 108) (1889) 39 Þouȝ dist al þat i þe forbed... Lutel þouȝ dust guod.c1300 St. James Great (Laud) 349 in C. Horstmann Early S.-Eng. Legendary (1887) 44 Ȝwi hast þou mine pilegrim bi-traid? gret schame þou dest me.c1325 (c1300) Chron. Robert of Gloucester (Calig.) 8813 Þo þou vorsoke such trauail to be in godes seruise..þou ne dust noȝt as þe wise.c1390 MS Vernon Homilies in Archiv f. das Studium der Neueren Sprachen (1877) 57 245 Whon þou hit dust, I was bi syde.c1450 in R. L. Greene Early Eng. Carols (1935) 307 By Godus deth, thou dest me wow.c1475 (a1449) J. Lydgate Minor Poems (1911) 164 Toward dissert the Iourne thou dist dresse With cold water, and herbis rauhe and grene.
ε. Chiefly northern in early use Middle English dede, Middle English didd, Middle English didde, Middle English dide, Middle English dude (perhaps subjunctive), Middle English dyd, Middle English (1800s– English regional (Cumberland)) dud, Middle English–1600s (1700s– chiefly regional) did; also Scottish pre-1700 did, pre-1700 dyd. In the non-northern early quots. c1390 and c1400 perhaps showing the reflex of Old English dyde, the otherwise unattested 2nd singular past subjunctive. For examples of did (now the standard form of the 2nd singular) with ye or you see Forms 5c and compare note at that section.c1390 (?a1350) Trental St. Gregory (Vernon(1)) l. 152 in C. Horstmann Minor Poems Vernon MS (1892) i. 266 God graunte me, Modur, þe stonde in stede Aȝeynes þe synnes þat euer þou dude.a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Vesp.) l. 10484 Als þou did [Laud diddist, Trin. Cambr. dudest] quilum dame sarra.a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Gött.) l. 12626 Qui did þu þus? [Trin. Cambr. didestou þus].?a1400 (a1338) R. Mannyng Chron. (Petyt) (1996) ii. 6776 To leue þe right scole, þou did als a fole.c1400 (?a1300) Kyng Alisaunder (Laud) (1952) 7755 And þou dude hym ouȝth bot good, He wolde sen þine herte-blood.?a1425 MS Hunterian 95 f. 126v, in Middle Eng. Dict. at Restituen Eftsones do as þu didde aforne.c1440 Prose Life Alexander (Thornton) (1913) 11 Vnkyndely..þou didd, and vngudely, þat þou drewe þi swerde for to smytte me þare-wit.a1450 Lessons of Dirige (Digby) 74 in J. Kail 26 Polit. Poems (1904) 110 Of fen of erthe þou dede me make.c1450 J. Capgrave Life St. Katherine (Arun. 396) (1893) v. 1572 Thi owen wyues heed of þou dede sweepe.a1456 (a1402) J. Trevisa tr. Gospel of Nicodemus (BL Add.) f. 110v Þowe witles prynce, þow wistest nought what þou did in þat tyme.a1500 (?a1475) Guy of Warwick (Cambr. Ff.2.38) 783 Ordyr of knyght þou dud me take.1508 W. Dunbar Ballade Barnard Stewart in Poems (1998) I. 178 Oure indeficient adiutorie,..That neuer saw Scot yit indigent nor sory Bot thou did hym suport with thi gud deid.1584 King James VI & I Ess. Prentise Poesie sig. Kiijv Ô Mercure,..efter Pan had found the quhissill, syne Thou did perfyte, that quhilk he bot espyit.?1614 W. Drummond Sonnet: My Lute be as thou Was in Poems My Lute be as thou was when thou did grow..in some shadie Groue,..And Birds their ramage on thee did bestow.a1616 W. Shakespeare Tempest (1623) i. ii. 251 Thou did promise To bate me a full yeere.1714 R. Smith Poems 35 On him thou did both ly and clatter.1863 E. C. Gaskell Sylvia's Lovers II. vii. 122 Thou did, did thou? Well, well, there's nought sa queer as folks, that a will say.1878 W. Dickinson Gloss. Words & Phrases Cumberland (ed. 2) 102 Thoo dud n't, dud ta?1998 J. Morgante tr. G. Arnold in tr. T. Schipflinger Sophia-Maria 214 Did Thou Thyself not appear to me?
(ii). With personal pronoun affixed Old English dydestu, Middle English destow, Middle English didestou, Middle English didestow, Middle English distu, Middle English dudestou; English regional 1800s– didto (Lancashire), 1800s– duddy (Durham); N.E.D. (1897) also records a form of the first element Middle English dedes-. OE (Northumbrian) Rushw. Gospels: Luke ii. 48 Filii, quid fecisti nobis sic : la sunu hwæt dydestu us swa.OE Ælfric Old Eng. Hexateuch: Gen. (Claud.) iii. 13 Hwi dydestu [OE Laud didest þu] ðæt?a1325 St. Scholastica (Corpus Cambr.) 41 in C. D'Evelyn & A. J. Mill S. Eng. Legendary (1956) 60 Wel ne dudestou [c1300 Laud dost þov] noȝt.c1330 (?c1300) Amis & Amiloun (Auch.) (1937) 2331 Whi destow so?c1330 (?c1300) Speculum Guy (Auch.) (1898) 870 Þere shal ben irekened al Þat euere distu, gret and smal.a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Trin. Cambr.) 13408 Whi..þus didestow?1877 M. Egglestone Betty Podkin's Visit 4 Hoo duddy git theer? 1879 E. Waugh Chimney Corner 19 Didto notice 'at Bill o' Fizzer's an' Sally Robishaw wur axed for th' third time i' th' chapel this mornin'? (iii). With negative particle affixed. English regional 1800s– deddenst (Berkshire), 1800s– dedsn't (Isle of Wight), 1800s– didna (Shropshire and Surrey), 1800s– didsna (Shropshire), 1800s– didstna (Derbyshire), 1800s– duddn't (Cumberland). 1873 G. Greenup Yance a Year 15 Thoo duddn't think I'd leev'd sa lang.1881 H. Smith & C. R. Smith Isle of Wight Words 8 Ded'st, did you? Dedsn't, did you not?1888 ‘P. Cushing’ Blacksmith of Voe II. vii. 159 Thou didstna use to Mister thy other master.1890 A. C. Bickley Midst Surrey Hills I. i. 13 Didna 'ee mean me to finish the bottle? c. Plural.In Old English, the past subjunctive plural was originally formally distinct (showing the inflectional ending -en), but by late Old English the endings of the indicative and subjunctive had become homophonous in all dialects. Since the Middle English period the plural form has also been used for the 2nd singular with ye or you (originally as polite forms); see esp. section (i)α. (did is now the standard form). (i).α. Old English didan, Old English dydun, Old English dydyn (subjunctive, rare), Old English–early Middle English dydan, Old English (orig. subjunctive)–Middle English diden, Old English–Middle English didon, Old English–Middle English duden, Old English (chiefly subjunctive)–Middle English dyden, Old English–Middle English dydon, early Middle English didenn ( Ormulum), Middle English deude (south-western), Middle English didden, Middle English diddyn, Middle English didin, Middle English didyn, Middle English dode (chiefly south-western), Middle English doden (chiefly west midlands), Middle English dud, Middle English dudan, Middle English dudde, Middle English dudden, Middle English dude, Middle English dudin, Middle English dudon, Middle English dudun, Middle English dydden, Middle English dyddon, Middle English dyddyn, Middle English dydyn, Middle English–1500s didd, Middle English–1500s didde, Middle English–1500s dydd, Middle English–1500s dydde, Middle English–1500s dyde, Middle English–1600s dide, Middle English–1600s dyd, Middle English– did; English regional 1700s– dud (north-western), 1800s– didden (Shropshire); Scottish pre-1700 dide, pre-1700 doid, pre-1700 1700s– did, pre-1700 1800s dyd, 1800s– deud (Orkney), 1800s– dood (Orkney), 1800s– dud (Orkney). eOE King Ælfred tr. Boethius De Consol. Philos. (Otho) (2009) I. xxv. 498 Ac gif ða yflan symle goode wæren, þonne ne dyden hi nan yfel.OE Genesis A (1931) 1944 He ne cuðe hwæt þa cynn dydon.OE Ælfric Catholic Homilies: 2nd Ser. (Cambr. Gg.3.28) xxx. 266 Elifaz ða and baldað and sofar..didon swa swa him god bebead.OE tr. Abbo of St. Germain Sermo in Cena Domini (Corpus Cambr. 190) in D. Bethurum Homilies of Wulfstan (1957) 368 And gewislice swa hig diden gyf Adam ne agylte.lOE Canterbury Psalter: Canticles xv. 41 Qui bona egerunt ibunt in vitam aeternam qui vero mala in ignem aeternum : ða god duden sculen fearan to hechan liue & to seoðan ða ðe huuel duden into hechan fure.?a1160 Anglo-Saxon Chron. (Laud) (Peterborough contin.) anno 1137 Sume hi diden in crucethus..& dide scærpe stanes þerinne.a1225 ( Ælfric's Homily In Die Sancto Pentecosten (Lamb. 487) in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1868) 1st Ser. 91 Heo walden ibuȝen to þere apostlan fereden and swa duden.a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Trin. Cambr.) l. 17411 Ȝe duden him vndir lok & sele.?a1400 (a1338) R. Mannyng Chron. (Petyt) ii. 201 Alle þat did þat dome.?a1425 Mandeville's Trav. (Egerton) (1889) 67 Him didd þe Iews on þe crosse. ▸ c1426 J. Audelay Poems (1931) 10 Þus we dydon myschyvysly.?c1475 (a1402) J. Trevisa Gospel of Nicodemus (Salisbury) f. 133 Huy dode wondres.1530 Compend. Olde Treat. sig. A.viv So diden the appostles.1548 Hall's Vnion: Henry V f. lxxiiv Why did thei take it?1659 R. Baxter Key for Catholicks i. xxxv. 252 The rest..did what they did.1778 C. Graham Misc. Pieces 67 ‘Bud did ye kill the hares?’..‘Aye, that we dud.’1876 J. Richardson Cummerland Talk 2nd Ser. 181 I think theer' nut yan in a thoosand 'at ur alive noo, 'at wad care to..deu a deal o' things as they dud three scwore year sen.1879 G. F. Jackson Shropshire Word-bk. lx We didden..Yo' didden..they didden.1911 in A. W. Johnston & A. Johnston Old-lore Misc. IV. iv. 184 Thu war spieran' aboot da ald fok an' deir weys, an' whit dey dood afore dis daes.1998 C. Chidgey In Fishbone Church (2000) 124 Gene and Etta didn't pop round, of course, living in Wellington as they did.
β. Old English dæde (subjunctive), Old English dædon, Old English dædun, Old English dedan, Old English dedon, Old English dedun, Old English deodan, late Old English deoden (Kentish), late Old English deodon (Kentish), late Old English (Kentish)–Middle English deden, early Middle English dedeun, Middle English deddyn, Middle English de (transmission error), Middle English dedee, Middle English dedin, Middle English dedyn, Middle English deid (northern), Middle English deide (south-western), Middle English thede, Middle English–1500s ded, Middle English–1500s dede; Scottish pre-1700 ded, pre-1700 dede, pre-1700 deid. eOE (Kentish) Codex Aureus Inscription, Christ Church, Canterbury (Sawyer 1204a) in D. Whitelock Sweet's Anglo-Saxon Reader (1967) 205 Ond ðæt wit deodan for Godes lufan ond for uncre saule ðearf[e].eOE tr. Bede Eccl. Hist. (Tanner) v. iii. 392 Swiðe unwislice & ungelæredlice ge dedon.OE (Northumbrian) Lindisf. Gospels: Matt. xxviii. 15 Illi..fecerunt sicut erant docti : hia..dedon [OE Rushw. dydun, OE West Saxon Gospels: Corpus Cambr. dydon, c1200 Hatton dyden] suæ weron gelæred.OE Daniel 101 Bebead Babilone weard..sinum þegnum, þæt þa frumgaras be feore dæde, þæt þam gengum þrym gad ne wære wiste ne wæde.OE Genesis B 722 Hit wæs þeah..menniscra morð þæt hie to mete dædon, ofet unfæle.OE Paris Psalter (1932) lxi. 3 Ðonne ge mid mane men ongunnon, ealle ge ða to deadan dædun sona.lOE Canterbury Psalter v. 11 Linguis suis dolose agebant : hioræ tungæn facenfulliche deoden.c1275 ( Will of Þurketel (Sawyer 1527) in D. Whitelock Anglo-Saxon Wills (1930) 68 And þe mor..fremannen to note so he er deden er daye & after daye.a1325 (c1250) Gen. & Exod. (1968) l. 1059 He so deden als he hem bead.c1330 in Englische Studien (1886) 9 45/1 Iwes dedin him gret derai. ▸ a1387 J. Trevisa tr. R. Higden Polychron. (St. John's Cambr.) (1872) IV. 353 Þey..de [perh. read dede; c1400 Tiber. dude, c1410 BL Add. dede, 1482 Caxton dide] hym in to þe see.c1425 (c1400) Laud Troy-bk. 12945 Thei did of armes & ded on clothes.1439 in J. D. Marwick Charters Edinb. (1871) 65 Payand yerly til vs..swylk like annuales as thai dede to..Schir Robert.a1500 (?a1390) J. Mirk Festial (Gough) (1905) 193 Þay deddyn hym wyth such mete and drynke þat made þys frogge swell yn hys wombe.1562 in B. Cusack Everyday Eng. 1500–1700 (1998) 289 Alettell before we dede heare of matters myche nedfull & wourthie to be amended, we..dede Serche dyuerse howsses.
γ. regional 1800s– done; Irish English (northern) 1900s– daen, 1900s– din. 1850 N. Kingsley Diary (1914) 117 [We] worked in the old place and done middling well.1867 P. Kennedy Banks of Boro xxv. 190 It was all to take a rise out of you they done it.1917 R. W. Lardner Gullible's Trav. iii. 83 Then we done a little spoonin' and then I ast her what was the big idear.1970 T. Murphy Whistle in Dark ii. 53 I could tell him stories better than that about what we done.2004 M. M. Lewis Scars of Soul ii. ix. 157 We've been to summit after summit after summit, and we done beefed, we done argued, we done said what the white man done stole.
δ. English regional (Somerset) 1800s– doned. 1888 F. T. Elworthy W. Somerset Word-bk. at Doned We could'n do eens we was a mind to, zo we doned zo well's we could.
(ii). With negative particle affixed 1600s– didn't, 1800s– didn (regional), 1800s– didn' (regional), 1800s– didnt (regional and nonstandard), 1900s– din't (regional and nonstandard), 1900s– dint (regional and nonstandard); English regional 1700s duddent (Kent), 1800s didney (Lancashire, with personal pronoun affixed), 1800s dudn (Lancashire), 1800s dud'n (Kent), 1800s– dain't (Warwickshire), 1800s– dent (Essex), 1800s– didna (Shropshire), 1800s– didnad-a (Shropshire, with personal pronoun affixed); also Scottish 1700s– didna, 1800s dyd-n', 1800s dydna, 1800s– didnae, 1900s– didn'ae, 1900s– didni, 1900s– didnie, 1900s– didny; also Irish English (northern) 1900s– deddin, 1900s– didna, 1900s– didnae; also Welsh English 1900s– didner. 1660 J. Bellamy tr. Origen Against Celsus i. xxxi. 130 These didn't only..foretel some Things, that wou'd come to pass, with reference to our Blessed Saviour.1775 R. B. Sheridan Rivals v. ii Didn't you stop?1791 E. Nairne Poems 78 Duddent yow see dat pon dun roun wood mud?1822 J. Hogg Three Perils of Man III. vii. 202 What are ye gaun gaindering about that gate for, as ye didna ken whilk end o' ye were uppermost.1888 F. T. Elworthy W. Somerset Word-bk. at Went You never didn ought to a-went; for—You ought not to have gone.1939 J. Joyce Finnegans Wake 198 Didn't you spot her?1998 Evening News (Edinb.) 13 Feb. 11 They didn'ae ken ma name, did they?2010 G. McMurchy-Barber Free as Bird 24 Then there was the kids who was so tired an slow they dint knowed there was drool runnin down their chins. 6. Present participle. early Old English doonde, Old English dodum (dative plural, transmission error), Old English doend (Northumbrian), Old English doynde (rare), Old English–early Middle English donde, Old English (chiefly Anglian)–Middle English (midlands) doende, late Old English dode (transmission error), Middle English deand (northern), Middle English doand (chiefly northern and north midlands), Middle English doande (chiefly northern and north midlands), Middle English doenge, Middle English doinde (southern, chiefly early), Middle English dooynge, Middle English doying, Middle English–1500s dooyng, Middle English–1500s doyng, Middle English–1500s doynge, Middle English–1600s doinge, Middle English– doing, 1500s–1600s dooing, 1500s–1600s dooinge, 1700s– dooin' (regional), 1800s– doin (regional), 1800s– doin' (regional); English regional 1800s dein' (north-eastern), 1800s– dewan (Cumberland), 1800s– dewin (chiefly Yorkshire), 1800s– doen (southern), 1900s– deein' (north-eastern), 1900s– dewin' (Suffolk), 1900s– dewing (Suffolk); Scottish pre-1700 doand, pre-1700 doande, pre-1700 doeand, pre-1700 dowand, pre-1700 dowande, pre-1700 dowane, pre-1700 dowing, pre-1700 dowyng, pre-1700 doyng, pre-1700 dweng, pre-1700 dwyng, pre-1700 1700s– doing, 1700s– doin, 1700s– doin', 1800s duian', 1800s duin', 1800s– daein', 1800s– dain', 1800s– deein (north-eastern), 1800s– deein' (north-eastern), 1900s– daein, 1900s– duin; also Irish English 1800s dain (northern), 1800s doone (Wexford). OE (Northumbrian) Lindisf. Gospels: Matt. xxiv. 46 Beatus ille seruus quem..dominus eius inuenerit sic facientem : eadig ðe ðegn ðone..hlaferd his onfand sua doende [OE Rushw. donde, OE West Saxon Gospels: Corpus Cambr. dondne, OE Cambr. Univ. Libr. donde, c1175 Royal doendne, c1200 Hatton doende].OE Cambridge Psalter (1910) xxxiii. 17 Uultus autem domini super facientes mala : andwlita soðlice drihtnys ofyr þa doyndan yfyl.c1300 Life & Martyrdom Thomas Becket (Harl. 2277) (1845) l. 277 Idel nolde he nevere beo, bote evere doinge [c1300 Laud doinde] he was.c1350 Psalter (BL Add. 17376) in K. D. Bülbring Earliest Compl. Eng. Prose Psalter (1891) cii. 6 Our Lord is doand mercies.a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Trin. Cambr.) 5799 Pharao þe kyng..my folke..haþ holden to þis day, Doynge to hem..greet trowage.?c1450 Life St. Cuthbert (1891) 3227 Whils he was deand his office.?a1475 (?a1425) tr. R. Higden Polychron. (Harl. 2261) (1872) IV. 471 This man was utterly unprofitable, doenge noo thynge accordenge to his honore and dignite.1555 in A. I. Cameron Sc. Corr. Mary of Lorraine (1927) 403 The gret honor yowr grace has sawin in dweng for me yowr grace sober sarwand.1609 in R. Pitcairn Criminal Trials Scotl. (1833) III. 42 Quhat ar ȝe doand heir?1655 T. Harrison Old Jacobs Accompt 29 Honour and Greatness came a wooing, And Riches offer'd to be dooing.1789 C. Vallancey Vocab. Lang. Forth & Bargie in Trans. Royal Irish Acad. 1788 2 40 Sh' ya ame zim to doone, as w' be doone nowe.1873 P. Buchan Guidman o' Inglismill in Legends of North 37 Things are deein' gran'.1887 T. Clarke et al. Specimens Westmorland Dial. 17 Santrean aboot dewan nowt.a1930 N. Munro Student Lodger in B. D. Osborne & R. Armstrong Erchie & Jimmy Swan (1993) i. xv. 66 I could be daein' wi' a ludger fine.2002 Independent on Sunday 19 May (Review Suppl.) 1/1 They are often found doing the ironing. 7. Past participle.α. Old English gedoan (Mercian), Old English gedoen (Anglian), Old English gedonn- (inflected form), Old English gedoon (rare), Old English gidoen (Northumbrian), Old English godon (probably transmission error), Old English (chiefly Anglian) Middle English–1500s doen, Old English (rare) Middle English–1600s don, Old English–early Middle English gedon, early Middle English dom (transmission error), early Middle English ȝedon, early Middle English geydon, early Middle English gie-don, Middle English dooun, Middle English doun, Middle English doune, Middle English doyen, Middle English doyn (chiefly northern), Middle English dun (northern), Middle English dune (northern), Middle English hi-don, Middle English idon, Middle English i-don, Middle English i don, Middle English idone, Middle English i-done, Middle English idoon, Middle English i-doon, Middle English i doon, Middle English idoone, Middle English ydon, Middle English y-don, Middle English y don, Middle English ydone, Middle English y-done, Middle English y done, Middle English y-donne, Middle English ydoon, Middle English y-doon, Middle English y doon, Middle English y-doyne, Middle English–1500s down, Middle English–1500s downe, Middle English (chiefly northern)–1500s (Westmorland) doyne, Middle English–1600s donn, Middle English–1600s donne, Middle English–1600s doone, Middle English–1600s (1700s– regional and nonstandard) doon, Middle English– done, late Middle English edoone, 1500s dooen, 1500s i-doen (archaic), 1500s–1600s don't (with personal pronoun affixed); English regional 1600s deaun (Yorkshire), 1800s den (Lancashire), 1800s din (Devon), 1800s– deean (northern), 1800s– deen (Northumberland), 1800s– deeun (Northumberland), 1800s– deughn (Northumberland), 1800s– deun (northern), 1800s– diun (Northumberland), 1800s– doin (Yorkshire), 1800s– duin (northern), 1800s– dun (northern and north midlands), 1800s– dyeun (northern), 1800s– dyun (Northumberland), 1900s– a-done (southern); Scottish pre-1700 deun, pre-1700 doen, pre-1700 doin, pre-1700 donne, pre-1700 doon, pre-1700 doone, pre-1700 doun, pre-1700 doune, pre-1700 dovnne, pre-1700 dowin, pre-1700 down, pre-1700 downe, pre-1700 downne, pre-1700 doyn, pre-1700 doyne, pre-1700 dwin, pre-1700 dwne, pre-1700 dwyne, pre-1700 1700s– done, pre-1700 1800s– dune, pre-1700 1900s– don, 1700s dene, 1700s– deen, 1800s deune, 1800s dön (Shetland), 1800s– daen, 1800s– dane, 1800s– duin, 1800s– düne (chiefly Shetland), 1900s– dain, 1900s– din; also Irish English (northern) 1900s– daen, 1900s– din. eOE tr. Bede Eccl. Hist. (Tanner) i. xvi. 80 Oft buton synne bið doen, þætte of synne cymeð.eOE Bald's Leechbk. (Royal) (1865) i. ii. 30 Wlece þonne listum on wearmum gledum oþþe on ahsan oþ þæt hit gedon sie.lOE Salisbury Psalter lxxviii. 4 Facti sumus obprobrium uicinis nostris : done we synd on hosp nehheburan uran.lOE Anglo-Saxon Chron. (Laud) (Peterborough contin.) anno 1126 Þæt wæs eall don ðurh his dohtres ræd.a1200 MS Trin. Cambr. in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1873) 2nd Ser. 27 Forgiue us ure gultes þe we hauen don.c1325 (c1300) Chron. Robert of Gloucester (Calig.) 9535 Wircestere was þus ibarnd and oþer harm ido.c1330 (?c1300) Guy of Warwick (Auch.) 4262 God haþ y-don þe gret anour.a1375 (c1350) William of Palerne (1867) l. 937 Y-wisse, y am done.c1390 Castle of Love (Vernon) (1967) 312 A þral..To strong prison was idon.a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Vesp.) l. 16812 Thingez þat are doyne.a1425 J. Wyclif Sel. Eng. Wks. (1869) I. 271 Bifore alle þingis ben doone.a1450 St. Edith (Faust.) (1883) l. 1511 Had y-don meyte in a dysshe.c1450 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (BL Add. 36983) p. 1638 Iesu crist was doun on þe rode.a1475 (?a1430) J. Lydgate tr. G. Deguileville Pilgrimage Life Man (Vitell.) l. 17310 Thys mescheff..Ys ydon and wrouht by me.a1475 J. Shirley Death James (BL Add. 5467) in Miscellanea Scotica (1818) II. 26 That edoone the hangmane was commandid..to kut of that hand.?a1475 (?a1425) tr. R. Higden Polychron. (Harl. 2261) (1865) I. 193 What scholde be doen.a1500 (c1425) Andrew of Wyntoun Oryg. Cron. Scotl. (Nero) vi. l. 988 Þan was he done [a1530 Royal dwne].1555 R. Eden tr. G. F. de Oviedo y Valdés Summarie Gen. Hist. W. Indies in tr. Peter Martyr of Angleria Decades of Newe Worlde f. 182 After he hath dooen thus.1558 W. Ward tr. G. Ruscelli Secretes Alexis of Piemount i. f. 2 That doen, take a pound or two of Aloes.1594 H. Plat Diuerse Sorts of Soyle 5 in Jewell House To haue beene doone by Abimelech.1674 A. Cremer tr. J. Scheffer Hist. Lapland 7 Which don, he rises up.1768 A. Ross Fortunate Shepherdess i. 62 I better wi' less travel meith ha dene, Had I been tenty, as I meith ha been.1859 F. Nightingale Notes on Nursing ii. 17 [To see] that what ought to be done is always done.1874 S. Laycock Lanc. Songs 47 If they'll open a safe, which you hear they have den, Why, they'll ne'er shy at anything under the sen.1876 J. Richardson Cummerland Talk 2nd Ser. 96 'Twas deùn ameast as seun as sed.1892 R. O. Heslop Northumberland Words Dee, De to do—p.t. deed; p.p. deen (heard at Wooler); and deeun, or deughn.1932 A. H. Charteris When Scot Smiles 183 Ye'll mebbe be weel-advisit tae see hoo the jobe's din.1991 E. McDonald Gangan Fuit 27 Whan the sheilin's duin the mool maun haud sic wudden dreams as mak us raither bide sair hudden doun.
β. Old English den, Old English geden, late Middle English y-dee (south-western), late Middle English ydene (Irish English, in a late copy). OE Crist III 1265 Magon weana to fela geseon on him selfum, synne genoge atol earfoða ærgedenra.OE West Saxon Gospels: Luke (Corpus Cambr.) viii. 56 Þa bead he þam þæt hi hit nanum men ne sædon þæt þar geden wæs [L. quod factum erat].a1450 St. Edith (Faust.) (1883) l. 290 When þe masse was alle y-dee.a1525 Eng. Conquest Ireland (Trin. Dublin) (1896) 28 That thou ne hast ydene troght some grete lette, hastyly be about to do.
γ. early Middle English ȝedo, Middle English ido, Middle English i-do, Middle English idoe, Middle English idoo, Middle English i-doo, Middle English ydo, Middle English y-do, Middle English y-doo, Middle English yi-do, Middle English–1500s do, Middle English–1500s doo, 1500s ado, 1500s a doo, 1600s a doe, 1600s doe; English regional (south-western) 1800s a-doo, 1800s do, 1800s doe, 1800s– i-do; see also ado adj.1a1225 ( Rule St. Benet (Winteney) (1888) lxxi. 143 Sy æfre on forewearde þære abbodesse hese ȝedo.c1275 Kentish Serm. in J. Hall Select. Early Middle Eng. (1920) I. 215 Ase se smech of þe store wanne hit is i do into þe ueree and goth upward to þo heuene.a1300 in C. Brown Eng. Lyrics 13th Cent. (1932) 122 Ih haue do þe wrong.c1300 St. John Evangelist (Harl.) l. 19 in F. J. Furnivall Early Eng. Poems & Lives Saints (1862) 107 Þulke ring is ȝut at Westmynstre for relik ido. ▸ a1387 J. Trevisa tr. R. Higden Polychron. (St. John's Cambr.) (1876) VI. 71 What hast y-doo, sire bisshop?1392 in F. J. Furnivall Fifty Earliest Eng. Wills (1882) 3 Þat þe hows be ysold, and þe Almes yi-do in þe worst ȝere.a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Trin. Cambr.) l. 2413 Sir she seide hit shal be do.a1425 J. Wyclif Sel. Eng. Wks. (1869) I. 337 Ȝif Eve hadde do so.1483 tr. Adam of Eynsham Reuelation xxi Thyngys that y schulde haue doo.a1500 (a1450) Partonope of Blois (BL Add.) (1912) l. 9835 How he hadde folyle ydo [a1450 Univ. Oxf. I-do].1510 Act 1 Hen. VIII Pref. sig. A.iv The Kynge..hath do to be ordeyned.a1522 G. Douglas tr. Virgil Æneid (1957) iii. i. 105 Quhat wikkytnes or myscheif may be do.1522 Worlde & Chylde (de Worde) (1909) sig. A.vv Many a lorde haue I do lame.c1557 Enterlude of Youth (new ed.) sig. Bi Youth I pray thee haue a doo And to the tauerne let vs go.a1648 T. Davies in Graphic & Hist. Illustr. (1832) I. xxii. 343 Dost thinke 'chill labor to be poore, No, no, ich have a doe..Ich will a plundring too.1810 Devon & Cornwall Vocab. in Monthly Mag. June 434/1 To be do, to be done.1869 J. Jennings & J. K. Jennings Dial. W. Eng. (ed. 2) 19 Doe..done.1888 F. T. Elworthy W. Somerset Word-bk. at I-do Your job 'ont be i-do..gin 'marra night.
δ. English regional (south-western) 1700s dood, 1800s– a-do'd, 1800s– a dued, 1800s– doed, 1800s– dued, 1800s– i-do'd, 1900s– a-doed. 1791 ‘P. Pindar’ in Lousiad: Canto III 36 (note) Now thoose that round his worship stood, Declar'd it clumsily was dood.1888 F. T. Elworthy W. Somerset Word-bk. at I-do'd Th' old Bob hant i-do'd..the scythe properly.1892 S. Hewett Peasant Speech Devon 71 I've a düed awl my work, zo I chell go upen chimmer an' clayne myzel.1968 H. Orton & M. F. Wakelin Surv. Eng. Dial. IV. iii. 1112 Who has..it?.. [Somerset] a-doed.
ε. English regional (south-western) 1800s– a doned (Somerset), 1800s– a-doned (Somerset), 1800s– dinned (Devon). 1888 F. T. Elworthy W. Somerset Word-bk. at Doned Plase, zir, the coal's all a doned.1888 F. T. Elworthy W. Somerset Word-bk. at Totterarse Th' old Will Jones is proper a-doned up, sure 'nough.a1895 S. Hewett MS Coll. Devonshire Words in Eng. Dial. Dict. (1900) II. 97/2 Well, zir, ef I 'ad na dinned it, zome other vüle wid.
ζ. regional 1800s– did; English regional (south-western) 1900s– a-did. 1899 Atlanta Const. 24 Aug. 7 'Twas for the battery M of the Seventh that worruk was did last night.1937 G. White Interview 20 Apr. in C. L. Perdue et al. Weevils in Wheat (1976) 309 Mama was going 'round to see if de other slaves had did their carding.1968 H. Orton & M. F. Wakelin Surv. Eng. Dial. IV. iii. 1112 Who has..it?..[Somerset] a-did..[Berks.] did.1994 M. Bowman & B. Findlay Forever Yours 4 Ah don't think it, Manon, ah've did it.1996 R. Alvarez in Hometown Boy (1999) iii. 47 I think they should have did something to make it the No. 1 beer like it used to be.
/dʌz/, U.S. /dəz/) reflects a shortening of the reflex of Middle English long close ō (after it had been raised to /uː/). The modern pronunciation of the 2nd singular and plural form with affixed negative particle don't ( Brit. /dəʊnt/, U.S. /doʊnt/) is surprising; it may reflect an early modern English variant pronunciation of the present stem (for which there is some independent evidence: see E. J. Dobson Eng. Pronunc. 1500–1700 (ed. 2, 1968) II. §4) that probably resulted from lengthening of a Middle English (originally unstressed) variant with short o . The Scots, Irish English, and English regional (northern) present stem forms div , duv (in 1st singular, 1st, 2nd, and 3rd plural, and hence 2nd singular, and occasionally also in the infinitive) perhaps result from analogy with forms of have v. In some varieties such forms appear to be particularly common preceding a vowel (especially before the 1st singular pronoun in positions where inversion occurs, e.g. div I ). The Old English past participle shows the -n ending of the strong past participle and apparently the same stem vowel as in the present stem (usually as prefixed -dōn : see Forms 7α). The rare Old English past participle form -dēn (only attested in prefixed form: see Forms 7β) apparently shows an i-mutated form of ō (reflecting variation in the participial suffix). Again, modern standard English done ( Brit. /dʌn/, U.S. /dən/) reflects a shortening of the reflex of Middle English long close ō . The past tense shows inherited reduplication of the initial consonant, but is inflected weak in Old English, as is the past tense of its Germanic cognates. The stem vowel of the usual Old English past tense stem dyd- apparently shows the i-mutation of short u (perhaps originally reflecting i-mutation in the subjunctive), although this short u has no clear parallel among the Germanic cognates and its source is disputed. Modern Standard English did continues the regular east Midland and northern Middle English reflex of Old English dyd- , while Middle English forms such as dud- represent the front rounded western reflex of Old English y . Old English (and Middle English) past tense forms in ded- partly reflect the Old English (Kentish) sound change of y to e ; this vowel was originally short. Beside this, there is evidence for an Old English past stem form with inherited e , chiefly in Anglian sources and sources showing Anglian influence. The original length of the vowel is disputed, as there is limited evidence for both a long vowel and a short vowel (perhaps compare Old High German, which has a short vowel for 1st and 3rd singular past indicative and a long vowel for the rest of the past tense). There is metrical support in verse for underlying Anglian long ē (transcribed as West Saxon ǣ ). On the other hand, the past tense plural indicative form deodan (attested once in a source from Surrey written in a dialect close to that of Kent and once in a Mercian-influenced West Saxon source) appears to show back mutation, which would indicate a short vowel. In Middle English disyllabic past tense forms in short e would have been liable to lengthening in open syllables. Some later past tenses forms (e.g. English regional (Cheshire) doed , Older Scots doid , Scots (Orkney) duid , etc.) are probably re-formed on the present stem. For further discussion of the Old English forms see H. M. Flasdieck ‘Ae. dōn und gān’ in Anglia 61 (1937) 43–54, A. Campbell Old Eng. Gram. (1959) §768(b), R. D. Fulk, ‘Old English dōn, dyde, and the Verba Pura in Germanic’ in Indogermanische Forschungen 98 (1993) 241–51, R. M. Hogg & R. D. Fulk Gram. Old Eng. (2011) II. §§6.152–5. Prefixed forms. In Old English the prefixed form gedōn i-do v. is also attested. With sense 1b compare Old English gedōn in sense ‘to arrive, to encamp’. Compare also adōn to take away, remove, to release, to avert, to banish, to put, to add (compare a- prefix1), ætdōn to take away (compare at- prefix2), bedōn bedo v., fordōn fordo v., framdōn to bear away (compare from prep.), ofdōn to put or take off, to put out (compare of- prefix), oferdōn overdo v., ondōn to put on (compare on- prefix), tōdōn to-do v., þurhdōn to carry, to perform (compare through- prefix), undōn undo v., underdōn to put under (compare under- prefix1, underdo v.), weldōn to satisfy, please (compare well adv.), ymbdōn to put round, to encompass (compare umbe- prefix). I. As a main verb.† 2. † 9.
1. † b. transitive (reflexive). To put or set oneself; to betake oneself, proceed, go (also figurative). Also intransitive (cf. to do way at Phrasal verbs 2). Obsolete.
a. To put, place. to do on, off, in, out, etc.: see Phrasal verbs 2.† (b) transitive. figurative. Cf. put v. 12. Obsolete.to do (a person) adawe: see adawe adv. to do to death: see death n. Phrases 1.
(a) transitive. literal. Cf. put v. 11. Now regional (rare).
ΘΚΠ
the world > space > place > placing or fact of being placed in (a) position > place or put in a position [verb (transitive)]
doeOE
layc950
seta1000
puta1225
dight1297
pilt?a1300
stow1362
stick1372
bestowc1374
affichea1382
posec1385
couchc1386
dressa1387
assize1393
yarkc1400
sita1425
place1442
colloque1490
siegea1500
stake1513
win1515
plat1529
collocate1548
campc1550
posit1645
posture1645
constitute1652
impose1681
sist1852
shove1902
spot1937
eOE King Ælfred tr. Gregory Pastoral Care (Hatton) (1871) xlix. 383 Ðonne ðæt mon his sweord doo [L. ponat] ofer his hype, ðæt mon ða geornfulnesse his lare læte furður ðonne his flæsces lustas.
OE West Saxon Gospels: Matt. (Corpus Cambr.) ix. 17 Hig doð niwe win on niwe bytta.
?a1160 Anglo-Saxon Chron. (Laud) (Peterborough contin.) anno 1137 Me dide cnotted strenges abuton here hæued.
a1225 (?OE) MS Lamb. in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1868) 1st Ser. 85 (MED) Þet corn me deð in to gerner.
a1325 (c1250) Gen. & Exod. (1968) l. 2586 Euerilc knape-child..Ben a-non don ðe flod wið-in.
a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Vesp.) l. 13846 Þat he be tan, and don in band.
a1464 J. Capgrave Abbreuiacion of Cron. (Cambr. Gg.4.12) (1983) 35 Ozias..presumed for to do upon him þe prestis stole.
a1500 (c1425) Andrew of Wyntoun Oryg. Cron. Scotl. (Nero) v. l. 5774 Þare þe fant was halowit sone. Þe duk fra hym his clathis has done.
a1540 (c1460) G. Hay tr. Bk. King Alexander 2742 With that,..his swerd hes he fra him done.
1570 J. Foxe Actes & Monumentes (rev. ed.) II. 1369/1 If I would not tell the truth where I had done hym.
1600 W. Vaughan Nat. & Artific. Direct. Health (1633) 117 Take a gallon..of pure water, and do it into a pot.
1606 P. Holland tr. Suetonius Hist. Twelve Caesars 120 He tooke of his Ring..then afterwardes did it uppon his finger againe.
1764 A. Purver New & Literal Transl. Bks. Old & New Test. I. (Hag. i. 6) He who gets himself Hire, does it into a Bag made with Holes.
1877 E. Peacock Gloss. Words Manley & Corringham, Lincs. 89/1 Where hes ta done it? I've look'd high an' low for it.
ΚΠ
OE Vitellius Psalter xxxix. 12 Tu autem, domine, ne longe facias miserationes tuas a me : þu soðlice drihten ne feor þu do miltsunge þine fram me.
c1225 (?c1200) Hali Meiðhad (Bodl.) (1940) 57 (MED) Ha..bikimeð þeow under mon & his þrel..deð hire in to drechunge to dihten hus & hinen.
c1300 Judas Iscariot (Harl.) l. 46 in F. J. Furnivall Early Eng. Poems & Lives Saints (1862) 108 (MED) Þe quene vpe him hire hurte dude.
c1350 Psalter (BL Add. 17376) in K. D. Bülbring Earliest Compl. Eng. Prose Psalter (1891) xxxix. 15 (MED) Ne do nouȝt, Lord, þy mercy fer fra me.
a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Vesp.) l. 15235 Þat sal þis ilk night be don..to mikel pine.
a1500 (a1460) Towneley Plays (1994) I. ii. 22 And thou thus dos me from thi grace.
1535 W. Stewart tr. H. Boethius Bk. Cron. Scotl. (1858) I. 225 He did him in his will.
1598 Mucedorus sig. C2 Take him away, and doe him to execution straight.
ΘΚΠ
society > travel > [verb (reflexive)]
wendeOE
meteOE
drawc1175
flitc1175
do?c1225
kenc1275
teemc1275
movec1300
graitha1325
dightc1330
redec1330
windc1330
yieldc1330
dressa1375
raikc1400
winc1400
pass?a1425
get1492
tirec1540
flitch?1567
frame1576
betake1639
rely1641
society > travel > [verb (intransitive)]
nimeOE
becomec885
teec888
goeOE
i-goc900
lithec900
wendeOE
i-farec950
yongc950
to wend one's streetOE
fare971
i-wende971
shakeOE
winda1000
meteOE
wendOE
strikec1175
seekc1200
wevec1200
drawa1225
stira1225
glidea1275
kenc1275
movec1275
teemc1275
tightc1275
till1297
chevec1300
strake13..
travelc1300
choosec1320
to choose one's gatea1325
journeyc1330
reachc1330
repairc1330
wisec1330
cairc1340
covera1375
dressa1375
passa1375
tenda1375
puta1382
proceedc1392
doa1400
fanda1400
haunta1400
snya1400
take?a1400
thrilla1400
trace?a1400
trinea1400
fangc1400
to make (also have) resortc1425
to make one's repair (to)c1425
resort1429
ayrec1440
havea1450
speer?c1450
rokec1475
wina1500
hent1508
persevere?1521
pursuec1540
rechec1540
yede1563
bing1567
march1568
to go one's ways1581
groyl1582
yode1587
sally1590
track1590
way1596
frame1609
trickle1629
recur1654
wag1684
fadge1694
haul1802
hike1809
to get around1849
riddle1856
bat1867
biff1923
truck1925
?c1225 (?a1200) Ancrene Riwle (Cleo. C.vi) (1972) 316 Me were leoure..to do me towart rome.
c1300 St. Brendan (Laud) l. 33 in C. Horstmann Early S.-Eng. Legendary (1887) 221 (MED) In a schip we duden us sone.
a1375 (c1350) William of Palerne (1867) l. 2061 He deraied him as a deuel & dede him out a-ȝeine.
a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Vesp.) l. 6140 ‘Dos now forth’, þai said in hi.
a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Vesp.) l. 12832 He did him þan to flum iordan.
c1400 (c1378) W. Langland Piers Plowman (Laud 581) (1869) B. xviii. l. 90 I do me in ȝowre grace.
a1450 Seven Sages (Cambr. Dd.1.17) (1845) l. 2416 He dyde hym anoon to ryde.
a1500 (?a1400) Sir Torrent of Portyngale (1887) l. 1518 Of the valey he did hym swith.
a1525 (a1500) Sc. Troy Bk. (Douce) 1456 in C. Horstmann Barbour's Legendensammlung (1882) II. 270 Anthenor..syne away hime maid And with full mekile quantite Of troyanis did hime to þe se.
a. transitive. To apply, employ; to pay away, lay out, expend. Obsolete.to do cost: see cost n.3 Phrases 3.
ΘΚΠ
society > trade and finance > payment > pay money or things [verb (transitive)] > pay (a claim, dues, or charge)
doOE
bearOE
payc1300
content1433
answer1471
recontenta1525
sustain1530
even1619
settle1688
foot1819
society > trade and finance > management of money > expenditure > spend [verb (transitive)]
aspendc885
doOE
spendc1175
spenec1175
dispendc1330
bewarec1374
bestow1377
suckc1380
unpursea1393
warea1417
stowc1440
to lay outc1449
spone1456
expend1477
expend1484
impendc1486
ware?a1513
deburse?1529
disburse1530
defray1543
unburse1570
outlay1573
to lay forth1584
sweat1592
vent1612
dispursea1616
exhaust1616
to set forth1622
waste1639
depursea1648
fence1699
douse1759
shut1797
shift1923
OE Confessionale Pseudo-Egberti (Galba) (Dict. Old Eng. transcript) Þine teoþunge do to Godes cyrican.
OE Laws of Edgar (Corpus Cambr.) ii. ii. §1. 196 Gyf hwa cyrican habbe, þe legerstow on ne sie, ðonne do he [L. det] of þam nigan dælum his preoste þæt þæt he wille.
c1325 (c1300) Chron. Robert of Gloucester (Calig.) 6019 [He] greiþede him ssipes in þe se, ac..þo is coust was al ydo, he miȝte bet abbe be stille.
1387 Will in R. W. Chambers & M. Daunt Bk. London Eng. (1931) 209 Wat godes þat leuet to-ward me, y will þat it be do of massys and of almes-dedys.
1411 in F. J. Furnivall Fifty Earliest Eng. Wills (1882) 19 Y wille þat þe surplus be don for my soule.
1434 in F. J. Furnivall Fifty Earliest Eng. Wills (1882) 101 Sell hit, & do hit for the loue of god.
1522 in S. Tymms Wills & Inventories Bury St. Edmunds (1850) 117 The mony..to be don for my sowle and hys.
1542 in B. Cusack Everyday Eng. 1500–1700 (1998) 334 I wyll aftar my fynyal expenses done & my detes wyche off ryghte I do hove any parson or parsons be well & trvely payd.
b. transitive. To settle, invest. Obsolete.
ΚΠ
?a1400 (a1338) R. Mannyng Chron. (Petyt) ii. 31 Who felle to haf þe lond, on þam it suld be don.
3. To bestow, impart, grant, render, give (a thing to a person); to cause to befall or come.Originally with the recipient or person affected as indirect object (in Old English in the dative), and that which is imparted or caused as direct object (in Old English in the accusative): e.g. ‘it did him credit’. In later use also with to and prepositional object: e.g. ‘it did credit to his good sense’.The original sense here appears to have been that of putting (or bestowing) something to a person, and therefore closely related to sense 1, in which a person is put to or into something.
a. To impart to, bring upon (a person, etc.) some affecting quality or condition; to bestow, confer, inflict; to cause (a person) by one's action to have (something). In later use, associated more closely with the notion of performance, as in sense 4, e.g. to do (a person) a service, to perform some action that is of service to (a person).
(a) transitive. With indirect object.to do (a person) dere, ease, shame, etc.: see the nouns.
ΘΚΠ
the world > action or operation > operation upon something > have effect on [verb (transitive)] > bring some affecting condition upon
doOE
the mind > possession > giving > give [verb (transitive)] > confer
giveOE
doOE
confer1542
feoff1571
infer1589
collate1591
instate1647
accede1818
OE Paris Psalter (1932) cxlii. 10 Þu me god dydest.
?a1160 Anglo-Saxon Chron. (Laud) (Peterborough contin.) anno 1137 I ne can ne I ne mai tellen alle þe wunder ne alle þe pines ðat hi diden wrecce men on þis land.
?c1225 (?a1200) Ancrene Riwle (Cleo. C.vi) (1972) 100 Forþu dest me freome.
c1275 (?a1200) Laȝamon Brut (Calig.) (1963) l. 242 Heo wlleð þe freonscipe don.
a1393 J. Gower Confessio Amantis (Fairf.) vi. l. 1015 The woundes..Thei licken forto don him ese.
a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Vesp.) l. 13666 He thoght him do solace.
?a1425 Mandeville's Trav. (Egerton) (1889) 12 Scho duse na man harme.
1523 Ld. Berners tr. J. Froissart Cronycles I. ccvii. 244 The which dyd them great trouble.
1535 Bible (Coverdale) 2 Macc. ix. 7 It brussed his body, & dyd him greate payne.
1642 T. Fuller Holy State i. vii. 19 Those who first called England the Purgatory of servants, sure did us much wrong.
1675 A. Wood Life & Times (1892) II. 316 It..did me a great deal of good.
1773 O. Goldsmith She stoops to Conquer v. 96 Sure he'll do the dear boy no harm.
1819 R. Southey Select. from Lett. (1856) III. 112 The book does him very great credit.
1890 Ann. Rep. (Sc. Fishery Board) iii. 371 They demand a revise of the commercial treaties with France and other countries, high duties doing them much injury.
1913 D. H. Lawrence Sons & Lovers ix. 246 The army had not really done him any good.
2001 L. de Bernières Sunday Morning at Centre of World 11 Don't do you any harm anyway, I don't think.
(b) transitive. With the noun indicating the party affected governed by to. (Passing into sense 4.)
ΚΠ
a1450 St. Edith (Faust.) (1883) l. 1976 Of þe displesaunce þat ychaue do to ȝow.
1509 S. Hawes Pastime of Pleasure xxxiii. xxviii These ladies unto me did great pleasaunce.
1822 J. Wilson Lights & Shadows Sc. Life 382 Taste the whisky, Mr. Gordon—it..will do harm to no man.
1878 S. Walpole Hist. Eng. I. 158 A day's sport which would have done credit to these modern days.
1924 Times 8 Sept. 7/2 Beans and peas have varied. Blight did serious injury to the former.
2005 M. E. Haskew Sniper at War iv. 74 Red Army snipers did real damage to the German Army on the Eastern Front in World War II.
b. To render, administer, pay, extend, exhibit, show (justice, worship, thanks, etc.) to a person.
(a) transitive. With indirect object.to do (a person) grace, homage, obeisance, reason, right, etc.: see the nouns.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > possession > giving > give [verb (transitive)] > give as due or fitting
doOE
yieldc1000
pay1340
attribute1523
render1567
OE Crist III 1567 Hy to sið doð gæstum helpe, ðonne þæs giman nele weoruda waldend, hu þa womsceaþan hyra ealdgestreon on þa openan tid sare greten.
OE tr. Vitas Patrum in B. Assmann Angelsächsische Homilien u. Heiligenleben (1889) 202 Ic dyde Gode þancas, forþan ic funde þone munuchad in þam westene, þe ic ær on mynstre forlet.
OE Paris Psalter (1932) cviii. 21 Min drihten god, do me þine nu mycle mildheortnesse.
?a1160 Anglo-Saxon Chron. (Laud) (Peterborough contin.) anno 1140 Alle diden him manred & suoren þe pais to halden.
a1350 in G. L. Brook Harley Lyrics (1968) 71 (MED) Suete Iesu..þou do vs heuene mede.
a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Coll. Phys.) l. 24058 Vs al to don sucour.
1477 W. Caxton tr. R. Le Fèvre Hist. Jason (1913) 14 To doo her ayde ayenst her enemyes.
a1500 (?c1450) Merlin i. 5 They moste do hir the lawe.
1523 Ld. Berners tr. J. Froissart Cronycles I. cxxxiii. 161 Than the kyng dyd them that grace, that he suffred them to passe.
1632 W. Lithgow Totall Disc. Trav. viii. 351 They..did me homage.
1688 T. Shadwell Squire of Alsatia v. i. 84 You do me too much Honour, you much out-bid my Value.
1706 N. Rowe Ulysses i. i To do him right He was a Man indeed.
1776 Trial Maha Rajah Nundocomar for Forgery 73/1 The Gentlemen of the Audawlet would do him justice.
1847 F. Marryat Children of New Forest I. xiii. 256 I did a gipsy a good turn once.
1871 E. A. Freeman Hist. Norman Conquest IV. xvii. §3. 78 To accompany the King on his voyage or simply to do him worship on his departure.
1937 P. Sturges in Three more Screenplays (1998) 294 I'm doing her a friendship and she wants to play puss in a corner.
2012 Independent 10 Mar. 43/1 Perfectly strange men thought they were doing you a favour by sitting down beside you.
(b) transitive. With the noun indicating the party affected governed by to. (Passing into sense 4.)
ΚΠ
a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Fairf. 14) l. 5980 Þe folk of egipte. þat maste to bestes done worshepe.
c1430 (c1386) G. Chaucer Legend Good Women (Cambr. Gg.4.27) (1879) l. 1601 He made hire don to Iason cumpaynye At mete.
1587 Sir P. Sidney & A. Golding tr. P. de Mornay Trewnesse Christian Relig. iii. 41 If due Iustice vnto you were doone.
1638 T. Herbert Some Yeares Trav. (rev. ed.) 66 If hee would..do homage to him, he should re-accept his seniory.
1660 S. Pepys Diary 14 Mar. (1970) I. 86 Which..he did to do a courtesy to the town.
1711 J. Addison Spectator No. 70. ¶5 Persons..which do Honour to their Country.
1833 J. G. Whittier in S. T. Pickard Life & Lett. J. G. Whittier (1895) I. 170 To fall down and do homage to Andrew Jackson with the idolatrous ‘spoils party’ of the day.
1901 ‘R. Connor’ Man from Glebgarry x. 164 The men all rose to their feet, doing respect to the woman and to her grief.
1991 G. Eisman tr. S. Ousmane Niiwam & Taaw 80 I will do honour to your cooking.
4.
a. To perform, execute, achieve, carry out, effect, bring to pass.
(a) transitive. With an object denoting action, frequently expressed by a general noun or pronoun, e.g. work, a thing, that, it, what, etc.to do a (or one's) number: see number n. Phrases 11. to do one's (own) thing: see thing n.1 Phrases 6b. to do something (standing) on one's head: see head n.1 Phrases 6e. to do the business: see business n. Phrases 8.
ΘΚΠ
the world > action or operation > doing > do [verb (transitive)]
i-wurchec888
i-dreeeOE
doeOE
dightc1000
workOE
haveOE
fet1297
takec1380
gara1400
playc1410
practisec1475
bedrive1481
fetch1530
perpetrate1535
act1590
exert1662
the world > action or operation > carrying out > execute, perform, or carry out [verb (transitive)]
lasteOE
ylastc888
wieldeOE
doeOE
dreeOE
forthOE
fremeOE
workOE
affordOE
full-bringc1175
fulfila1225
perfurnisha1325
complishc1374
performc1384
achievea1393
chevisea1400
practic?a1425
exploitc1425
execute1477
furnish1477
through1498
practa1513
enure1549
chare1570
enact1597
act1602
to carry out1608
outcarry1611
celebrate1615
complya1616
peract1621
tide1631
implement1837
the world > action or operation > doing > practice, exercise, or doing > practise or carry on [verb (transitive)]
doeOE
followOE
holda1100
found1340
exercec1374
enhaunta1382
usea1398
proceed1399
apply?c1400
practise?c1430
exercise1467
takea1500
plya1513
enure1549
prosecute1567
inurea1577
manage1579
to stand on ——1599
to carry on1638
cultivate1654
eOE Metres of Boethius (partly from transcript of damaged MS) (2009) xiii. 79 Hio sceal eft don þæt hio ær dyde.
OE Guthlac A 61 Sume him þæs hades hlisan willað wegan on wordum ond þa weorc ne doð.
OE West Saxon Gospels: Matt. (Corpus Cambr.) xii. 2 Nu þine leorningcnihtas doð þæt him alyfyd nys restedagun to donne.
lOE Anglo-Saxon Chron. (Laud) (Peterborough contin.) anno 1123 Þis he dyde eall for þes biscopes luuen.
c1225 (?c1200) St. Katherine (Royal) (1981) 346 (MED) Þe king bigon to wreððen þet te dei eode awei & heo ne duden nawiht.
c1384 Bible (Wycliffite, E.V.) (Douce 369(2)) (1850) John x. 37 If I do not the workis of my fadir, nyle ȝe bileue to me.
a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Vesp.) l. 13473 He..Wist well wat he had to don.
?c1450 Life St. Cuthbert (1891) l. 4156 Of diuers miracles þat Cuthbert did.
1519 W. Horman Vulgaria vi. f. 62 Whether thou do a thynge in iape or in ernest do it manerlye.
1581 R. Mulcaster Positions i. 2 Neither I haue don so much as I might.
1611 M. Smith in Bible (King James) Transl. Pref. 2 He did neuer doe a more pleasing deed.
1651 T. Hobbes Leviathan ii. xxx. 180 Any man that sees what I am doing, may easily perceive what I think.
1711 J. Addison Spectator No. 93. ¶1 Our Lives..are spent either in doing nothing at all, or in doing nothing to the purpose.
1795 J. Wolcot Royal Tour ii. 17 He'll do the feat.
1847 F. Marryat Children of New Forest I. iv. 56 Humphrey will..do all the hard work.
1866 Rural Amer. (Utica, N.Y.) 1 Jan. 10/3 Go and do a kind action, or speak an encouraging word to somebody.
1943 W. Stegner Big Rock Candy Mountain viii. 441 You had to get out and do something, not just vegetate and sail and saw wood.
1998 Independent 28 Apr. i. 6/2 The researchers did experiments on mice in which a gene..was deleted.
(b) transitive. With an object denoting the moral quality of an action.to do evil, good, right, wough, etc.: see the nouns.
ΚΠ
OE Paris Psalter (1932) lxi. 9 Ge..manes unlyt wyrceað on wægum and woh doð.
?a1160 Anglo-Saxon Chron. (Laud) (Peterborough contin.) anno 1140 Ware se he [com he d] ide mare yuel þanne god.
a1275 in C. Brown Eng. Lyrics 13th Cent. (1932) 56 Þau ve don wrong.
a1382 Bible (Wycliffite, E.V.) (Douce 369(1)) (1850) Eccles. vii. 21 Ther is not forsothe a riȝtwis man in the erthe, that do good, and not synne.
a1425 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Galba) l. 29167 Þam aw here to do right.
a1522 G. Douglas tr. Virgil Æneid (1957) iii. i. 105 Quhat wikkytnes or myscheif may be do.
1526 Bible (Tyndale) Matt. xxvii. f. xlj What evyll hath he done?
1604 T. Andrewe Vnmasking of Feminine Machiauell sig. C4 Some daughter to the Deuill, Borne to do mischiefe.
1750 S. Johnson Rambler No. 63. ⁋12 The temptations to do ill are multiplied and enforced.
1847 F. Marryat Children of New Forest II. xi. 240 Surely I have done wrong.
1952 T. Armstrong Adam Brunskill ii. 54 Jim Brunskill were a grand fellow..and he did right to take your mother off.
2012 A. F. Polard Unified Theory of Happiness vii. 128 Just imagine a person who..does bad when they feel unobserved.
(c) transitive. With a prepositional phrase (now usually introduced by to) expressing the relation of the action to another person or thing. Often blending with senses 3a(b), 3b(b). See also to do with —— 2 at Phrasal verbs 1.
ΚΠ
OE Paris Psalter (1932) lxxxv. 16 Do gedefe mid me, drihten, tacen.
OE Anglo-Saxon Chron. (Tiber. B.iv) anno 1072 Se kyng nam heora scypa & wæpna & manega sceattas, & þa menn ealle he toc, & dyde of heom þæt he wolde.
?a1160 Anglo-Saxon Chron. (Laud) (Peterborough contin.) anno 1137 Micel hadde Henri king gadered gold & syluer, & na god ne dide me for his saule tharof.
a1225 (?OE) MS Lamb. in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1868) 1st Ser. 121 (MED) We sculan þonkian him þere muchele mildheortnesse þe he dude on us.
c1384 Bible (Wycliffite, E.V.) (Douce 369(2)) (1850) John xvi. 3 And thei schulen do to ȝou thes thingis, for thei han not knowe the fadir, nether me.
a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Vesp.) l. 19325 Þai durst na uiolence to þam do.
?a1500 Court of Love (Trin. Cambr. R.3.19) l. 46 in K. Forni Chaucerian Apocrypha (2005) Love arted me to do my observaunce To his astate.
1535 Bible (Coverdale) 1 Chron. xx. A I wil do mercy vpon Hanun the sonne of Nahas.
1644 J. Milton Areopagitica 6 Then began to be consider'd..what was to be don to libellous books.
1647 J. Goodwin Hagiomastix 86 Doe they suppose (I say) that such abomination-workers as these, doe not at all..do mischiefe unto his people?
1714 N. Rowe Trag. Jane Shore i. i. 5 I have withheld the merciless stern Law, From doing Outrage on her helpless Beauty.
1725 R. Bradley Chomel's Dictionaire Œconomique at Diseases of Trees The Vine-fretter, a little black Animal, does a great deal of Mischief to Trees.
1864 J. D. Hooker Let. 5 Feb. in C. Darwin Corr. (2001) XII. 38 He will..do a real service to science.
1890 Sir N. Lindley in Law Times Rep. 63 690/1 I think an injustice has been done to the plaintiff.
a1933 J. Galsworthy End of Chapter (1934) i. xxv. 208 The inexorability of Nature that did such things to human creatures.
1953 J. Trench Docken Dead xiii. 199 What have you done to my car?
2005 New Scientist 29 Jan. 31/3 Without doing violence to the structure of space and time and the laws of relativity.
(d) transitive. In a progressive tense, in an interrogative clause with what as object (e.g. what are you doing here?): to have as an explanation or reason for being in a place. Cf. earlier what make you here? at make v.1 47a.
ΘΚΠ
the world > existence and causation > causation > cause or reason > be the reason for [verb (intransitive)] > have a reason for being (in a place)
do1534
1534 N. Udall Floures for Latine Spekynge gathered oute of Terence f. 99v I com agayne to see what he is doinge here.
1609 in R. Pitcairn Criminal Trials Scotl. (1833) III. 42 Quhat ar ȝe doand heir?
1693 T. D'Urfey Richmond Heiress iv. iii. 46 How now Tom what are you doing there?
1768 L. Sterne Sentimental Journey I. 154 Alas, poor Yorick! cried I, what art thou doing here?
1874 J. Miller Unwritten Hist.: Life amongst Modocs (new ed.) v. 78 What in hell are you doing here anyhow?
1901 G. B. Shaw Caesar & Cleopatra i. 105 What are you doing here at this time of night? Do you live here?
1930 W. Faulkner As I lay Dying 58 What are you doing here? Why didn't you answer when I called you?
1969 I. Murdoch Bruno's Dream v. 45 She lay awake wondering what that huge paunchy sweating hairy body was doing in her bed.
2005 K. MacNeil Stornoway Way 144 What in the..blazes would he be doing here? In Rome, furchrissakes?
b. transitive. To commit (sin, crime, etc.); to perpetrate. Now chiefly with murder.
ΘΚΠ
the world > action or operation > doing > do [verb (transitive)] > something bad
workeOE
doOE
commit1445
commisea1475
perpetrec1475
perpetrate1542
OE Paternal Precepts 70 Ne habbað wiht for þæt, þeah hi wom don ofer meotudes bibod.
OE Homily (Corpus Cambr. 162) in K. G. Schaefer Five Old Eng. Homilies (Ph.D. diss., Columbia Univ.) (1972) 249 Swa hit is awriten on halgum bocum se ðe synne deð and þa ne beteð se bið þære synne þeow.
a1200 MS Trin. Cambr. in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1873) 2nd Ser. 41 Alle synfulle men þe heued-synnes don habbeð, and nelleð þerof no shrift nimen.
c1325 (c1300) Chron. Robert of Gloucester (Calig.) 7597 He broȝte vp moni oþer hous of religion also To bete þulke robberie, þat him þoȝte he adde ydo.
a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Gött.) l. 5173 Ȝe gabb, and certis ȝe do gret sin.
Promptorium Parvulorum (Harl. 221) 126 Do mawmentrye, ydolatro.
a1500 (?a1422) J. Lydgate Life Our Lady (Adv.) in W. B. D. D. Turnbull Visions of Tundale (1843) 98 As thow dydest neuer trespace.
1539 R. Taverner tr. W. Capito Epitome of Psalmes (new ed.) i. sig. Pviiiv Thou shalt do no murther.
1686 in J. A. Picton City of Liverpool: Select. Munic. Rec. (1883) I. 271 Severall abuses done by such as sell rootes.
1745 J. Swift Direct. to Servants 1 When you have done a Fault, be always pert and insolent.
1852 Househ. Words 5 8 One sunbeam, coming through a grimed window, and illuminating a bloody hand. There had been a murder done there.
1931 A. Christie Sittaford Myst. xi. 91 You've got to take it from me..that Jim didn't do the murder.
1995 Grand Royal 2 7/1 The best thing of all about becoming an American citizen is that now I can do crimes and not get deported.
c. transitive. To execute, administer, practise (a function, office, or duty).
ΘΚΠ
society > authority > office > [verb (transitive)] > perform office
doOE
discharge1542
officiate1615
OE Form of Confession (Royal 2 B.v) in Anglia (1889) 11 114 Gif se arleasa..deð rihtwisnysse & demð rihtlice he leofað his life & he nane swylt.
OE Paris Psalter (1932) cxxxix. 12 Gode deð drihten domas.
?a1160 Anglo-Saxon Chron. (Laud) (Peterborough contin.) anno 1140 He dide god iustise and makede pais.
a1382 Bible (Wycliffite, E.V.) (Douce 369(1)) (1850) Jer. xxii. 3 Doth dom, and riȝtwisnesse [L. facite judicium et justitiam].
a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Vesp.) l. 27272 Queþer þai þair mister leli do.
a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Vesp.) l. 9708 Rightwisli to do iustise.
1557 T. North tr. A. de Guevara Diall Princes f. 68v/2 When death hathe done his office.
1600 Abp. G. Abbot Expos. Prophet Ionah 636 The knowledge of godlinesse, which maketh them afterward the more deuoutly able, to do seruice and performe a dutie.
c1720 N. Dubois & G. Leoni tr. A. Palladio Architecture III. xix. 32 The judges attended to do justice.
1847 F. Marryat Children of New Forest II. xiii. 280 As many of your countrymen as you may consider likely to do good service.
1892 S. R. Gardiner Student's Hist. Eng. 21 Justice was done between man and man.
1943 King's Regulations & Admiralty Instr. 183 The Admiralty may appoint an officer to do duty as a Master of the Fleet.
2012 D. Robertson in P. Keech Freelance Fashion Designer's Handbk. viii. 90 I was selected twice to sit on a jury and ended up doing service for three weeks.
d. transitive. In an interrogative clause with what as object: to carry out for a living; to follow as an occupation.
ΘΚΠ
society > occupation and work > working > [verb (transitive)]
suec1300
usec1300
followa1400
occupy?c1400
playc1410
practise1421
pursuec1485
lie1546
do1703
1703 Athenian Oracle II. 135/2 The Elder [son] failed in the World, and was at a great loss what to do for a living for himself.
1771 A. Wall Life of Lamenther v. 175 I asked what I was to do for a Living, and received for Answer, I must take in plain Work.
1835 Q. Rev. Apr. 270/2 What has your wife earned? A.—But 1s. 9d. What does she do? A.—She carries a basket.
1864 C. Dickens Our Mutual Friend (1865) I. i. viii. 72 ‘If it ain't a liberty to plump it out,’ said Mr. Boffin, ‘what do you do for your living?’
1932 W. Faulkner Light in August xiii. 277 I dont [sic] know who they is nor what they does.
1949 C. P. Snow Time of Hope iii. 37 What will he do now—in the way of work, Mrs. Eliot?
1974 J. Betjeman Nip in Air 27 You ask me what it is I do... I'm partly a liaison man and partly P.R.O.
1998 L. Zigman Animal Husbandry (1999) 30 What does she do, your girlfriend?
5. † c. transitive. To discharge, deliver (a message, etc.). Obsolete.
a. transitive. To perform duly, carry out, execute (something commanded, recommended, or imposed as an obligation). Also figurative.
ΚΠ
eOE (Mercian) Vespasian Psalter (1965) cxlii. 10 Doce me facere uoluntatem tuam : lær mec doan willan ðinne.
OE Genesis A (1931) 142 Hie..drugon and dydon drihtnes willan.
c1175 Ormulum (Burchfield transcript) l. 12502 He nollde don hiss ræd.
a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Vesp.) l. 3414 Gladli his biding he didd.
c1430 (c1386) G. Chaucer Legend Good Women (Cambr. Gg.4.27) (1879) l. 1644 And doth his oth & goth with hire to bedde.
?1515 Hyckescorner (de Worde) sig. B.iiii Do my counseyll brother pyte.
1557 Bible (Whittingham) Matt. vi. 10 Thy wil be done [1526 Tindale fulfilled].
1653 H. Holcroft tr. Procopius Gothick Warre ii. 50 in tr. Procopius Hist. Warres Justinian They did his commands with alacrity.
1712 J. James tr. A.-J. Dézallier d'Argenville Theory & Pract. Gardening 204 Take out the Dirt that hinders the Water from doing its Office.
1872 E. Peacock Mabel Heron I. i. 5 Servants who did his bidding.
1947 M. E. Boylan This Tremendous Lover (new ed.) vii. 85 True love of God expressed by doing the will of God.
2010 Psychologies (U.K. ed.) Apr. 66/2 A Machiavellian personality type—someone extremely adept at persuading others to do his bidding.
b. transitive. To perform duly, celebrate (a rite, a ceremony, etc.). Now chiefly in to do penance: see penance n. 1a.
ΚΠ
OE Soul & Body I 69 Sceal ic..eft sona fram þe hweorfan on hancred, þonne halige men lifiendum gode lofsang doð.
OE Wulfstan Homily: Be Mistlican Gelimpan (Tiber. A.iii) in A. S. Napier Wulfstan (1883) 173 God ælmihtig þa heom eallum gemildsode þurh þæt strange fæstan and behreowsuncge, þe hi dydon.
a1225 (c1200) Vices & Virtues (1888) 19 Wandeð to me..and doð scrift!
c1350 (a1333) William of Shoreham Poems (1902) 41 A prest mot do þys sacrement.
a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Vesp.) l. 28251 In kyrk..Quen goddis seruis was to do.
1463 in S. Tymms Wills & Inventories Bury St. Edmunds (1850) 28 (MED) Whan the messe is do on my yeerday.
1483 W. Caxton tr. J. de Voragine Golden Legende f. ccxixv/2 To don penaunce here for our synnes.
c1540 (?a1400) Gest Historiale Destr. Troy (2002) f. 24 All þere londes..Didyn sacrifice solempne vnto sere goddes.
1548 Hall's Vnion: Henry V f. lxxvv The coronacion of his Quene & spouse..whiche was doen the daie of.s.Mathy.
1583 B. Rich Phylotus & Emelia (1835) 23 The Mariage rites that are to bee doen in the Churche.
1667 J. Milton Paradise Lost i. 414 To do him wanton rites, which cost them woe. View more context for this quotation
1782 J. Elphinston in tr. Martial Epigrams Comm. 492/1 Eneus, one day, doing sacrifice to the gods, neglected the rites of Diana.
1875 W. Stubbs Constit. Hist. III. xviii. 127 She..submitted to the correction of the bishops, and did penance.
1976 H. R. Boer Short Hist. Early Church iv. 48 If they repented and did sacrifice to the Roman gods they were to be pardoned.
1991 Times of India 9 Nov. 7/3 Others were busy with the priests to get them to do the last rites.
ΘΚΠ
the world > action or operation > carrying out > execute, perform, or carry out [verb (transitive)] > an errand, message, etc.
doa1275
run?a1513
a1275 St. Margaret (Trin. Cambr.) l. 49 in A. S. M. Clark Seint Maregrete & Body & Soul (Ph.D. diss., Univ. of Michigan) (1972) 19 Þe sergaunz deden ar ernde.
a1325 St. Augustine of Canterbury (Corpus Cambr.) 26 in C. D'Evelyn & A. J. Mill S. Eng. Legendary (1956) 215 Hy were messagers..fram an hei man icome To do him a message.
c1426 J. Audelay Poems (1931) 203 When in þyn ere þis erand was doo.
1523 Ld. Berners tr. J. Froissart Cronycles I. lxxvi, 97 They loked among them who shulde do ye message.
a1586 Sir P. Sidney Arcadia (1590) i. xv. sig. K1v A Gentleman desired leaue to do a message from his Lord vnto him.
1596 J. Dee in H. Ellis Orig. Lett. Eminent Literary Men (1843) (Camden) 88 To Mr. Boston..I wold full fayne have my commendations done.
1678 J. Bunyan Pilgrim's Progress 144 We will do him word of this thy behaviour. View more context for this quotation
1707 G. Farquhar Beaux Stratagem iii. 25 Do my Baisemains to the Gentleman.
1847 J. S. Le Fanu Fortunes Torlogh O'Brien vii. 42 I'll make that shilling a crown, if you do a message for me safely.
6. transitive. With noun of action as object, forming a phrase equivalent in meaning to a related verb of action.Frequently in phrases expressing rapid departure, as do a bunk, flit, runner, etc., or the performance of bodily functions, as do a pee, wee-wee: see the nouns.to do battle, slaughter, the talking: see the nouns.
ΚΠ
eOE tr. Orosius Hist. (BL Add.) (1980) iv. viii. 100 Æfter þæm Scipia se consul..wæs monega gefeoht donde [L. bella gessit] on Ispanium.
eOE Laws of Ine (Corpus Cambr. 173) ix. 92 Gif hwa wrace do, ærðon he him ryhtes bidde.
c1300 St. Hippolytus (Laud) l. 54 in C. Horstmann Early S.-Eng. Legendary (1887) 482 A newe knyȝht ich am bi-come newe batayle to do.
a1393 J. Gower Confessio Amantis (Fairf.) i. l. 3211 The fader..cowthe don himself no cure.
a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Vesp.) l. 7414 (MED) Saul was yeitt in sted o king, Bot he moght do na gouerning.
1525 Ld. Berners tr. J. Froissart Cronycles II. clxii. [clviii]. 449 There the kynge kneled downe and dyd his prayers.
a1616 W. Shakespeare Cymbeline (1623) iii. v. 38 The Cure whereof, my Lord, 'Tis time must do . View more context for this quotation
1661 O. Felltham Resolves (rev. ed.) 199 If I be able to do a Curtesie, I rebate it by remembring it.
1885 Law Rep.: Queen's Bench Div. 15 316 To do trifling repairs to waggons.
1894 A. Conan Doyle Sherlock Holmes 58 I was sitting doing a smoke.
1903 Fenland Notes & Queries 5 169 The Bishop's successors were charged to do rooking and roading.
1938 Amer. Home Oct. 81/2 Paint scenery, do publicity, do telephoning, raise money.
1980 I. Opie Jrnl. 30 Jan. in People in Playground (1993) 191 There was a man in '92, Did a fart and caught the 'flu, Inky pinky parlez-vous.
2003 MBR Sept. 117/2 I'd only do cycling during the season.
7.
a. transitive. To produce, make, bring into existence by one's action.
ΘΚΠ
the world > existence and causation > creation > [verb (transitive)] > produce or bring forth
doeOE
makelOE
to bring forthc1175
farrow?c1225
childc1350
fodmec1390
raise1402
spring?1440
upbringc1440
breed1526
procreate1546
hatch1549
generate1556
product1577
deprompt1586
produce1587
spire1590
sprout1598
represent1601
effer1606
depromea1652
germinate1796
output1858
eOE tr. Orosius Hist. (BL Add.) (1980) i. xii. 34 Ða wæs þær sum argeotere, se mehte don missenlica anlicnessa.
OE West Saxon Gospels: Luke (Corpus Cambr.) iii. 8 Doð geornlice dædbote wæstmas.
c1175 ( in A. O. Belfour 12th Cent. Homilies in MS Bodl. 343 (1909) 52 ‘Doþ swylce westmæs swylce beon dædbote wurðe.’ He deþ ðonne þa wæstmæs þe beoð dædbote wurðe, ðe [etc.].
a1325 (c1250) Gen. & Exod. (1968) l. 42 Ðo bad god wurðen stund and stede, Ðis middes-werld ðor-inine he dede.
?1475 in C. L. Kingsford Stonor Lett. & Papers (1919) I. 161 I askyd hym how he wold do a perdge [i.e. perch] of sempyll dydge [i.e. ditch].
1580 W. Fulke (title) Stapleton and Martiall..confuted..Done and directed to all those that love the truth and hate superstitious vanities.
1583 C. Hollyband Campo di Fior 357 We have done five or six copies in the same paper.
1601 R. Chester Loves Martyr 165 Done by the best and chiefest of our moderne writers.
1691 T. Hale Acct. New Inventions p. xlvii A..hasty Piece of Painting done by a great Hand is of great Value.
1700 Moxon's Mech. Exercises: Bricklayers-wks. 3 The Rough or Plain Work, is done with the Grey Kentish Bricks.
1756 tr. J. G. Keyssler Trav. I. 138 A masterly piece of the sufferings of Christ..on two window-shutters, done by Holbein.
1810 Sporting Mag. 36 73 This method of doing (as it is called) a paper, is disgraceful.
1858 T. Carlyle Hist. Friedrich II of Prussia I. ii. viii. 138 Otto IV..had an actual habit of doing verse.
1860 F. Nightingale Notes on Nursing (rev. ed.) ix. 120 The sun is not only a painter but a sculptor. You admit that he does the photograph.
1922 T. S. Eliot Let. 30 June (1988) I. 536 Can you do me an article by the first of August?
1953 Sat. Rev. (U.S.) 15 Aug. 6/3 Would Mr. Costain like to do a novel on Attila the Hun..for large quantities of dough?
2013 Western Mail (Cardiff) (Nexis) 30 Nov. (Weekend section) 11 Although it was difficult to make,..it led to me doing furniture for them.
b. transitive. colloquial. To provide or offer (meals, a product, etc.) commercially.
ΘΚΠ
the world > food and drink > food > providing or receiving food > feed or nourish [verb (transitive)] > supply with meals > commercially
do1932
1932 S. Gibbons Cold Comfort Farm vii. 89 Flora was in the saloon bar.., asking Mrs. Murther the landlady if she ‘did’ lunches.
1966 Observer 13 Nov. 11/2 [Farmers'] wives are encouraged to take visitors and ‘do teas’.
1970 W. J. Burley To kill Cat iii. 48 The Marina doesn't do meals other than breakfast.
1984 Irish Times 14 Dec. 8/4 Tesco does a roasting veal £2.89 a lb.
1994 Independent (Nexis) 22 Jan. 34 Sainsbury is doing three different fresh chillies with a flavour and heat guide on the pack.
2006 T: N.Y. Times Style Mag. 5 Nov. 104/2 All taco trucks in Los Angeles do breakfasts, and it's always good.
8.
a. intransitive. To act or behave in some specified way; to perform some activity. Frequently with adverbial complement.to do well (with infinitive): see well adv. 5c. when in Rome, do as the Romans do: see Rome n. Phrases 1a.
ΘΚΠ
the world > action or operation > doing > act or do [verb (intransitive)]
workeOE
i-do971
doOE
to shift one's handa1300
performa1382
practisec1475
skift?a1534
handle1535
act1583
enact1593
actuate1620
OE Genesis A (1931) 2227 Do swa ic þe bidde.
OE West Saxon Gospels: Matt. (Corpus Cambr.) v. 44 Doþ wel þam ðe eow yfel doð [L. benefacite his qui oderunt vos].
?a1160 Anglo-Saxon Chron. (Laud) (Peterborough contin.) anno 1137 Ne næure hethen men werse ne diden þan hi diden.
?c1225 (?a1200) Ancrene Riwle (Cleo. C.vi) (1972) 98 Þenh ȝef he dude swa.
c1275 (?a1200) Laȝamon Brut (Calig.) (1963) l. 545 Als his men duden.
?a1300 Dame Sirith l. 292 in G. H. McKnight Middle Eng. Humorous Tales (1913) 14 Ne shal ich neuer haue reste ne ro, Til ich haue told hou þou shalt do.
c1426 J. Audelay Poems (1931) 9 To do as þou woldest me dud by þe.
?c1430 (?1382) J. Wyclif Sel. Eng. Wks. (1871) III. 514 (MED) Neiþer þe kyng ne his counsayl deede unriȝtfully.
1465 M. Paston in Paston Lett. & Papers (2004) I. 294 Send me word how ye wyll that I doo there-in.
1545 R. Taverner tr. Erasmus Prouerbes (new ed.) f. liv Whan ye art at Rome, do as they do at Rome.
1600 C. Sutton Disce Mor.i xxviii. 324 We must not doe as boat-men are wont, who row one way, but looke another.
1689 R. Milward Selden's Table-talk 4 Do as if you were going over a Bridge..hold fast by the Rail.
1710 R. Steele Tatler No. 138. ⁋1 It is almost a standing Rule to do as others do, or be ridiculous.
1797 A. Radcliffe Italian I. vi. 146 He had done imprudently to elect her for the companion of his whole life.
1847 Ld. Tennyson Princess iv. 91 You have done well and like a gentleman.
1896 F. Hall in Nation (N.Y.) 62 223/3 An example which others..would do wisely to copy.
1937 Amer. Home Apr. 98/3 (advt.) Do as he does, if you too like to save time and effort when you buy.
1992 J. M. Kelly Short Hist. Western Legal Theory v. 177 Judges must decide according to law even if commanded by the king to do otherwise.
b. intransitive. To proceed in an emergency or crisis; to have recourse to some procedure or action; to contrive, manage; to get by on (a limited income). Cf. to make do at make v.1 39f.
ΘΚΠ
the world > action or operation > doing > a proceeding > proceed or carry on an action [verb (intransitive)]
workeOE
doOE
proceedc1390
movec1400
precedec1425
deal1470
plough furrow1597
walka1653
process1835
the world > action or operation > advantage > usefulness > use (made of things) > recourse > have recourse [verb (intransitive)] > make do with what is available
doc1300
scamble1608
to make the best of a bad bargain1670
shift1680
fenda1682
to do with ——1715
manage1762
to make do1927
OE Old Eng. Hexateuch: Exod. (Claud.) xvii. 4 Hu sceal ic don ymbe ðis folc [L. quid faciam populo huic]? Nu binnan lytlan fyrste hi wyllað me oftorfian.
c1300 St. Katherine (Harl.) l. 261 in C. D'Evelyn & A. J. Mill S.-Eng. Legendary (1956) 541 Hou schal ich nou do, Nou ich haue mi wyf forlore?
a1425 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Galba) l. 28707 When slike wrake on a syn was tane, How sall he do has many ane.
1597 W. Shakespeare Richard II ii. ii. 104 How shal we do for money for these wars? View more context for this quotation
1610 Dundonald Par. Rec. 206 To pay..to his father..the svm of four merkis money to be doand with quhill the Sessioun be forther advysit.
a1616 W. Shakespeare Macbeth (1623) iv. ii. 60 Now God helpe thee, poore Monkie: But how wilt thou do for a Father? View more context for this quotation
1741 S. Richardson Pamela III. v. 25 How shall I do to answer, as they deserve, your two last Letters?
1855 M. Oliphant Lilliesleaf I. viii. 126 How shall I do for three months without the bairns?
1924 R. Macaulay Orphan Island xviii. 237 ‘Is that a good living wage?’ he asked her; and she answered that they could just do on it, no more, with what she herself earned.
2007 J. Porter Oppenheimer is watching Me 10 Where are we going? and for how long? how will we do for groceries?
a. transitive. In passive. To be brought about, come to pass, happen. Obsolete. [In several examples translating classical Latin fierī, factum esse.]
ΚΠ
OE Ælfric Gram. (St. John's Oxf.) 263 Sicut domino placuit, ita factum est, swaswa hit drihtne gelicode, swa hit is gedon.
lOE Anglo-Saxon Chron. (Laud) anno 1066 Man cydde Haro[l]de cyng hu hit wæs þær gedon & geworden, & he com mid mycclum here engliscra manna.
c1350 Psalter (BL Add. 17376) in K. D. Bülbring Earliest Compl. Eng. Prose Psalter (1891) xl. 14 (MED) Blisced be our Lord, God of Israel!..be it don, be it don [L. fiat].
c1384 Bible (Wycliffite, E.V.) (Douce 369(2)) (1850) Matt. xxvi. 1 It is don [L. factum est], whenne Jhesus hadde eendid alle these wordis, he seide to his disciplis.
a1425 (c1395) Bible (Wycliffite, L.V.) (Royal) (1850) Isa. xxxvii. 1 It was don [L. factum est], whanne kyng Ezechie hadde herd, he to-rente hise clothis.
b. transitive. With adjective or noun complement: to cause (a person or thing) to be or become what is expressed by the complement. Cf. make v.1 33a, 33b, 34a. Obsolete. [In Old English often translating classical Latin facere and its derivatives.]
ΚΠ
OE (Northumbrian) Lindisf. Gospels: Matt. i. 21 Saluum faciet populum suum a peccatis eorum : hal doeð uel he gewyrcas folc his from synna hiora.
OE Ælfric Lives of Saints (Julius) (1881) I. 130 Do þin mod hluttor þæt þu leornian mæge þurh soðfæst gescead hwa þin scyppend sy.
OE tr. Pseudo-Apuleius Herbarium (Vitell.) (1984) i. 30 Wyl on wætere & wring þæt wos, & siþþan hyt gestanden beo do hit eft wearm & þurh wulle drype on þæt eare.
a1325 (c1250) Gen. & Exod. (1968) l. 3842 Ðo wisten he dat aaron Was hem bissop ðurg god don.
c1325 (c1300) Chron. Robert of Gloucester (Calig.) l. 6418 (MED) Wan edmond made is eir of is lond..&..of is ȝonge sones wardein ek ydo.
a1450 (?1420) J. Lydgate Temple of Glas (Tanner) (1891) l. 252 (MED) Riȝt as þe sonne Passeþ þe sterres & doþ hir stremes donne.
10.
a.
(a) transitive (in passive). Of an activity, period of time, etc.: to be at an end, to be over; to be concluded or completed.
ΚΠ
OE tr. Pseudo-Apuleius Herbarium (Vitell.) (1984) civ. 150 Sona swa eall seo geeacnung gedon beo, do sona þone læcedom aweg.
c1275 (?a1200) Laȝamon Brut (Calig.) (1978) l. 12786 Þa þat feht wes ido, þe drake aȝen wende.
c1330 (?a1300) Sir Tristrem (1886) l. 3290 Þan þat turnament was don, Mani on slain þer lay.
a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Vesp.) l. 20319 (MED) Mi ioi es don euerilk dele.
?c1450 tr. Bk. Knight of La Tour Landry (1906) 145 All the..seruice is songe & doo.
1490 W. Caxton tr. Foure Sonnes of Aymon (1885) i. 56 He knewe well that it was doon of [= over for] hym.
1526 in State Papers Henry VIII (1830) I. 172 Aftyr his first Masse was done, I wente unto hym, withyn his travesse.
1569 R. Grafton Chron. II. 21 Before his funerall obsequy was finished and done.
1604 T. Middleton Ant & Nightingale sig. B All the Glorie of the day was done, Saue here and there some Light moone-clouds in chac'de.
a1616 W. Shakespeare Taming of Shrew (1623) v. ii. 79 A match, 'tis done . View more context for this quotation
1697 J. Dryden tr. Virgil Pastorals ix, in tr. Virgil Wks. 43 Now the Chime of Poetry is done.
1719 T. D'Urfey Wit & Mirth II. 54 Gad Dam-me cries Bully, 'tis done.
1745 J. Swift Direct. to Servants 50 When Dinner is done.
a1839 W. M. Praed Poems (1864) II. 50 Grief soon would bid the beer to run, Because the squire's mad race was done.
1892 R. L. Stevenson & L. Osbourne Wrecker iii. 40 It chanced I was to see more of the Quixotic side of his character before the morning was done.
1927 M. Sadleir Trollope 138 His ugly-duckling days were done.
2000 Time 10 Apr. 57/2 The race is over. It's done.
(b) transitive (in passive). Of a person: to be at the end of one's dealings with, to have no further truck with; = sense 10b(b).
ΚΠ
1766 T. Amory Life John Buncle II. x. 365 I was done with love for ever.
1848 J. J. Ruskin Let. 17 Mar. in M. Lutyens Ruskins & Grays (1972) xi. 98 For God-sake be done with Rails and Shares.
1876 J. Ruskin Fors Clavigera VI. lxvi. 192 Let us be done with the matter.
1898 Argosy June 476 I am done with you, and you will never receive another kopeck.
1921 E. L. White Andivius Hedulio ii. xvi. 255 Just drive your dirk good and far into him and be done with him.
1975 M. Weber Max Weber x. 309 And yet he wanted to be done with it quickly and express himself as briefly as possible.
2010 H. Jacobson Finkler Question ix. 226 ‘You told me you were done with them before you'd even met them.’ ‘That's true. And that's the part of my life I want to be done with—being done with people.’
(c) transitive (in passive). Of a person or other agent of action: to be at the end of what one is doing, to be finished. Also with complement expressing the action being finished. Now chiefly U.S.
ΚΠ
1771 T. Jefferson Let. 20 Feb. in Papers (1950) I. 62 One farther favor and I am done.
1834 F. Marryat Jacob Faithful I. xiii. 236 One little bit more, and then I'm done.
1876 H. B. Smith in Life (1881) 404 After this is done I am done.
1879 Literary World 6 Dec. 400/1 The mills of the gods are not yet done grinding.
1883 Cent. Mag. 25 767/1 ‘Going..at twenty-four thousand dollars! Are you all done?’ He scanned the crowd.
1971 M. B. Powell & G. Higman Finite Simple Groups i. 5 Since g is arbitrary, we are done [i.e. we have completed the proof].
1981 J. Blume Tiger Eyes (1982) xxi. 87 ‘Davey..are you almost done?’ Jane calls, knocking on the bathroom door.
2000 A. Hagy Keeneland 242 You are full of total dog shit. I'm done putting up with you.
(d) transitive (in passive). Of a thing, an activity, etc.: to be completed; to be finished with. With with, corresponding to the active sense 10b(b).over and done with: see over adv. 13b.
ΚΠ
1785 T. Jefferson Writings (1859) I. 467 When college education is done with..he must cast his eyes (for America) either on Law or Physics.
1855 D. G. Rossetti Let. 23 Jan. (1965) I. 241 I am asked by William to request from you the re-postage of Athenaeums when quite done with.
1871 B. Taylor tr. J. W. von Goethe Faust I. xxii. 245 Once many a bit we sponged; but now, God help us! that is done with.
1921 V. Woolf Monday or Tuesday 48 He..crumpled his paper contemptuously, like a thing done with.
1966 E. Amadi Concubine x. 70 That is past and done with.
2005 S. Rushdie Shalimar the Clown 153 You know that our dear friend Dumas's son Charles receives his bachot tomorrow. We'll talk about going once that's done with.
b. In perfect tenses (with have).† (a) intransitive. To make an end, to conclude. have done!: make an end. Obsolete.
ΘΚΠ
the world > action or operation > ceasing > cease activity [verb (intransitive)]
i-swikec893
swikec897
atwindc1000
linOE
studegieOE
stintc1175
letc1200
stuttea1225
leavec1225
astint1250
doc1300
finec1300
blina1325
cease1330
stable1377
resta1382
ho1390
to say or cry ho1390
resta1398
astartc1400
discontinuec1425
surcease1428
to let offc1450
resista1475
finish1490
to lay a straw?a1505
to give over1526
succease1551
to put (also pack) up one's pipes1556
end1557
to stay (one's own or another's) hand1560
stick1574
stay1576
to draw bridle1577
to draw rein1577
to set down one's rest1589
overgive1592
absist1614
subsista1639
beholdc1650
unbridle1653
to knock offa1657
acquiesce1659
to set (up) one's rest1663
sista1676
stop1689
to draw rein1725
subside1734
remit1765
to let up1787
to wind (up) one's pirna1835
to cry crack1888
to shut off1896
to pack in1906
to close down1921
to pack up1925
to sign off1929
the world > relative properties > order > order, sequence, or succession > end or conclusion > be at an end [verb (intransitive)] > make an end, finish up, or conclude
have done!c1300
conclude1526
dispatcha1616
period1628
finale1797
to wind up1825
to wind (up) one's pirna1835
to top off1836
finish1878
finalize1922
to drop the flag1925
c1300 St. Katherine (Harl.) l. 281 in C. D'Evelyn & A. J. Mill S.-Eng. Legendary (1956) 542 Do what þu wolt & haue ido, & bring þi wille to ende.
a1400 (c1303) R. Mannyng Handlyng Synne (Harl.) l. 929 Comyþ alle home, & hauyþ doun.
c1450 (?a1400) Sege Melayne (1880) l. 164 Hafe done! late semble þe folke of thyne!
a1538 T. Starkey Dial. Pole & Lupset (1989) 52 [They] ete them when they have downe.
1668 S. Pepys Diary 17 Nov. (1976) IX. 365 To make clean the house above stairs, the Upholsters having done there.
1712 T. Hearne Remarks & Coll. (1889) III. 404 After we had done in the Kitchin the woman carried us to the East Part of the House.
1776 J. Bentham Let. 1 Oct. in Corr. (1968) I. 359 The rogue is pressing me—so I must have done.
1803 C. K. Sharpe Corr. (1888) I. 191 I wish the French would come, and have done.
(b) intransitive. To cease to have dealings with, to finish with; to desist, cease.Now chiefly with have treated as a main verb, in the imperative or infinitive.
ΚΠ
1472 J. Paston in Paston Lett. & Papers (2004) I. 575 When he hathe doon wyth it he promysyd to delyuer it yow.
1530 J. Palsgrave Lesclarcissement 525/2 Nay, and you double ones, I have done with you.
1597 W. Shakespeare Romeo & Juliet iii. v. 203 Do what thou wilt for I haue done with thee. View more context for this quotation
a1616 W. Shakespeare Taming of Shrew (1623) iii. ii. 116 Ha done with words, To me she's married, not vnto my cloathes. View more context for this quotation
1768 F. Burney Early Jrnls. & Lett. (1988) I. 2 And now I have done with preambulation.
1820 B. R. Haydon 14 July in J. Keats Lett. 509 Have you done with Chapman's Homer? I want it very badly at this moment.
1853 E. C. Gaskell Ruth III. iv. 131 Will you allow me to send you over my Times? I have generally done with it before twelve o'clock.
1891 Blackwood's Edinb. Mag. Sept. 317/1 Write us a cheque..for this parcel of diamonds, and let us have done with it.
1922 J. Joyce Ulysses ii. 108 Plant him and have done with him.
1957 D. Niland Call me when Cross turns Over viii. 184 But he never went nap on the city, he said, and now he had done with it for good.
1995 C. Bateman Cycle of Violence xiv. 245 Better to go out on top, eh? Kill myself. Achieve this elusive perfection and then have done with it all.
(c) transitive. With verbal noun or gerund as object. To accomplish, complete, finish, bring to a conclusion. Now regional.
ΘΚΠ
the world > action or operation > completing > complete (an action or piece of work) [verb (transitive)]
to make an endc893
afilleOE
endc975
fullOE
full-doOE
full-workOE
fullendOE
fullfremeOE
full-forthlOE
fillc1175
fulfilc1300
complec1315
asum1340
full-make1340
performa1382
finisha1400
accomplishc1405
cheve1426
upwindc1440
perfurnish?c1450
sumc1450
perimplish1468
explete?a1475
fullcome1477
consume1483
consomme1489
perimplenish1499
perfect1512
perfinish1523
complete1530
consummate1530
do1549
to run out1553
perfectionate1570
win1573
outwork1590
to bring about1598
exedifya1617
to do up1654
ratifyc1720
ultimate1849
terminate1857
the world > relative properties > order > order, sequence, or succession > end or conclusion > bring to an end or conclude [verb (transitive)]
yendc1000
abatec1300
finec1300
endc1305
finisha1375
definec1384
terminec1390
achievea1393
out-enda1400
terminate?a1425
conclude1430
close1439
to bring adowna1450
terma1475
adetermine1483
determine1483
to knit up1530
do1549
parclose1558
to shut up1575
expire1578
date1589
to close up1592
period1595
includea1616
apostrophate1622
to wind off1650
periodizea1657
dismiss1698
to wind up1740
to put the lid on1873
to put the tin hat on something1900
to wash up1925
1549 Bk. Common Prayer (STC 16267) Svpper of the Lorde f. cxxviiv When the Clerkes haue dooen syngyng.
1636 H. Burton Divine Trag. 18 And before he had done ringing, he was strucke sicke, and a while after dyed.
a1672 F. Willughby Bk. of Games (2003) 223 The cock as soone as hee has done fighting is presently put into the stive.
1769 W. Buchan Domest. Med. i. 17 I have known a child seized with convulsion-fits, soon after the midwife had done swaddling it.
1794 R. B. Sheridan Duenna (new ed.) i. 27 So! my swain yonder has done admiring himself.
1858 G. Glenny Gardener's Every-day Bk. (new ed.) 211/1 When a Heath has done blooming, and before it makes its new wood.
1957 D. K. Haynes in J. M. Reid Classic Sc. Short Stories (1989) 309 She was through with her washing before the bairns had done scuttering to school.
2009 J. Lethem Chronic City iii. 51 Perkus had done tonguing the new joint's glue.
c. transitive. In past participle.
(a) At the beginning of a sentence giving the date an official document.
ΚΠ
OE Charter: Abp. Oswald to Ælfnoð (Sawyer 1337) in J. M. Kemble Codex Diplomaticus (1845) III. 168 Ðis wæs gedon ymbe viiii hund wintra and eahta and hund seofantig and on þy eahtateoþan geare þe Oswold arcebisceop to folgoðe fenc.]
1394 in C. Innes & P. Chalmers Liber S. Thome de Aberbrothoc (1856) II. 43 Down and gyffyn the yer and the day of the moneth befor nemmyt.
1654 Proclam. Lord Protector in Coll. State Papers J. Thurloe (1742) II. 290 Done at Westminster, the 28th April, old style, in the year 1654.
1716 Treaty Defensive Alliance in Hist. Reg. (1719) No. 13. 79 Done at Westminster on the twenty fifth Day of May, in the Year of our Lord One thousand seven hundred and sixteen.
1833 Fraser's Mag. 7 49 ‘Done at Battle, in the County of Sussex’; signed as our ambassador at Paris would sign a treaty of peace.
1926 Times 14 July 16/2 Done in duplicate both in English and in French, the original English text being authentic in case of difference.
2010 Right Vision News (Pakistan) (Nexis) 15 Jan. Done at Washington, in the English, French and Spanish languages, all three texts being equally authentic, in a single copy which shall remain deposited in the archives of the International Bank.
(b) Used alone as a response expressing the acceptance of an offer, esp. of a wager.
ΚΠ
a1616 W. Shakespeare Tempest (1623) ii. i. 34 Done: The wager? View more context for this quotation
1703 Ornatissimus Joculator 111 You shall see the Experience of it, for a two Bottles Wager. Done, says one; and Done, says the other.
1771 P. Parsons Newmarket II. 149 ‘Squib against Janus, ten guineas to eight.’ ‘Done, sir, done.’
1833 Fraser's Mag. 8 614 ‘I'll lay you five guineas I have.’ ‘Done!’
1843 C. Dickens Martin Chuzzlewit (1844) xxvii. 334 ‘Dine with me to-morrow’..‘I will,’ said Jonas. ‘Done!’ cried Montague.
1920 J. Galsworthy In Chancery (U.S. ed.) ii. viii. 219 If he did not take that ‘dare’ he was disgraced in Holly's eyes... ‘All right!’ he said. ‘Done!’
1983 J. Sullivan Only Fools & Horses (1999) I. 3rd Ser. Episode 7. 187 Del. £100 up front, we supply the paint and that's extra. Denzil. Done.
2002 N. Lebrecht Song of Names v. 107 ‘Done,’ I exclaimed, punching his arm. ‘Bet you I win.’
11. transitive. To put forth, exert, use (one's diligence, endeavour, etc.) in effecting something.Chiefly in set phrases, as to do one's best, cure, devoir, diligence, endeavour, pain, etc.: see the nouns. Earliest in to do one's might at might n.1 Phrases 4.
ΘΚΠ
the world > action or operation > manner of action > effort or exertion > [verb (transitive)] > bring into specific condition by
doc1175
labour?c1500
force1551
work1599
mistake1667
worry1727
the world > action or operation > manner of action > care, carefulness, or attention > take care about [verb (transitive)] > attend to or cultivate > direct (one's mind or energies) to
doc1175
set1340
embrace1393
applyc1425
c1175 Ormulum (Burchfield transcript) l. 7979 Þurrh þatt tu didesst all þin mahht To betenn þine sinness.
a1375 (c1350) William of Palerne (1867) l. 1702 Sche wold deliuerly do þer-to hire miȝt.
a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Vesp.) l. 14480 (MED) Þai did þair pain þat he and lazar war bath slain.
a1425 (c1300) Assumption of Virgin (BL Add.) (1901) l. 7 Aungeles doun here myȝt To serue hure boþe day and nyȝt.
a1500 (a1450) Generides (Trin. Cambr.) l. 68 They dede ther besy payn.
1509 S. Hawes Pastime of Pleasure i. xvii To reade their names I did my busy cure.
1523 Ld. Berners tr. J. Froissart Cronycles I. clxxxii. 216 Shame haue he that dothe nat his power to distroy all.
1611 Bible (King James) 2 Tim. iv. 9 Doe thy diligence to come shortly vnto me. View more context for this quotation
1720 D. Defoe Mem. Cavalier 80 They bad the Swedes do their worst.
1843 Fraser's Mag. 28 328 I shall do my utmost to serve her.
1872 W. Black Strange Adventures Phaeton vi. 82 The Lieutenant did his best to amuse her.
1924 A. J. Small Frozen Gold iii. 87 I'm doing my darnest to drive you out of Cedar Falls.
2001 J. Coe Rotters' Club (2002) 238 Fire away then. Do your worst.
12. † b. intransitive. In imperative. Used as a word of encouragement or incitement: go on! go to it! Cf. sense 30d(b). Obsolete.
a. intransitive. To perform deeds, be in action, exert oneself, work (as opposed to doing nothing, talking, etc.). Frequently in progressive tenses.to do or die: see Phrases 5a. up and doing: see up adv.2 7d.
ΘΚΠ
the world > action or operation > doing > act or do [verb (intransitive)] > as opposed to talking or inaction
doc1300
c1300 St. Thomas Becket (Laud) l. 337 in C. Horstmann Early S.-Eng. Legendary (1887) 116 (MED) Idul nolde he neuere beo, ake euere doinde he was.
1489 (a1380) J. Barbour Bruce (Adv.) iii. 585 For all war doand, knycht and knawe.
1535 Bible (Coverdale) 1 Chron. xxiii. C Get the vp, and be doynge.
c1580 ( tr. Bk. Alexander (1921) II. ii. 1330 All war thai doand, baith ald and ȝoung.
1724 A. Ramsay Tea-table Misc. (1733) I. 7 He could neither say nor do.
1768 J. Wesley Let. 14 May (1931) V. 88 We must do, or be borne away.
1838 H. W. Longfellow Psalm of Life ix Let us then be up and doing.
1850 T. Carlyle Latter-day Pamphlets v. 16 All human talent..is a talent to do.
1884 W. C. Smith Kildrostan 58 You have but to say, and they will do.
1963 A. Garner Moon of Gomrath v. 32 Ay, let's be doing... Theer's one or two things to be seen to before it rains.
1973 C. Sen Morning After xv. 164 He was now going to do, to act.
2009 R. Goolrick Reliable Wife xi. 128 Anyone can read and learn. The hard thing is to do, to act.
ΚΠ
a1450 York Plays (1885) 253 Do, do, laye youre handes Be-lyue on þis lourdayne.
1600 W. Shakespeare Midsummer Night's Dream iii. ii. 238 I [= Aye] doe. Perseuer, counterfait sad lookes. View more context for this quotation
a1616 W. Shakespeare Tempest (1623) iv. i. 238 Doe, doe; we steale by lyne and leuell. View more context for this quotation
13. intransitive. Frequently in interrogative clauses with how.
a. To fare, get on (in some way). Frequently with well.
(a) Of a person or animal.to do all right (for oneself): see all right adv., adj., int., and n. Phrases 4.
ΚΠ
c1300 (?a1200) Laȝamon Brut (Otho) (1963) l. 4444 Ȝif þou þis nelt don þou salt don worse [c1275 Calig. þe wurs þeo scælt iwurðen].
a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Vesp.) l. 13492 ‘We sal’, he said, ‘do nu ful wele’.
1482 J. Dalton Let. 27 Jan. in Cely Lett. (1975) 129 Your horsyn do well.
1490 Caxton's Blanchardyn & Eglantine (1962) xxxi. 116 Daryus demaunded of his fader how they of þe cytye dyd.
c1515 Ld. Berners tr. Bk. Duke Huon of Burdeux (1882–7) lxv. 223 I pray you shewe me how you haue done syn my departure.
1690 J. Crowne Eng. Frier iii. 28 I have a great fancy I shall do well in the Country.
1768 L. Sterne Sentimental Journey II. 14 Let me get to Paris..and I shall do very well.
1832 H. Martineau Homes Abroad i. 2 The farmers were doing badly.
1879 A. Trollope Thackeray 56 He had done well with himself, and had made and was making a large income.
1886 R. L. Stevenson Strange Case Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde 3 The inhabitants were all doing well..and all emulously hoping to do better still.
1932 E. Wallace When Gangs came to London xv. 136 He was doing badly and was tipped off there was good money in England.
2005 R. Bean Harvest 43 We're not for sale sir. We're doing alright. We gerr a monthly milk cheque.
(b) Of a thing.
ΚΠ
?1440 A. Paston in Paston Lett. & Papers (2004) I. 26 Yowre stewes do weel.
a1525 Bk. Sevyne Sagis l. 304 in W. A. Craigie Asloan MS (1925) II. 10 Quhen he come hame, sone sperit he Befor all thing, how dois my tre?
1525 Ld. Berners tr. J. Froissart Cronycles II. i. 174 So they had done, if the iourney had done amysse.
1577 B. Googe tr. C. Heresbach Foure Bks. Husbandry i. f. 31 It dooth best in good grounde.
a1616 W. Shakespeare As you like It (1623) iii. v. 112 Words do well When he that speakes them pleases those that heare. View more context for this quotation
1639 J. Shirley Ball ii. sig. C3 How doe the Fennes? Goes the draning forward, and your Iron Mills?
1777 Farmer's Mag. Apr. 103 Wheat, if it handles cold and heavy, will do best when sown early.
1823 J. Badcock Domest. Amusem. 161 Some fruits do best that are put away in a half ripe state.
1847 Jrnl. Royal Agric. Soc. 8 ii. 447 Flax does well after wheat, and wheat does well after flax.
1943 Times 31 May 10/8 Aurelia Weatherbournes generally do quite nicely, thank you, on council estates.
1995 I. Rankin Let It Bleed (1996) xiii. 90 ‘How's the centre doing?’... ‘We're hanging on by the skin of our teeth.’
b. spec. With regard to health or condition: to feel, find oneself, fare (well or ill).how do?, how do you do?: see how adv. 5.Arising out of sense 13a, and in early instances not easy to separate from it. [Compare Middle Dutch doen to fare, be (well), also classical Latin Quid agis?, modern Greek πῶς πράσσεις how do you do?]
ΘΚΠ
the world > existence and causation > existence > state or condition > be or remain in specific state or condition [verb (intransitive)] > fare or get on
farec1000
chevec1300
timea1325
do1340
hapc1350
thrive?a1366
ferea1375
walka1400
chevise14..
fortunea1513
tidec1540
fend1781
go1920
1340 Ayenbite (1866) 129 (MED) ‘Huet dest þou?’ þet is to zigge: ‘Ysy hou þou art fyeble and brotel.’
1463 M. Paston in Paston Lett. & Papers (2004) I. 288 I wold ye shuld send me word howghe ye doo.
1535 J. Palsgrave Lesclarcissement 524/1 I do, I fare well or yvell touchynge my helth.
1597 T. Morley Plaine & Easie Introd. Musicke 2 Phi. How haue you done since I sawe you? Ma. My health, since you sawe mee, hath beene..badd.
1600 W. Shakespeare Henry IV, Pt. 2 iii. ii. 63 How doth the good Knight? may I aske how my Ladie his wife doth? View more context for this quotation
a1640 J. Fletcher & P. Massinger Custome of Countrey v. iv, in F. Beaumont & J. Fletcher Comedies & Trag. (1647) sig. Cc3v/2 How does the patient?
1684 J. Bunyan Pilgrim's Progress 2nd Pt. 84 The Boy may do well again; but he must purge and Vomit. View more context for this quotation
1709 R. Steele Tatler No. 10. ⁋1 He asked Will..how he did?
1709 R. Steele & J. Addison Tatler No. 114. ⁋1 Child, How does your Father do?
1826 B. Disraeli Vivian Grey II. iv. vi. 221 All..asked him ‘how the Marquess did?’
1858 C. Patmore Espousals x, in Angel in House (ed. 2) II. 272 Learn of the language ‘How d'ye do?’ And go and brag that they've been there.
1962 Lancet 6 Jan. 32/1 The possible need for electrolyte replacement in patients who do badly after prostatectomy.
1998 S. Dingo Dingo x. 104 The injured stockman was taken to the army hospital, and is still doing well today.
14.
a. transitive. To exhaust, ruin, be the downfall of. Chiefly in passive. Cf. to do for —— 2 at Phrasal verbs 1, to do down 2 at Phrasal verbs 2. Now rare.It is unclear whether the following earlier quotation shows this sense:
c1230 (?a1200) Ancrene Riwle (Corpus Cambr.) (1962) 53 Sei hwa haueð ido þe. hwa haueð ihurt mi deore. Sing i mine earen.
ΘΚΠ
the world > action or operation > adversity > calamity or misfortune > have befallen as a misfortune to [verb (transitive)] > bring disaster upon
doa1375
pluckc1475
ruin1558
tragedize1593
disaster1596
planet-strike1600
to bring to grief1850
to do in1905
to wreak havoc1926
a1375 (c1350) William of Palerne (1867) l. 937 But he wiȝtly wite, y-wisse, y am done.
c1450 (?a1400) Wars Alexander (Ashm.) l. 3713 How we [MS h we] haue done ser Dary & drepid his kniȝtis.
1542 N. Udall tr. Erasmus Apophthegmes f. 364 A man euen with veray age almoste clene dooen.
1667 J. Dryden Annus Mirabilis 1666 lxx. 18 The Holland Fleet, who, tir'd and done, Stretch'd on their decks like weary Oxen lie.
1841 P. McFarlane Speech 25 Aug. If we shrink, we are done.
1892 Black & White 14 May 623/2 It was a decimal that did me in the Little-Go.
1893 Earl of Dunmore Pamirs I. 90 It was a..trying march to-day for men and horses, and both were pretty well done by the time we got in.
1904 R. Kipling Muse among Motors 7 That cursed left-hand cylinder the doctors call my heart Is pinking past redemption—I am done!
1925 E. M. Brent-Dyer School at Chalet xiv. 174 ‘Thou art weary.’ ‘I'm completely done,’ replied Madge candidly.
1966 ‘J. Hackston’ Father clears Out 106 There was nothing much for Red Range to make a come-back on. The gold was done.
1977 J. Pepper What Thing to Say 51 A Co Armagh man left a pair of shoes to be mended, and called a week later inquiring ‘Are they done?’ ‘Done?’ was the reply. ‘Them shoes were done when you brought them.’
b. transitive. slang. To assault with blows, beat up; to defeat; to finish off, kill.
ΘΚΠ
the world > life > death > killing > kill [verb (transitive)]
swevec725
quelmeOE
slayc893
quelleOE
of-falleOE
ofslayeOE
aquellc950
ayeteeOE
spillc950
beliveOE
to bring (also do) of (one's) life-dayOE
fordoa1000
forfarea1000
asweveOE
drepeOE
forleseOE
martyrOE
to do (also i-do, draw) of lifeOE
bringc1175
off-quellc1175
quenchc1175
forswelta1225
adeadc1225
to bring of daysc1225
to do to deathc1225
to draw (a person) to deathc1225
murder?c1225
aslayc1275
forferec1275
to lay to ground, to earth (Sc. at eird)c1275
martyrc1300
strangle1303
destroya1325
misdoa1325
killc1330
tailc1330
to take the life of (also fro)c1330
enda1340
to kill to (into, unto) death1362
brittena1375
deadc1374
to ding to deathc1380
mortifya1382
perisha1387
to dight to death1393
colea1400
fella1400
kill out (away, down, up)a1400
to slay up or downa1400
swelta1400
voida1400
deliverc1400
starvec1425
jugylc1440
morta1450
to bring to, on, or upon (one's) bierc1480
to put offc1485
to-slaya1500
to make away with1502
to put (a person or thing) to silencec1503
rida1513
to put downa1525
to hang out of the way1528
dispatch?1529
strikea1535
occidea1538
to firk to death, (out) of lifec1540
to fling to deathc1540
extinct1548
to make out of the way1551
to fet offa1556
to cut offc1565
to make away?1566
occise1575
spoil1578
senda1586
to put away1588
exanimate1593
unmortalize1593
speed1594
unlive1594
execute1597
dislive1598
extinguish1598
to lay along1599
to make hence1605
conclude1606
kill off1607
disanimate1609
feeze1609
to smite, stab in, under the fifth rib1611
to kill dead1615
transporta1616
spatch1616
to take off1619
mactate1623
to make meat of1632
to turn up1642
inanimate1647
pop1649
enecate1657
cadaverate1658
expedite1678
to make dog's meat of1679
to make mincemeat of1709
sluice1749
finisha1753
royna1770
still1778
do1780
deaden1807
deathifyc1810
to lay out1829
cool1833
to use up1833
puckeroo1840
to rub out1840
cadaverize1841
to put under the sod1847
suicide1852
outkill1860
to fix1875
to put under1879
corpse1884
stiffen1888
tip1891
to do away with1899
to take out1900
stretch1902
red-light1906
huff1919
to knock rotten1919
skittle1919
liquidate1924
clip1927
to set over1931
creasea1935
ice1941
lose1942
to put to sleep1942
zap1942
hit1955
to take down1967
wax1968
trash1973
ace1975
the world > action or operation > harm or detriment > hostile action or attack > make an attack upon [verb (transitive)]
assail?c1225
to set on ——c1290
saila1300
to turn one's handc1325
lashc1330
to set against ——c1330
impugnc1384
offendc1385
weighc1386
checka1400
to lay at?a1400
havec1400
to set at ——c1430
fraya1440
rehetea1450
besail1460
fray1465
tuilyie1487
assaulta1500
enterprise?1510
invade1513
sturt1513
attempt1546
lay1580
tilt1589
to fall aboard——1593
yoke1596
to let into1598
to fall foul1602
attack1655
do1780
to go in at1812
to pitch into ——1823
tackle1828
vampire1832
bushwhack1837
to go for ——1838
take1864
pile1867
volcano1867
to set about ——1879
vampirize1888
to get stuck into1910
to take to ——1911
weigh1941
rugby-tackle1967
rugger-tackle1967
1780 Sessions' Paper 611/2 He..got one of our cutlasses, which was drawn;..and said, ‘D—n my eyes, here is one of Akerman's bloody thieves, let us do him first.’
1794 Sporting Mag. 3 260/2 Much skill was displayed by both the combatants... Dame Fortune..at length favoured the tin-man, who, in the language of the schools, did his man.
1796 Grose's Classical Dict. Vulgar Tongue (ed. 3) Do,..to overcome in a boxing match; witness those laconic lines written on the field of battle, by Humphreys to his patron—‘Sir, I have done the Jew.’
1823 ‘J. Bee’ Slang (at cited word) Do him, Joey: i. e. let fly and kill him.
1905 A. Conan Doyle Return Sherlock Holmes 218 ‘You've done me,’ he cried, and lay still.
1948 L. A. G. Strong Trevannion 3 If I do Sid, I'm to have a go at Sailor Berridge.
1954 M. Procter Hell is City ii. ii. 47 I'll do you if it's my last act in life. I'll swing for you with pleasure.
1959 Encounter Aug. 33/2 I..told him..I'd do him if I ever saw his face again.
1999 J. Arnott Long Firm v. 307 Kept going on that..I was just doing a mickey-mouse degree. Got right on my wick. So I did him.
15.
a. intransitive. To operate or turn out (in some way); to succeed, answer a requirement, or serve a purpose; to be fitting or appropriate; to suffice. See also that will do at Phrases 5b.to make do: see make v.1 39f.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > goodness and badness > quality of being good > quality of being satisfactory > [verb (intransitive)]
sufficec1340
doa1450
servec1475
to go down1608
to pass (muster) in a crowd1711
to get by1897
the world > action or operation > advantage > expediency > be expedient or advisable [verb (intransitive)] > serve the purpose
servec1392
doa1450
to serve (also answer) one's purposea1500
pass1565
to fit one's turn1603
to come in handy1839
to come in useful1854
to fill the bill1882
the world > relative properties > order > agreement, harmony, or congruity > suitability or appropriateness > be suitable, appropriate, or suit [verb (intransitive)] > be adequate for the case or conditions
doa1450
serve1497
to fill the bill1861
a1450 Castle Perseverance (1969) l. 2226 Go hens, ȝe do not worthe a tord.
a1500 (a1460) Towneley Plays (1994) I. xii. 115 Here is..The leg of a goys,..Pork, partryk..A tart for a lorde—How thynk ye this doys?
1598 W. Shakespeare Henry IV, Pt. 1 ii. v. 170 I neuer dealt better since I was a man, al would not do . View more context for this quotation
1619 E. M. Bolton tr. Florus Rom. Hist. iv. ii. 390 As if shee tride how it would doe.
1750 Ld. Chesterfield Let. 24 May (1932) (modernized text) IV. 1547 Adieu, my dear! I find you will do.
1764 S. Foote Lyar iii. ii. 53 No, no, Mr. Mandeville, it won't do.
1801 M. Edgeworth Forester in Moral Tales I. 103 She had long since prophesied he would not do for them.
1818 W. Cruise Digest Laws Eng. Real Prop. (ed. 2) II. 322 The right..must be a present right; a future one will not do.
1848 J. R. Lowell Biglow Papers 1st Ser. p. xix The present Yankee..not so careful for what is best as for what will do.
1861 J. M. Neale Notes on Dalmatia 70 I cannot say much for our inn; but it did.
1869 E. A. Freeman Old Eng. Hist. for Children xi. §2. 277 Perhaps it would hardly have done to send him.
1917 ‘O. Douglas’ Setons xvi. 268 I'll go further. I'll borrow a car and meet you at the junction. Will that do?
1977 B. MacLaverty Secrets 74 If he's anything like you Paul, he'll do.
2005 L. Bagshawe Tuesday's Child v. 81 I've gone a bit red-faced and flustered. That won't do.
b. transitive. colloquial (originally U.S.). To do for, suffice for, satisfy (a person).
ΘΚΠ
the world > relative properties > quantity > sufficient quantity, amount, or degree > be sufficient for [verb (transitive)] > specifically a person
suffice1340
suffice1390
servec1405
sufficec1405
do1835
1835 Neville Papers in J. B. Lewis N. Carolina Eng. (1939) (M.A. thesis, Univ. of N. Carolina) 113 I think if nothing happens to it will make me 45 hundred pounds of tobacco and corn a plenty to do me.
1846 Congress. Globe 20 July 1118 I have just enough [money] to do me to the end of the session.
1880 Congress. Rec. 22 Jan. 491/1 I should like to have ten minutes, but it will do me just as well in the morning.
1928 J. Galsworthy Swan Song i. iv. 25 Leicester Square would do me all right.
1951 J. B. Priestley Festival at Farbridge 325 That'll do me. Not choosy.
1965 F. Sargeson Mem. Peon i. 12 The reverse side..did me to draw and paint on.
2010 T. Doshi Pleasure Seekers ix. 100 Oh, that looks nice... That'll do me nicely.
16. transitive. To deal with, do things to, perform actions on (in a prescribed, customary, or necessary way: the nature of the action being usually inferable from the object or subject).Being the most general verb expressing transitive action, do may be informally substituted for any verb whose action is of a kind that can be readily inferred: see sense 16f.
a. To do work upon or at, repair, prepare, clean, wash, keep in order, etc.; to decorate, furnish.
ΚΠ
?1518 Cocke Lorelles Bote sig. C.j Some ye lodysshestone dyd seke some ye bote dyd.
1666 S. Pepys Diary 22 Aug. (1972) VII. 257 My Closet is doing by Upholsters.
1691 T. Hale Acct. New Inventions p. xxi If they had done the other nineteen as that twentieth Ship was done [i.e. sheathed].
1737 H. Purefoy Let. 22 Mar. in G. Eland Purefoy Lett. (1931) I. iii. 49 I imagine young Charles Parker, the mason of your Town, has over reckoned mee for doing the oven at my Tennent Mr Hunts.
1748 H. Purefoy Let. 8 May in G. Eland Purefoy Lett. (1931) I. i. 23 'T will take up in all fourscore foot of Timber to do the pews.
1873 H. Cullwick Diaries (1984) 47 I had 5 fireplaces to do at Mrs Caulfield's every morning.
1883 Leisure Hour 84/1 The Chinaman who usually ‘does’ my room.
1898 A. E. T. Watson Turf i. 21 Almost all these horses have their own boys, who ride at exercise, and, as the phrase goes, ‘do’ them, that is to say, groom and attend to them in their stables.
1902 D. C. Peel How to keep House iv. 42 Do flowers, write menus, do house accounts and see housemaid.
1913 Pop. Mech. Dec. 857/2 To stand at the sink while ‘doing’ the dishes.
1919 D. Ashford Young Visiters v. 52 A small but handsome compartment done in dark green lether [sic] with crests on the chairs.
1960 Housewife Apr. 29/2 She has ‘done the flowers’ at innumerable society dinners.
1995 D. McLean Bunker Man 29 Probably the panel was put in..before the gas board came to do the boiler.
b. To work at or out, solve, translate, review, depict, etc.to do one's homework: see homework n. Phrases 1. to do the math: see math n.3 Phrases.
ΚΠ
1641 R. Marriot Serm. 12 When he hath cast up his summes, he cannot tell whether they be done right or wrong.
1695 C. Hopkins Hist. Love 10 Beautye's true Charms, no Poem can present, Which but imperfectly are done in Paint.
1780 S. Johnson Let. 9 May (1992) III. 254 My Lives creep on. I have done Addison, Prior..and almost Fenton.
1813 T. B. Macaulay in Life & Lett. (1880) I. 41 I do Xenophon every day.
1853 W. M. Thackeray Newcomes (1854) I. iii. 31 He has done [i.e. sketched] me and Hannah too.
1866 Reader 3 Nov. 914 The gentle man who ‘does’ the French books for the Athenæum.
1883 R. Buchanan Love me for Ever ii. iii. 92 There Amos often sat and did his accounts.
1887 ‘L. Carroll’ Game of Logic iv. 96 Not one syllable of lessons do they ever do after their one o'clock dinner.
1978 E. Blishen Sorry, Dad iii. v. 133 Julius Caesar was the first Shakespeare we did with him.
2009 Esquire Mar. 111/2 Google will do sums for you.
c. To prepare or make ready as food; to cook; to preserve, pickle, etc. Cf. done adj.1 3, well-done adj. 4.
ΘΚΠ
the world > action or operation > undertaking > preparation > prepare [verb (transitive)]
yarec888
yarkc1000
graithc1175
readya1225
biredienc1275
to make yarec1290
forgraitha1300
adightc1330
buskc1330
purveyc1330
agraith1340
disposec1375
before-graithea1382
to forge and filec1381
to make readya1382
devisec1385
bounc1390
buss?a1400
address?a1425
parel?a1425
to get upc1425
providec1425
prepare1449
bakec1450
aready1470
arm?a1505
prevenea1522
get?1530
to get ready1530
to get ready1530
to set in readiness1575
apply1577
compose1612
predy1627
make1637
to dispose of1655
do1660
fallowa1764
to line up1934
prep1936
tee1938
1660 S. Pepys Diary 2 Mar. (1970) I. 74 We had..a carp and some other fishes, as well done as ever I eat any.
1796 Glasse's Art of Cookery (new ed.) xix. 304 Red currants are done the same way.
1854 W. G. Simms Partisan (rev. ed.) xxxiii. 348 You may mention the dexterity of Tom, my cook, in doing a stew or ragout.
1885 Manch. Examiner 16 Sept. 5/2 [She] will have an extra bloater or a mutton chop done to a turn.
1896 ‘J. Waring’ tr. H. de Balzac Harlot's Progress I. 106 Carême did the dinner to-night, as he does every Sunday.
1902 E. Banks Autobiogr. Newspaper Girl 161 Your Boston beans done in an earthen pot with the middle-piece pork just rightly browned.
1985 D. Lucie Progress ii. i, in Fashion, Progress, Hard Feelings, Doing the Business (1991) 136 Shall I do some tea?
1998 A. Wood EastEnders (BBC TV script) (O.E.D. Archive) Episode 672. 24 Don't stuff yourself with rubbish lunchtime. I'm doing lamb hotpot tonight.
d. To comb, brush, and arrange (a person's hair). Also: to cut or paint (one's nails); to clean (one's teeth).to do one's face: see face n. 7.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > attention and judgement > beautification > beautification of the person > beautification of the hair > beautify (the hair) [verb (transitive)]
dressa1400
cherish1519
addressa1522
barbera1616
do1750
coif1835
coiffure1906
1750 Ld. Chesterfield Let. 12 Nov. (1932) (modernized text) IV. 1613 Let your man learn of the best friseur to do your hair well.
1778 F. Burney Evelina I. xxi. 153 I did my hair on purpose.
1864 Harper's Mag. Aug. 412/2 I wouldn't do my hair in a three strand braid on no account.
1875 J. G. Holland Sevenoaks 299 To do the bride's hair and act as the..supervisor of her dress.
1929 P. Guedalla Missing Muse 147 The explorers..went below and began to do their hair.
1953 D. Whipple Someone at Distance xv. 138 She brushed her hair, did her nails, laid out fresh underclothes for the next day, washed out her silk stockings.
1984 J. Malcolm Godwin Sideboard xi. 88 Do your teeth and make the bed.
2007 R. Millward Apples xviii. 178 I couldn't work out why she'd done her hair all different.
e. colloquial. To attend to, perform a procedure on (a person or animal).
ΚΠ
1901 Daily Chron. 16 Oct. 5/2 The [vaccinated] man who..has been ‘done in the leg’.
1939 J. Grenfell Let. 23 Apr. in Darling Ma (1989) 113 I thought I'd get my hair washed and a manicure... We..rang up Selfridges where, miraculously, my Miss White could do me and there were manicurists free.
1941 It's That Man Again (B.B.C.) 26 Oct. in J. R. Freedman Whistling in Dark (1999) 69 Mrs. Mopp: Can I do you now, sir?
1960 C. Day Lewis Buried Day 116 Confirmation was habitually referred to as ‘getting done’. We were ‘done’, according to our age group, in batches—like loaves.
1986 ‘M. Hebden’ Pel among Pueblos ii. 22 She's been done... Spayed.
2010 C. Gibb Beauty of Humanity Movement 38 His mother snaps the rusty shears shut over his head. ‘Do you want me to do you next?’
f. In miscellaneous uses where the sense is implied by the object.The examples given here are merely indicative of the wide range of possible uses.
ΚΠ
1919 T. S. Eliot Let. 17 May (1988) I. 294 Will you be able to do Greek type?
1929 M. Callaghan Native Argosy 20 Bun Brophy..who did city hall for the paper.
1937 H. Jennings et al. May 12th Mass-observ. Day-surveys (1987) iii. 198 I asked him to lend me some money... ‘Could you do half-a-crown?’
1939 D. Thomas Let. July (1987) 391 The Oxford University Press..will not do your book.
1953 E. Taylor Sleeping Beauty (1983) ii. 29 Harry always did the drinks.
1982 ‘Aspen’ in Everyday Matters 27 He stood up and did his zip.
1987 B. MacLaverty Great Profundo 52 He was a mature student at University doing medicine.
2009 Time Out N.Y. 23 Apr. 31/3 We also do eco-events where you can create your own ‘trashy’ projects with us.
17. transitive. To translate or render into another language or form of composition. Chiefly in passive. Now somewhat archaic.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > mental capacity > intelligibility > meaning > explanation, exposition > translation > translate [verb (transitive)]
setc888
wendeOE
turnc1175
writec1275
drawa1325
translatea1375
expound1377
takea1382
interpret1382
transpose1390
remue?a1400
renderc1400
put?a1425
to draw outa1450
reducec1450
compile1483
redige?1517
make1529
traducea1533
traduct1534
converta1538
do1561
to set out1597
transcribe1639
throw1652
metaphrase1868
versionize1874
1561 T. Hoby tr. B. Castiglione Courtyer (title page) Done into Englyshe by Thomas Hoby.
1660 R. Boyle New Exper. Physico-mechanicall Pref. 15 He has already provided, that this piece shall shortly be done into Latine.
1710 J. Swift in J. Swift & R. Steele Tatler No. 230 Books..not translated, but..Done out of French, Latin, or other Language, and Made English.
1727 A. Pope et al. Περι Βαθους: Art of Sinking 85 in J. Swift et al. Misc.: Last Vol. A Chapter or two of the Theory of the Conflagration, well circumstanced, and done into Verse.
1831 T. B. Macaulay Boswell's Life Johnson in Ess. (1854) 189/1 When he wrote for publication, he did his sentences out of English into Johnsonese.
1921 H. Guthrie-Smith Tutira (1926) 284 ‘Poor pretences’ can, I think, only be a corruption of Poa pratensis; the Latin name of the one plant done into English has been fitted to another.
2003 T. L. Fagan tr. R. Brague Wisdom World x. 138 It was done into English by translators as distinguished as King Alfred, Chaucer, and also Queen Elizabeth I.
18. transitive. To have sexual intercourse with. Also intransitive. Cf. doing n. 1b. slang in later use.In quot. 1594 probably arising from wordplay on undo v. 8b; cf. also undo v. 8d.
ΘΚΠ
the world > physical sensation > sexual relations > sexual activity > engage in sexual activity [verb (intransitive)] > have sexual intercourse
playOE
to do (also work) one's kindc1225
bedc1315
couple1362
gendera1382
to go togetherc1390
to come togethera1398
meddlea1398
felterc1400
companya1425
swivec1440
japea1450
mellc1450
to have to do with (also mid, of, on)1474
engender1483
fuck?a1513
conversec1540
jostlec1540
confederate1557
coeate1576
jumble1582
mate1589
do1594
conjoin1597
grind1598
consortc1600
pair1603
to dance (a dance) between a pair of sheets1608
commix1610
cock1611
nibble1611
wap1611
bolstera1616
incorporate1622
truck1622
subagitate1623
occupya1626
minglec1630
copulate1632
fere1632
rut1637
joust1639
fanfreluche1653
carnalize1703
screw1725
pump1730
correspond1756
shag1770
hump1785
conjugate1790
diddle1879
to get some1889
fuckeec1890
jig-a-jig1896
perform1902
rabbit1919
jazz1920
sex1921
root1922
yentz1923
to make love1927
rock1931
mollock1932
to make (beautiful) music (together)1936
sleep1936
bang1937
lumber1938
to hop into bed (with)1951
to make out1951
ball1955
score1960
trick1965
to have it away1966
to roll in the hay1966
to get down1967
poontang1968
pork1968
shtup1969
shack1976
bonk1984
boink1985
the world > physical sensation > sexual relations > sexual activity > engage in sexual activity with [verb (transitive)] > have sexual intercourse with
mingeOE
haveOE
knowc1175
ofliec1275
to lie with (or by)a1300
knowledgec1300
meetc1330
beliea1350
yknowc1350
touchc1384
deala1387
dightc1386
usea1387
takec1390
commona1400
to meet witha1400
servea1400
occupy?a1475
engender1483
jangle1488
to be busy with1525
to come in1530
visitc1540
niggle1567
mow1568
to mix one's thigh with1593
do1594
grind1598
pepper1600
yark1600
tumble1603
to taste of1607
compressc1611
jumble1611
mix?1614
consort?1615
tastea1616
bumfiddle1630
ingressa1631
sheet1637
carnal1643
night-work1654
bump1669
bumble1680
frig?c1680
fuck1707
stick1707
screw1719
soil1722
to do over1730
shag1770
hump1785
subagitatec1830
diddle1879
to give (someone) onec1882
charver1889
fuckeec1890
plugc1890
dick1892
to make a baby1911
to know (a person) in the biblical sense1912
jazz1920
rock1922
yentz1924
roll1926
to make love1927
shtupa1934
to give (or get) a tumble1934
shack1935
bang1937
to have it off1937
rump1937
tom1949
to hop into bed (with)1951
ball1955
to make it1957
plank1958
score1960
naughty1961
pull1965
pleasurea1967
to have away1968
to have off1968
dork1970
shaft1970
bonk1975
knob1984
boink1985
fand-
1594 W. Shakespeare Titus Andronicus iv. ii. 76 Chiron. Thou hast vndone our mother. Aron. Villaine I haue done thy mother. Deme. And therein hellish dog thou hast vndone her, Woe to her chaunce, and damde her loathed choice, Accurst the offspring of so foule a fiend.
?c1620 in F. J. Furnivall Love-Poems & Humorous Ones (1874) 16 Blushe cherefully whilst I doe thee.
1693 J. Dryden tr. Juvenal in J. Dryden et al. tr. Juvenal Satires vi. 109 What pregnant Widow, in what Month was made; How oft she did, and doing, what she said.
c1890 My Secret Life (new ed.) I. vi. 127 Then I thought that after all, old as she was, and young as I was, she might like Charlotte, let me do her.
1959 A. Sinclair Breaking of Bumbo ii. x. 106 You don't do her? And you eat in Chelsea? There's something queer about you.
1967 V. Canning Python Project viii. 157 Some service-man..did your mother in Cyprus..and then..made an honest woman of her.
1999 C. Palahniuk Survivor xl. 233 ‘Oh, harder, do me harder’, she laughs and says. ‘Lick me’.
19.
a. transitive. To enact, act, perform; to play the part of; to impersonate, mimic.
ΘΚΠ
society > leisure > the arts > performance arts > drama > acting > act [verb (transitive)] > a part or character
playc1390
enact1430
representc1475
perform1598
personate1598
present1598
do1600
to bring (a person) on or to the stage1602
stage1602
support1693
impersonate1715
sustain1731
be1814
portray1875
fake1876
inact1900
1600 W. Shakespeare Much Ado about Nothing ii. i. 107 You coulde neuer doe him so ill well, vnlesse you were the very man. View more context for this quotation
1660 S. Pepys Diary 11 Oct. (1970) I. 264 To the Cockpitt to see ‘The Moore of Venice’, which was well done.
1709 R. Steele Tatler No. 4. ⁋4 A great Part of the Performance was done in Italian.
1770 S. Foote Lame Lover ii. 50 I shall do Andromache myself.
1830 Fraser's Mag. 1 131 He was too poor to do comet; but he did fire-fly with some brilliancy.
1857 T. Hughes Tom Brown's School Days i. vii. 155 East still doing the cicerone.
1883 Cent. Mag. 25 755/1 He did not seem to do the host.
1905 Temple Bar Jan. 83 If she had had her way, I believe she would have done Ophelia with her hair up!
1984 P. Fitzgerald Charlotte Mew i. 21 A born impersonator who could ‘do’ anybody.
1990 R. Critchfield Among British v. 310 Whenever I see any English company doing Shakespeare it's always wonderful.
b. transitive. colloquial. With an adjective used as noun (with the): to behave in the way indicated by the adjective. Cf. sense 28e. Now archaic and rare except in to do the dirty at dirty adj. 2d.Originally an elliptical use of sense 19a, but subsequently usually with thing understood.to do the agreeable, to do the civil, to do the grand, to do the polite, etc.: see the final element. Recorded earliest in to do the handsome at handsome adj., adv., and n. Phrases 2.
ΚΠ
1823 Mirror 1 Nov. 374/1 Managed to appease her—friend did the handsome, and paid damages.
1836 C. Dickens Sketches by Boz 1st Ser. II. 273 He used to..flatter the vanity of mammas, do the amiable to their daughters.
1864 G. A. Sala in Daily Tel. 24 Aug. Honestly doing the lazy, and luxuriating in the..bounteous summer.
1875 R. H. R. Rambles in Istria 195 One confesses, goes to mass, and does the proper.
2000 G. Devon Rake vii. 148 You even said I should do the honourable, even though it was none of my doing that brought her into my home.
c. transitive. colloquial. With a proper name preceded by a. To act or behave in a manner characteristic of (a specified person, etc.).to do a Garbo, Harvey Smith, Melba, etc.: see the second element.
ΚΠ
1915 Green Bk. Mag. Feb. 239/2 Mebbe, the way I feel.., I'll be doing a Ophelia in the dark waters of one of them suicide rivers.
1943 N. Balchin Small Back Room 28 We do all the work and then R. B. sails in and does a God Almighty on us.
1960 L. Cooper Accomplices i. vi. 58 He's a fiend about it—not that he does a McCarthy or rants.
2002 A. Sebold Lovely Bones v. 58 An everyman takes a gun or a knife and stalks the murderer of his family; he does a Bronson on them and everyone cheers.
20. transitive. slang. To hoax, cheat, swindle. Cf. to do out of —— 2 at Phrasal verbs 1.to do (someone) in the eye: see eye n.1 Phrases 2h.The following quot. was placed at this sense by N.E.D. (1897), but the precise meaning is unclear and the context suggests it may be something like ‘to put off, forestall’ or ‘to cause to go away, get rid of’:There is also some doubt whether the isolated use in quot. a1642, part of the response of a servant ‘asked what hee coulde doe’, really has this sense, though it is so glossed by modern editors.
1768 O. Goldsmith Good Natur'd Man ii. 22 If the man comes from the Cornish borough, you must do him.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > possession > taking > stealing or theft > defrauding or swindling > perpetrate (a swindle) [verb (transitive)] > defraud or swindle
defraud1362
deceivec1380
plucka1500
lurch1530
defeata1538
souse1545
lick1548
wipe1549
fraud1563
use1564
cozen1573
nick1576
verse1591
rooka1595
trim1600
skelder1602
firk1604
dry-shave1620
fiddle1630
nose1637
foista1640
doa1642
sharka1650
chouse1654
burn1655
bilk1672
under-enter1692
sharp1699
stick1699
finger1709
roguea1714
fling1749
swindle1773
jink1777
queer1778
to do over1781
jump1789
mace1790
chisel1808
slang1812
bucket1819
to clean out1819
give it1819
to put in the hole1819
ramp1819
sting1819
victimize1839
financier1840
gum1840
snakea1861
to take down1865
verneuk1871
bunco1875
rush1875
gyp1879
salt1882
daddle1883
work1884
to have (one) on toast1886
slip1890
to do (a person) in the eye1891
sugar1892
flay1893
to give (someone) the rinky-dink1895
con1896
pad1897
screw1900
short-change1903
to do in1906
window dress1913
ream1914
twist1914
clean1915
rim1918
tweedle1925
hype1926
clip1927
take1927
gazump1928
yentz1930
promote1931
to take (someone) to the cleaners1932
to carve up1933
chizz1948
stiff1950
scam1963
to rip off1969
to stitch up1970
skunk1971
to steal (someone) blind1974
diddle-
a1642 H. Best Farming & Memorandum Bks. (1984) 141 And I can doe my Master too, when my Master turns his backe.
1801 Sporting Mag. 18 100 To do any one, to cheat him.
1807 Narr. Life H. Tufts iii. iv. 317 To do him of his blowen, to rob him of his wife.
1887 G. R. Sims Mary Jane's Mem. 106 If you are too suspicious of servants..they take a pleasure in ‘doing’ you, to use a common saying.
1916 Locomotive Engineers Jrnl. June 469/2 He doesn't take much interest in doing a sucker.
2002 G. Waterfield Hound in Left-hand Corner 240 Ten million? Ten million pounds, not dollars? I've been done.
21. transitive. slang. To break into (a place); to burgle or rob.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > possession > taking > stealing or theft > burglary > burgle [verb (transitive)]
do1774
bust1859
burglarize1871
burgle1874
burglar1890
take1924
to rip off1972
tickle1976
1774 Sessions Papers: Proc. Old-Bailey 7–13 Dec. (Wilkes Session) 16/1 John Miller. I and four or five more went to go to do a jew ladies; to break the house open. Question. What is that a cant term to break a house open? Miller. Yes.
1822 Mem. Life & Trial J. Mackcoull 79 It was at first proposed to go to Aberdeen by sea and do either the Montrose or Dundee bank.
1865 Leaves from Diary Celebrated Burglar 27 I would go right there and ‘do’ that jeweler's ‘crib’.
1930 ‘G. Ingram’ & D. Mackenzie Hell's Kitchen ii. 38 We had done two other houses in the neighbourhood that night... We therefore had little time left for our main objective.
1968 H. R. F. Keating Inspector Ghote hunts Peacock xiv. 178 My Billy noticed the set in a shop-window... He did the place that very night.
1997 G. Oldman Nil by Mouth 59 I'll fucking get the money. I'll steal it, I'll do a bank.
22. transitive. slang. To arrest; (of an officer of the law) to catch or seize hold of; to charge with an offence; to convict. Frequently in passive.
ΘΚΠ
society > law > administration of justice > general proceedings > arrest > [verb (transitive)]
at-holda1230
attacha1325
resta1325
takec1330
arrest1393
restay?a1400
tachec1400
seisinc1425
to take upa1438
stowc1450
seize1471
to lay (also set, clap, etc.) (a person) by the heels?1515
deprehend1532
apprehend1548
nipa1566
upsnatcha1566
finger1572
to make stay of1572
embarge1585
cap1590
reprehend1598
prehenda1605
embar1647
nap1665
nab1686
bone1699
roast1699
do1784
touch1785
pinch1789
to pull up1799
grab1800
nick1806
pull1811
hobble1819
nail1823
nipper1823
bag1824
lag1847
tap1859
snaffle1860
to put the collar on1865
copper1872
to take in1878
lumber1882
to pick up1887
to pull in1893
lift1923
drag1924
to knock off1926
to put the sleeve on1930
bust1940
pop1960
vamp1970
society > law > administration of justice > court proceedings or procedure > judging > conviction or judicial condemnation > convict or condemn [verb (transitive)]
fordeemc1000
attain1330
filec1330
condemna1340
shape1340
dem1377
convictc1380
reprovea1382
damnc1384
overtakea1393
attainta1400
taintc1400
commita1425
vanquish1502
convincea1535
cast1536
convanquish1540
deprehend1598
forejudge1603
do1819
1784 Sessions' Paper Jan. 221/1 He stepped on one side of me and said, ‘You have not done me yet.’ I immediately pursued him.
1819 J. H. Vaux New Vocab. Flash Lang. in Memoirs II. 168 Done, convicted; as, he was done for a crack, he was convicted of house-breaking.
1936 ‘G. Ingram’ Muffled Man vi. 91 Blow me if one of your tribe [sc. policemen] don't go and do me, and I get found a quid.
1963 Guardian 23 Feb. 4/4 ‘This is a murder charge. There is no certainty that you will be done for murder.’..He did not say that Kelly would only be ‘done’ for robbery and not murder.
1968 ‘R. Simons’ Death on Display iii. 44 I'm goin' straight. Last time I was done was two years ago, and I ain't been tapped on the shoulder since.
1995 Daily Mail 2 Jan. 3/1 He intends you to be done for drink-driving.
23. transitive. To traverse (a given distance); to achieve; to travel at (a certain speed, etc.).to do the (or a) ton: see ton n.1 5c.
ΘΚΠ
society > travel > [verb (transitive)] > traverse a distance or ground
runeOE
overcomeOE
meteOE
through-gangOE
passc1300
to pass over ——c1300
overpassc1325
tracec1381
travela1393
traverse?a1400
travelc1400
measure?a1425
walkc1450
go1483
journey1531
peragrate1542
trade1548
overspin1553
overtrace1573
tract1579
progress1587
invade1590
waste1590
wear1596
march1606
void1608
recovera1625
expatiate1627
lustrate1721
do1795
slip1817
cover1818
clear1823
track1823
itinerate1830
betravel1852
to roll off1867
1795 H. Newdigate Let. 9 Sept. in A. E. Newdigate-Newdegate Cheverels (1898) xi. 171 We mean to take a frisk & see Worthing, 20 miles, Charming Road, ye Poneys will do it in 3½ hours.
1808 Sporting Mag. 33 146/2 The Captain did the first mile in five minutes and a second.
1890 Nature 13 Mar. 435 The 105¼ miles between Grantham and London are continuously ‘done’ in 117 minutes.
1919 C. Mackenzie Early Life Sylvia Scarlett ii. i. 273 Good engine this. We're doing fifty-nine or an unripe sixty.
1919 G. B. Shaw Augustus does his Bit 228 The old cars only do twelve miles to the gallon. Everybody has to have a car that will do thirty-five now.
1963 M. Procter Moonlight Flitting i. 6 ‘That's a Rolls-Royce, isn't it?’ ‘Yes. It's practically new. Only done about a thousand.’
2000 T. Carew Jihad! (2001) ii. 56 We'd only done a couple of miles when we began to hear the sound of heavy fighting.
24. transitive. colloquial. To go to, travel within, or visit as a tourist; to attend (an entertainment).
ΘΚΠ
society > travel > [verb (transitive)] > visit a place > as a tourist
do1817
1817 Countess Granville Let. June (1894) I. 119 We shall then meet them at Basle, do the Rhine, stay two or three days at Brussels, and home.
1830 F. Marryat King's Own III. ii. 56 Captain Hall..has..done North and South America.
1857 J. F. Maguire Rome 8 Some of the latter evidently went to the Pope's Chapel as they had gone the previous night to the Opera, to hear the music, or to ‘do’ it, as they would the Coliseum.
1861 Court Life at Naples II. 115 Travellers, zealously bent on doing the country and all the sights.
1890 E. Dowson Let. 4 Mar. (1967) 139 I rather want..to do a St. Jame's Ballad Concert.
1932 D. L. Sayers Have his Carcase xviii. 239 We could go and do a show together.
1955 Times 25 Aug. 12/3 During siesta the only activity comes from tourists ‘doing’ St. Peter's, the Colosseum, and the Trevi Fountain before sunstroke or tea.
1965 W. H. Auden About House (1966) 20 This unpopular art..Cannot be ‘done’ like Venice Or abridged like Tolstoy.
1993 R. Lowe & W. Shaw Travellers 242 Come June I'd had enough of being left alone so I went and done the festivals.
25. transitive. slang (Australian and New Zealand). To spend completely.
ΚΠ
1825 R. Milnes Warning Voice of Hermit Abroad 6/2 And I sued him in chancery to take them from him, till I had done my money, and I had no one to help me.
1881 Bulletin (Sydney) 22 Jan. 5/3 All my ‘sugar’ was done, and they offered me 2 to 1 in thousands.
1906 N.Z. Truth 10 Nov. 6 Does his dough on [nags].
1928 Bulletin (Sydney) 15 Feb. 35/1 He grumbled:‘..I'd just as soon ha' done me brass on goats.’
1931 V. Palmer Separate Lives 218 I did my last frog [sc. franc] on a feed at the estaminet to-night.
1969 ‘A. Garve’ Boomerang i. 24 Right now I've done my money, but as soon as I can raise the fare I'll be getting back.
2003 G. Burn North of Eng. Home Service (2004) iv.118 The new shower bath he had gone to such great lengths and nearly done his money (so he claimed) to install.
26. transitive. British colloquial. To tend or look after (a horse) as a groom; (also New Zealand) to take care of, provide for (sheep).
ΚΠ
1839 Central Criminal Court: Minutes of Evid. 10 1011 He said, ‘Where is your father?’—I said, ‘In the yard, doing his horses.’
1890 S. S. Buckman John Darke's Sojourn in Cotteswolds viii. 72 Nobody can't be expected to do a flock on no vittles.
1923 W. Perry et al. Sheep Farming in N.Z. viii. 116 Besides the usual pasture, roots and green feed given to the flock it is often found profitable to ‘do’ the show sheep especially well.
1950 N.Z. Jrnl. Agric. Oct. 347/2 The successful management of a sheep run calls for..an appreciation of the carrying capacity of tussock land to ‘do’ sheep well without either overstocking or understocking.
1971 T. Fitzgeorge-Parker Steeplechase Jockeys (1972) iii. 36 A list..recording the lad who ‘did’ each winner that he rode during the season.
1987 Country Living Nov. 37/1 She..‘does’ two horses with all the thoroughness of the most devoted, old-fashioned groom.
2009 G. McCaughrean Death-defying Pepper Roux (2010) xii. 140 ‘What's he doing here?’ she demanded... ‘Lag on the run,’ said Jacques. ‘He does the horses. Leave him be.’
27.
a. transitive. slang. To serve out (a term of punishment). to do time: see time n., int., and conj. Phrases 4d.
ΚΠ
1852 J. Guyatt Let. 28 Mar. in Further Corr. Convict Discipline & Transportation (1853) 67 After doing five years and eight months, I was recommended for my liberty.
1866 All Year Round 28 Apr. 374/1 He was at that time ‘doing’ a month in the jail at Chelmsford.
1892 Saintsbury in Academy 30 Jan. 106/3 Tuer is a criminal..and..does his five years.
1907 J. London Road v. 104 An ‘ex-con’ who had done five years in Sing Sing.
1996 J. King Football Factory (1997) 173 Mark did three months for assault after he hospitalised some bloke outside a club in Shepherd's Bush.
b. transitive. To spend (time or a period of time) in a particular occupation or place.Recorded earliest in to do time (time n., int., and conj. Phrases 4d(b)).
ΘΚΠ
the world > time > spending time > spend time or allow time to pass [verb (transitive)] > in some activity
spenda1300
addict1604
busy1629
to put in1863
do1897
1897 Academy 3 July (Fiction Suppl.) 26/2 Mr. Griffith's leading character is a revivified mummy... The women of the book, one of whom has also done time as a mummy, are superfluous.
1902 G. Calderon Adventures Downy V. Green xvi. 97 He had done three years at Harvard, and had come up with a Rhodes scholarship to Oxford.
1966 ‘A. Burgess’ Tremor of Intent i. iii. 28 I know all about General bloody Franco... I did a year in Gibraltar, remember.
2005 T. Bramwell Magical Myst. Tours 410 We went to Limerick to a little theater to tighten up the show, then did a week in Dublin before hitting the U.K.
28. colloquial.
a. transitive. To partake of (a portion of food or (esp.) an alcoholic drink); to eat or drink, esp. in a social context.
ΘΚΠ
the world > food and drink > drink > drinking > [verb (transitive)] > drink intoxicating liquor
pulla1450
to crush a cup of wine1592
to take one's rousea1593
crack1600
whiff1609
bezzle1617
bub1654
tift1722
bibulate1767
lush1838
do1853
lower1895
nip1897
sink1899
1853 ‘C. Bede’ Adventures Mr. Verdant Green x. 78 To ‘do bitters’, as Mr. Bouncer phrased the act of drinking bitter beer.
1867 J. S. Borlase Night Fossikers 116 I asked him to come to Poole's shanty and do a chop and a nobbler with me.
1888 Civil & Mil. Gaz. (Lahore) 8 May 2/1 Hulloo! Back again, old man?.. I think we might do a drink together in honour of the occasion.
1908 S. R. Lee Other Sara v. 65 I feel as if I could do a chop and a glass of stout now.
1987 Sunday Tel. 19 July (Colour Suppl.) 39/3 An invitation to lunch might be pitched as, ‘Come on, let's do sushi’, or ‘We have to do some Korean’.
2001 H. Johnson Best of Times (2002) v. 132 She'd work up a sweat dancing, do a shot of tequila, and then head right back onto the dance floor.
b. transitive. Originally U.S. To take (a hallucinogenic or other drug); to smoke (marijuana). Also: to drink (alcohol), esp. habitually.
ΘΚΠ
the world > physical sensation > use of drugs and poison > take drugs [verb (transitive)]
abuse1901
drop1966
do1969
misuse1970
the world > physical sensation > use of drugs and poison > take drugs [verb (transitive)] > smoke marijuana
toke1952
blast1959
do1969
1969 Greenfield (Mass.) Recorder 15 Sept. 10/5 With the chances, statistically, 50-50 that your kid is doing drugs (as well as alcohol), what will the price tag be 40, or less, years from now?
1970 R. Thorp & R. Blake Music of their Laughter 145/2 You've done marijuana and hash before, you've done smoke before, right?
1971 E. E. Landy Underground Dict. 67 Do a drug, use any drug; get stoned, high—e.g. Let's do some grass.
1977 Amer. Speech 1975 50 58 Do, 1: take (a drug) ‘What are you doing, uppers?’ 2: smoke (marijuana) ‘We did some fantastic weed the other night.’
1985 New Yorker 29 July 77/2 Their lives..involve..smoking (tobacco, marijuana, cloves), drinking (everything), and doing drugs—mainly cocaine.
1994 Denver Post 4 Oct. d1/1 Ellis doesn't do alcohol any longer.
2006 Arena Oct. 142/2 One guy pointed out that nobody does cocaine or Es anymore, they all take meth instead.
c. transitive. Originally U.S. To meet for (a specified meal, etc.), esp. with a view to conducting business.
ΚΠ
1977 N.Y. Daily News 27 Jan. 10/1 Look, let's do lunch next time... Please don't be a stranger. Take care now.
1978 R. Price Ladies' Man 101 ‘Kenny, whata you doin' now?’ ‘Now? I was gonna do lunch; you wanna do lunch?’
1990 N. DeMille Gold Coast ii. xiv. 183 This is better than doing dinner or some beastly Easter thing with lamb parts and a house full of paesanos.
1993 N.Y. Mag. 20 Dec. 224/4 (advt.) You're a professional, petite, slim female, up to 49, looking for a friend and lover, comfortable in heels or sneakers, to share life's simple pleasures with a sensitive, caring male. Let's do coffee.
2001 M. Blake 24 Karat Schmooze xv. 163 ‘And if you come up with something more, do get in touch.’ ‘I will.’ ‘We must do lunch.’
d. transitive. To (be able to) partake of or engage in. Usually in negative constructions.
ΚΠ
1987 Associated Press (Nexis) 3 June The kids are honest and decent. They don't do drugs, they don't do sex, they don't do alcohol.
1989 N.Y. Mag. 13 Nov. 38/2 Sophie, 23, is visiting New York from the London office, where, because of British law, ‘we don't do sex’.
1990 H. G. Bissinger Friday Night Lights vii. 141 Don had to explain to her gently but firmly that he didn't ‘do’ relationships.
1994 Lang. in Society 23 247 The sequential trajectory of the caller's first greeting thus provides a structural environment within which the interactants can ‘do intimacy’.
1999 R. T. Davies Queer as Folk: Scripts Episode 2. 57 He's never had a boyfriend, he doesn't do boyfriends.
2000 N.Y. Times 10 Apr. c2/2 She is not a people person... She just doesn't do small talk. If you hang out with her, it feels awkward.
e. transitive. With adjective as notional object: to (be able to) exhibit the behaviour described. Frequently in negative constructions. Cf. sense 19b.
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1991 Re: Cosmic Cowboy's Chocolate in alt.romance.chat (Usenet Newsgroup) 1 May I don't do polite.
1997 Independent 8 Aug. i. 3/1 He does avuncular almost to the point of absurdity. It's all that hugging sort of thing.
1999 J. Lloyd & E. Rees Come Together iv. 98 So Jack's being cool. That's OK, I can do cool too. I think.
2000 Times (Electronic ed.) 4 Oct. There was none of the petting and air-kissing which now characterise party conferences. The Thatchers do not do touchy-feely.
2004 Mojo June 110/1 Her voice is very effective..but, unlike sister Shelby Lynne, she doesn't do perky.
II. As an auxiliary verb.
* Causative uses.
29. † a. transitive. With that and subordinate clause: to make it so that, produce the effect that; to cause (that a person or thing shall do something). Cf. make v.1 38. Obsolete.† c. With the logical subject of the infinitive implied, the infinitive being (usually) transitive with its own object: to cause to do something; e.g. do bind him = make somebody bind him, cause him to be bound, have him bound.
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the world > existence and causation > causation > [verb (transitive)]
wieldeOE
timberc897
letc900
rearOE
doOE
i-wendeOE
workOE
makeOE
bringc1175
raisec1175
shapec1315
to owe (also have) a wold (also on wield)a1325
procurec1330
purchasec1330
causec1340
conform1377
performa1382
excite1398
induce1413
occasionate?c1450
occasionc1454
to bring about1480
gara1500
to bring to passc1513
encause1527
to work out1534
inferc1540
excitate?1549
import1550
ycause1563
frame1576
effect1581
to bring in1584
effectuatea1586
apport?1591
introduce1605
create1607
generate1607
cast1633
efficiate1639
conciliate1646
impetrate1647
state1654
accompass1668
to bring to bear1668
to bring on1671
effectivate1717
makee1719
superinduce1837
birth1913
OE Ælfric Catholic Homilies: 1st Ser. (Royal) (1997) xxii. 359 He dyde þæt hi wæron byrnende on godes willan.
OE West Saxon Gospels: Matt. (Corpus Cambr.) v. 45 Se þe deð þæt hys sunne up aspringð [L. qui solem suum oriri facit] ofer þa godan & ofer þa yfelan.
c1275 (?c1250) Owl & Nightingale (Calig.) (1935) l. 547 Ich shal mid one bare worde Do þat þi speche wrht forworþe.
a1325 (c1250) Gen. & Exod. (1968) l. 224 God dede dat he on sweuene cam.
c1405 (c1385) G. Chaucer Knight's Tale (Hengwrt) (2003) l. 1547 Do þt I tomorwe may haue victorie.
c1475 Gregory's Chron. in J. Gairdner Hist. Coll. Citizen London (1876) 131 Also that we to oure power shalle do that the corte of the parlyment of Fraunce be..observyd in hys auctoryte and superioryte.
1569 W. Haywarde tr. A. Guarna Bellum Grammaticale sig. C.j Gather awhile a small part of speach wythout me, and do that the hearers may vnderstande that which thou speakest.
b. With object and infinitive (the object being the logical subject of the infinitive): to cause to do something or to be done. Cf. make v.1 39.† (a) transitive. With bare infinitive. Obsolete (archaic in later use). to do (a person) die: to cause or make (a person) die, to put to death.
ΚΠ
eOE (Mercian) Vespasian Psalter (1965) xxxviii. 11 Tabescere fecisti..animam eius : aswindan ðu des..sawle his.
OE Paris Psalter (1932) ciii. 30 He..deð hi for his egsan ealle beofian.
?a1160 Anglo-Saxon Chron. (Laud) (Peterborough contin.) anno 1140 Þe biscop of Wincestre..dide [heom] cumen þider.
a1325 (c1250) Gen. & Exod. (1968) l. 3608 Min engel of Sal ic don ðe bi-foren gon.
a1375 (c1350) William of Palerne (1867) l. 2138 Do him in hast be honged & wiþ horse to-drawe.
c1380 Sir Ferumbras (1879) l. 1853 Othre relyqes dere, þat þou dudest a-way be born.
a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Vesp.) l. 3071 Þe barn sco dide drinc o þat wel.
a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Vesp.) l. 15468 To do his lauerd be tan.
c1405 (c1395) G. Chaucer Franklin's Tale (Hengwrt) (2003) l. 629 In yow lyth al to do me lyue or deye.
a1464 J. Capgrave Abbreuiacion of Cron. (Cambr. Gg.4.12) (1983) 207 Þe Kyng..ded his officeres arestin..his vncil, þe duke of Gloucetir.
1483 W. Caxton tr. J. de Voragine Golden Legende f. clxxxv/2 That in no wyse she shold shewe ne doo be knowen that she were a woman.
1590 E. Spenser Faerie Queene ii. vi. sig. R2v Sometimes to do him laugh, she would assay To laugh.
1621 H. Ainsworth Annot. Five Bks. Moses & Bk. Psalmes Psalm lix. 1 To kill him or to doe him die.
1655 R. Fanshawe tr. L. de Camoens Lusiad vi. xlv. 125 They..Would do them dye, with Spears, or else with Swords.
1886 R. F. Burton tr. Arabian Nights' Entertainm. I. 11 So he carried her to the place of execution and did her die.
(b) transitive. With to-infinitive. Now archaic and rare. to do (someone) to know: to cause (someone) to know; to give (someone) to understand; to inform. to do to understand: see understand v. 4b. to do to wit: see wit v.1 9a.Some examples suggest that in Old English the party affected may be indicated by the dative case.
ΚΠ
eOE King Ælfred tr. Gregory Pastoral Care (Hatton) (1871) xlvi. 357 Swa hwa swa urum wordum & gewritum hieran nylle, do hit mon us to witanne.
lOE tr. Honorius Augustodunensis Elucidarium in R. D.-N. Warner Early Eng. Homilies (1917) 143 Do me þæt to understandene [L. fac me hoc clarius videre].
c1175 Ormulum (Burchfield transcript) l. 14140 Grediȝnesse Þatt doþ þe mann to wedenn rihht.
a1350 (a1250) Harrowing of Hell (Harl.) (1907) l. 124 (MED) Y shal..do þe to holde gryht [= gryþ].
a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Vesp.) l. 11222 (MED) He..did þe dumb asse to speke.
a1425 (?a1400) G. Chaucer Romaunt Rose (Hunterian) (1891) l. 1063 An hundrid haue [they] do to dye.
c1450 (c1350) Alexander & Dindimus (Bodl.) (1929) l. 223 And þat ȝour doctours dere don ȝou to knowe.
a1500 (?c1450) Merlin ii. 29 The kynge dide hem to swere.
a1500 (a1460) Towneley Plays (1994) I. ix. 89 Syr, I am done to vnderstand That a qweyn here..Shall bere a chyld.
1530–1 Act 22 Hen. VIII c. 12 Euery of them shall do the sayde seales to be made.
a1547 Earl of Surrey tr. Virgil Certain Bks. Aenæis (1557) ii. sig. Aiiiv Oft the boisteous winds did them to stay.
1599 H. Buttes Dyets Dry Dinner sig. P3v Who smoke selleth, with smoke be don to dy.
1674 N. Fairfax Treat. Bulk & Selvedge 22 We are done to wit, that 'tis an infinite not infinite.
1828 W. Scott Fair Maid of Perth viii, in Chron. Canongate 2nd Ser. III. 193 We..do thee, Sir Patrick Charteris..to know, that [etc.].
1886 R. F. Burton tr. Arabian Nights' Entertainm. I. 10 He shall do you to die by the illest of deaths.
1905 R. Garnett William Shakespeare Pedagogue & Poacher 68 Sir Thomas maliceth Shakespeare, and shall regard you the more favourably if you do him to wit that you malice Shakespeare also.
(a) transitive. With bare infinitive. Obsolete.In quot. a1425 in passive: to be caused (to be done).
ΚΠ
eOE Royal Psalter: Canticles vii. 39 Ego occidam et uiuere faciam : ic ofslea & lifian ic do.
c1275 Kentish Serm. in J. Hall Select. Early Middle Eng. (1920) I. 215 Þo dede he somoni alle þo wyse clerekes.
a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Vesp.) l. 10355 ‘Maria’ sal þou do hir call.
c1400 (?a1387) W. Langland Piers Plowman (Huntington HM 137) (1873) C. iv. l. 140 In þe castel of corf ich shal do þe close.
c1410 (c1395) G. Chaucer Squire's Tale (Harl. 7334) (1885) l. 46 He leet þe fest of his natiuite Don cryen.
a1425 (?a1400) G. Chaucer Romaunt Rose (Hunterian) (1891) l. 413 Another thing was don there write.
1463 in S. Tymms Wills & Inventories Bury St. Edmunds (1850) 26 He shal yeerly paye or do paye all the pencyowns.
a1500 (?c1450) Merlin iii. 57 The kynge dide do make this dragon..like to the dragon that sewde in the ayre. Than he..lete it be born be-fore hym.
1541 Act 33 Hen. VIII in R. Bolton Statutes Ireland (1621) 209 Every such person..shall doe make a seale engraved with the name of the Castle..which he keepeth.
(b) transitive. with to-infinitive. Obsolete.
ΚΠ
a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Vesp.) l. 1936 Noe..Did to rais [Fairf. gert to raisse, Trin. Cambr. let reise] an auter suyth.
a1500 (?c1450) Merlin ii. 27 Than [he] did to brynge ston and morter.
** As a substitute for another verb.
30. As a substitute for a verb just used, to avoid its repetition.
a. transitive and intransitive. Replacing a verb and taking its construction or constructions. Cf. sense 4.
ΚΠ
eOE King Ælfred tr. Gregory Pastoral Care (Hatton) (1871) xxvi. 187 Sua se læce hyd his isern wið ðone monn ðe he sniðan wile..sua se witga dyde ðone cyning mid his wordum.
OE Blickling Homilies 195 & [he] þa eorþlican gestreon swiþor lufode þonne he his gast dyde.
a1200 (?c1175) Poema Morale (Trin. Cambr.) 304 in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1873) 2nd Ser. 229 (MED) Warnie his frend..swo ich habbe ido mine.
a1250 (?a1200) Ancrene Riwle (Nero) (1952) 24 Ȝet ne seið hit nout þet heo biheold weppem auh deð wummen.
a1350 in R. H. Robbins Hist. Poems 14th & 15th Cent. (1959) 9 (MED) He vs honteþe ase hound hare doþ on hulle.
a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Trin. Cambr.) l. 5672 Woltou me sle..As þou didest þe egipcian not ȝore?
1526 W. Bonde Rosary sig. Biii They dyde leade the bounden as they do theues.
c1600 (?c1395) Pierce Ploughman's Crede (Trin. Cambr. R.3.15) (1873) l. 357 Wouȝ halwen þei chirches And deleþ in devynitie as dogges doþ bones.
1629 L. Owen Speculum Iesuiticum (new ed.) 18 These diseases doe alwaies accompanie the Iesuites, as a dogge doeth a Butcher.
1700 J. Dryden Fables Pref. sig. *Dij He rejected them as Dares did the Whirl-bats of Eryx when they were thrown before him.
1766 O. Goldsmith Vicar of Wakefield I. i. 1 I..chose my wife as she did her wedding gown..for..such qualities as would wear well.
1820 W. Hazlitt Lect. Dramatic Lit. 270 In the infancy of taste, the froward pupils of art took nature to pieces, as spoiled children do a watch.
1880 L. Wallace Ben-Hur vi. iii. 144 Thank thou thy God..as I do my many gods.
1912 T. Dreiser Financier 57 I don't like it as well as I do the straight-out brokerage business.
1998 H. Strachan Way Up Way Out ii. 28 Professor Stänger and staff washed him down pretty well as one does a corpse.
b. intransitive and transitive. With an adverb (as or so) or pronoun (e.g. it, that, or which) referring back to a verb and its construction, and thus approximating to senses 8 and 4.
ΚΠ
OE Genesis A (1931) 2588 Waldend usser gemunde wærfæst þa Abraham arlice, swa he oft dyde.
OE West Saxon Gospels: Mark (Corpus Cambr.) viii. 6 He..hi [sc. the loaves] bræc & sealde his leorningcnihtum þæt hi toforan him asetton, & hi swa dydon.
a1200 MS Trin. Cambr. in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1873) 2nd Ser. 165 Þe fugeles..ben nafre stedefaste; swo doð þis mannisse, flieð fram iuele to werse.
c1325 (c1300) Chron. Robert of Gloucester (Calig.) 7749 Þat folc com þo of denemarch..& robbede & destruede, as hii were iwoned to done.
c1380 Sir Ferumbras (1879) l. 932 Roland prikede is stede..so dude scot Gwylmer, So dude Geffray and Aubrys.
?a1425 Mandeville's Trav. (Egerton) (1889) 10 Þai sell benificez of haly kirk, and so duse men in oþer placez.
1533 J. Bellenden tr. Livy Hist. Rome (1822) ii. 109 Tak away that odius name..and, gif you dois it plesandlie, thy cieteyanis sal, [etc.].
1564 T. Becon New Catech. in Wks. 94 If a man maim his neighbour as he hath done.
1615 W. Bedwell in tr. Mohammedis Imposturæ Pref. sig. A2v If any man shall..say, as the consistorie..did by the Talmud, That it were better that such foolish fables..were..suppressed.
1678 S. Butler Hudibras: Third Pt. iii. iii. 208 For those that fly, may fight again, Which he can never do that's slain.
1712 J. James tr. A.-J. Dézallier d'Argenville Theory & Pract. Gardening 160 The best way of planting Woods, is to do it with rooted Plants.
1793 T. Beddoes Observ. Nature & Cure Calculus 52 Thay may acquire this principle..but we have no direct experience of their doing so.
1805 W. Cruise Digest Laws Eng. Real Prop. V. 537 Whoever wanted to surrender must..do it in person.
1827 B. Disraeli Vivian Grey III. v. x. 183 In passing through the Bazaar one morning, which he seldom did.
1938 New Republic 7 Sept. 129/1 A jerk not only bores you but pats you on the shoulder as he does so.
1966 Theosophy June 228 To see ourselves as others do.
2007 Daily Tel. 5 July 3/3 The homes..need to be re-plastered and re-floored and we will be short of labour to do that.
c. intransitive. Replacing a verb without construction. Cf. sense 8.
(a) In an affirmative clause.In British, Australian, New Zealand, and South African English, do can be used after an auxiliary verb, where North American English generally has the auxiliary alone.
ΚΠ
OE Byrhtferð Enchiridion (Ashm.) (1995) ii. iii. 114 Seo sunne..scinð under þære eorðan on middre nihte swa heo deð bufan eorðan on middæge.
OE Ælfric Old Test. Summary: Judges (Laud) xvi. 30 in S. J. Crawford Old Eng. Version of Heptateuch (1922) 414 He miccle ma on his deaðe acwealde ðonne he ær cucu dyde.
lOE Anglo-Saxon Chron. (Laud) (Peterborough contin.) anno 1127 Þær he wunede eallriht swa drane doð on hiue.
c1275 (?c1250) Owl & Nightingale (Calig.) (1935) l. 322 Þu chaterest so doþ on irish prost.
a1375 (c1350) William of Palerne (1867) l. 1788 Whilum þei went on alle four, as doþ wilde bestes.
a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Fairf. 14) l. 13950 (MED) I haue him knawen & sal do [Trin. Cambr. haue done] euer.
1411 Rolls of Parl.: Henry IV (Electronic ed.) Parl. Nov. 1411 §13. m. 14 He ne hath noght born hym as he sholde hav doon.
a1527 R. Thorne in R. Hakluyt Divers Voy. (1582) sig. B4 If as the king of Portingall doth, he woulde become a marchant.
1635 J. Swan Speculum Mundi vi. §2. 221 It filleth and entoxicateth the brain, as wine doth.
c1682 J. Collins Salt & Fishery 141 We pay double the price we formerly did.
1702 R. Steele Funeral i. 7 My Head swims as it did when I fell into my Fit at the thoughts of it.
1760 A. Murphy Way to keep Him i. 10 Their Husbands care no more for them,—no by Jingo, no more than they do for their Husbands.
1835 A. Ure Philos. Manuf. 306 If competition advances..as it has done for several years.
1847 C. Brontë Jane Eyre I. i. 8 All the house belongs to me, or will do in a few years.
1879 A. Bain Higher Eng. Gram. 176 He speaks as well as you do.
1935 M. R. Anand Untouchable 49 He felt as he used to do.
1996 Cottage Life Mar. 57/3 Sap will sour like milk does, and sour sap produces poor syrup.
(b) In imperative. Conveying assent to a suggestion, frequently with yes or please. Similarly in the negative don't (frequently with no).
ΘΚΠ
the mind > language > statement > assent > [interjection]
right1594
do1601
sure1651
all right1814
OK1839
ryebuck1859
yassuh1871
achcha1892
righto1893
same here1896
quaiss kitir1898
check1922
righty-ho1926
oke1929
okey-dokey1932
okey-doke1934
okle-dokle1947
cool1948
seen1973
aight1993
1601 J. Marston et al. Iacke Drums Entertainm. iv. sig. G2 Wi. Send him a fauour, and Ile beare it to him, And tell him you desire to speake with him. Ca. Do, do, deare Winifride, sweet wench make haste.
a1616 W. Shakespeare All's Well that ends Well (1623) iv. iii. 140 Int. Shall I set downe your answer so? Par. Do, Ile take the Sacrament on't. View more context for this quotation
1693 W. Congreve Old Batchelour v. i. 47 Ay; do, do, Captain, if you think fit.
1740 S. Richardson Pamela I. xxxi. 267 I'll wake her, said I. No, don't, said she, let her sleep on.
1799 Sporting Mag. 13 353/1 Delville..I've a great mind to accept your offer, on purpose to make you pay for your presumption. Gossamer. Do: I'd take it as a favour, Ned.
1884 F. Marryat Under Lilies & Roses xxxiii ‘Why! I'm just about to ask you your intentions!’ ‘Don't! please! For I am married.’
1891 Cassell's Family Mag. May 375/1 ‘I'll give you instead a few recipes for the utilisation of your fragments.’ ‘Do, please.’
1916 J. Joyce Portrait of Artist i. 57 I'd go straight up to the rector and tell him about it after dinner.—Yes, do. Yes, do, said Cecil Thunder.
1969 S. Jameson Journey from North I. i. xvii. 85 ‘Don't feel that I want to push you aside.’ ‘Oh, but do!’ I cried.
1991 L. Shorten Without Reserve iv. 118 ‘I'm gonna go back and tell them.’.. ‘No, don't.’
2005 W. R. Trotter Fires of Pride iv. 79 Oh, yes! Please do, Aunt Largo! I think that's a capital idea!
(c) English regional (Essex and East Anglian) and U.S. regional (southern). Equivalent to the subordinate clause (protasis) of a conditional sentence: ‘if you (etc.) do; otherwise, or else’. Also in the negative: ‘if you (etc.) do not, if not’.
ΚΠ
1879 Norfolk Archaeol. 8 170 Don't you leave that old hare lying there, do the old crows will joll her.
1889 Macmillan's Mag. Sept. 357/2 Have you got a broody hen for that setting of eggs? Don't, I can lend you my.
1923 E. Gepp Essex Dial. Dict. (ed. 2) 40 Stop that cryin'; don't I'll larn ye.
1935 Z. N. Hurston Mules & Men i. viii. 178 Don't let de 'gator beat you to de pond, do he'll give you mo' trouble than de day is long.
1951 S. Grapes Boy John Lett. (1974) 42 Yow must ha' cum down a parpus to sleep here, do yow wun't a brort yar nitedress wi' yow.
1960 A. O. D. Claxton Suffolk Dial. 20th Cent. (ed. 2) 13 Oi must be a-goin' don't Oi'll be late a-gittin' home.
1984 C. Kightly Country Voices i. 23 You hed to wear 'em in winter-time, do [or else] you'd get pizened [poisoned] with all the mud and muck.
1986 in Dict. Amer. Regional Eng. (1991) II. 94/2 Shut the door tight, do it'll blow open before morning.
d. intransitive. Replacing a verb in an emphatic repetition.
(a) With an affirmative verb.
ΚΠ
1598 W. Shakespeare Henry IV, Pt. 1 iii. i. 168 He holds your temper in a high respect And curbs himselfe euen of his natural scope, When you come crosse his humor, faith he does . View more context for this quotation
1600 W. Shakespeare Midsummer Night's Dream iii. ii. 252 Helen, I loue thee, by my life I doe . View more context for this quotation
1722 A. Philips Briton ii. iii. 14 He loves thee, Gwendolen:—My word, he does.
1871 E. Lear Jumblies in Nonsense Songs sig. 3/3 They went to sea in a sieve, they did.
1916 G. B. Shaw Pygmalion ii. 123 I ain't dirty: I washed my face and hands afore I come, I did.
1967 P. Beer Just like Resurrection 44 He rang me up In a dream, My brother did.
2000 J. Goodwin Danny Boy ii. 30 They practically line up and beg for the privilege, they do.
(b) With an imperative verb.
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a1616 W. Shakespeare Winter's Tale (1623) v. ii. 132 Giue me the Lye: doe . View more context for this quotation
1794 R. B. Sheridan Duenna (new ed.) ii. 48 Get in, do.
1838 C. Dickens Oliver Twist III. l. 305 Let me say a prayer. Do.
1930 D. L. Sayers Strong Poison ix. 112 'Ev another crumpet, do, Mr. Bunter.
1995 S. Barry Only True Hist. Lizzie Finn i, in Plays: One (1997) 198 You go in there, do, miss, there's a heap of nice plates for sitting.
e. intransitive. Representing the elliptical use of the periphrastic auxiliary (sense 32).
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a1616 W. Shakespeare Tempest (1623) ii. i. 200 It sildome visits sorrow, when it doth, it is a Comforter. View more context for this quotation
1789 E. Burke Let. Nov. in Corr. (1967) VI. 41 You hope, Sir, that I think the French deserving of Liberty? I certainly do.
1816 J. Wilson City of Plague ii. iv Spoke they not of a burial-place? They did.
1823 Ld. Byron Let. 18 Jan. (1980) X. 87 I will economize—and do.
1830 Fraser's Mag. 1 749 I think I said that before. Yes, I did.
1941 Coast to Coast 45 ‘Who said I was going to give you a quid anyway?’ ‘You did.’ ‘My oath I didn't.’
1992 C. McCarthy All Pretty Horses (1993) i. 51 It's got a little kick to it, dont it? I think it does.
*** As periphrastic auxiliary with main verbs.Not normally used with be except in senses 31 and 32g. See also note at have v. I.
31. transitive. As periphrastic auxiliary in imperatives.
a. With an affirmative imperative: adding emphasis or urgency to an entreaty, exhortation, or command. Also formerly (in a command) with a second personal pronoun preceding the main verb. Originally with the main verb in the imperative (quot. OE2 appears to be exceptional); from later Middle English onwards, with the main verb in the undifferentiated base form, usually taken as infinitive (as in sense 32).In early use, down to c1600, sometimes merely periphrastic (cf. sense 32a); subsequently associated with sense 32d. Apparently uncommon before 1700.
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OE West Saxon Gospels: John (Corpus Cambr.) viii. 11 Do ga [OE Lindisf. geong uel gaea, OE Rushw. gaa, c1200 Hatton do ga; L. vade] & ne synga þu næfre ma.
OE Paris Psalter (1932) cxviii. 25 Do me æfter þinum wordum wel gecwician [L. vivifica me].
c1225 (?c1200) St. Juliana (Bodl.) 345 Do swiðe sei me.
a1250 (?a1200) Ancrene Riwle (Nero) (1952) 181 Ȝif þi luue nis nout forto ȝiuen. auh wult allegate þet me bugge hire do seie hwu.
c1275 in C. Brown Eng. Lyrics 13th Cent. (1932) 59 Do nim þe wreche, ich am redi.
c1330 (?a1300) Sir Tristrem (1886) l. 2876 Do now telle me swiþe, Astow louest me.
a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Vesp.) l. 23159 Dos fles [Coll. Phys. Do fles, Trin. Cambr. Do fleeþ] heþen, yee maledight!
c1400 (?c1390) Sir Gawain & Green Knight (1940) l. 1533 Dos techeȝ me of your wytte.
a1450 York Plays (1885) 328 Do stiffely steppe on þis stalle.
c1460 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Laud) l. 18080 Do now go hen fro me saton.
1582 T. Bentley et al. Monument of Matrones iii. 342 Doo you let all men to vnderstand, that this is God.
1591 E. Spenser Prosopopoia in Complaints 1331 Arise, and doo thy selfe redeeme from shame.
1609 W. Shakespeare Troilus & Cressida v. ii. 107 I come; O Ioue: do come. View more context for this quotation
1684 J. Bunyan Pilgrim's Progress 2nd Pt. ii. 144 Pray do you go along with us, I will be your Conductor. View more context for this quotation
1723 D. Defoe Hist. Col. Jack (ed. 2) 37 Do you go.
1749 H. Fielding Tom Jones IV. x. iv. 31 Do tell me what I can have for Supper. View more context for this quotation
1843 C. Dickens Christmas Carol iii. 108 Do go on, Fred.
1871 E. Eggleston Hoosier School-master xvi. 127 Now, Shocky,..do you run ahead.
1884 J. Middlemass Poisoned Arrows III. i. 7 ‘Do, do be calm’, said Camilla.
1922 P. G. Wodehouse Girl on Boat iv. 82 Do be a pet and go and talk to Jane Hubbard.
2002 R. Murphy Kick (2003) 2 Do have another of these delicious scones that Mary baked.
b. Forming the negative imperative with not as negator. Also with a second personal pronoun preceding the main verb (now only following the contracted form don't).The use of simple inversion, as be not, say not, think not, etc., is now archaic and poetical.For the development of the negative construction, compare ne adv.1, not adv. I.
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a1400 Cato's Distichs (Fairf.) l. 21 in R. Morris Cursor Mundi (1878) III. App. iv. 1669 (MED) Oþer mennis worde or werke, be þou lewed oþer clerk, do þou noȝt blame.
a1500 (?c1450) Merlin (1899) vi. 101 Loke ye, do not lye; and thow do lye, I shall it know wele.
?1532 T. Elyot tr. Plutarch Educ. Children (new ed.) xii. sig. F.ij Eate no harte, what doth it els signifie, but accombre not thy mynde with thoughtes, ne do not fatigate the with cares?
1600 W. Shakespeare Midsummer Night's Dream iii. ii. 307 Good Hermia, do not be so bitter with mee. View more context for this quotation
1600 W. Shakespeare Much Ado about Nothing iii. i. 87 O do not do your cosin such a wrong. View more context for this quotation
1672 W. Wycherley Love in Wood iii. ii Don't speak so loud.
1693 W. Congreve Old Batchelour ii. ii. 17 Don't come always, like the Devil, wrapt in Flames.
1705 J. Vanbrugh Mistake i. i Hold, master, don't kill him yet.
1797 A. Radcliffe Italian II. v. 165 ‘Do not leave me,’ said she in accents the most supplicating.
1802 R. Bloomfield Rural Tales 5 Well, Goody, don't stand preaching now.
1807 A. M. Porter Hungarian Brothers I. vi. 159 Do not you add to the idle race.
1841 C. Dickens Barnaby Rudge i. 236 Don't you speak.
1845 Punch 8 1 Advice to those about to marry:—‘Don't.’
1916 Daily Colonist (Victoria, Brit. Columbia) 16 July 3/5 (advt.) Do not wring or squeeze but hang to drip dry in the open air.
1954 J. Kerouac Let. in J. Kerouac & A. Ginsberg Lett. (2010) 226 Don't you dare bring any males to my partys.
2004 D. Cage Box Lunch 57 Don't forget about your feet. Good grooming always pays off.
c. do but ——: do nothing but ——, only ——. Now archaic.In this context, do was perhaps not originally auxiliary, but a main verb: cf. but adv. 2.
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?a1518 H. Watson Ualentyne & Orson (1555) ci. sig. Xx.viiiv All shall be done, do but aske and you shall be serued.
1575 tr. J. D'Albin de Valsergues Notable Disc. xxxvii. 84 Do but consider ye verdict that you both geue of your selues & of vs.
1604 T. Dekker & T. Middleton Honest Whore i. iv. 14 Do but thinke what sport it will be.
1638 T. Heywood Wise Woman iv. i. sig. H Do but waite heere.
1768 O. Goldsmith Good Natur'd Man v. 62 Do but hear me.
1832 T. Carlyle in Fraser's Mag. 5 260 Do but open your eyes.
1873 Fraser's Mag. Apr. 433 ‘Do but listen to him!’ cried the Countess, with a gesture of mock horror.
1901 M. Carmichael Life Walshe vi. 82 And do but turn round about and behold the gentle city of Lucca.
1960 J. Barth Sot-weed Factor i. viii. 75 Do but pay your fee, and 'tis yours to destroy.
2007 ‘C. Wells’ Scandal's Daughter 235 Oh, do but look at the time!
32. transitive. As periphrastic auxiliary in past and present tenses.This construction appears to arise in the 13th cent. (no certain examples occur in Old English) and becomes especially frequent after 1500, first as a simple periphrastic form without perceptible difference of sense (in which use in south-western English regional dialect it practically takes the place of the simple form of the verb). In standard English from the early 17th cent. onwards it becomes restricted to contexts where it is functionally parallel to other auxiliaries (perfect, progressive, and modal). Thus simple affirmative with inversion of word order after certain adverbs: ‘So quietly did he come that..’ (like ‘So quietly has he come’). Emphatic: ‘He did drink’, ‘and drink he did’ (like ‘I will go’, ‘and go I will’). Interrogative: ‘Do you hear?’ (like ‘Will you hear?’). Negative: ‘They do not speak’ (like ‘They will not speak,’ ‘They have not spoken’.)do occasionally occurs in anticipative use with a main verb in the same tense and person in Old and Middle English (cf. also sense 31a).
OE Ælfric Catholic Homilies: 1st Ser. (Royal) (1997) x. 260 Se mona deð ægðer ge wyxð ge wanað.
c1275 (?a1200) Laȝamon Brut (Calig.) (1963) l. 4680 Aras þer þe to-nome. swa doð [c1300 Otho doh] a feole wise to-nome ariseð.
▸ a1387 J. Trevisa tr. R. Higden Polychron. (St. John's Cambr.) (1865) I. 155 Thalestris..did wroot to kyng Alexandre in þis manere.
1484 W. Caxton tr. G. de la Tour-Landry Bk. Knight of Tower (1971) xlviii. 70 He dyde made to rayne fourty dayes.
a1500 (a1460) Towneley Plays (1994) I. ii. 21 Whi brend thi tend so shyre, Ther myne did bot smoked.
a. In affirmative declarative sentences, and equivalent to the simple tense. Now archaic (esp. poetic and Law), English regional (south-western), Caribbean, and U.S. regional.
(a) As an auxiliary to a main verb in the infinitive.Fairly frequent in Middle English, relatively frequent in early modern English (though found in only a small proportion of affirmative declarative sentences), dying out in normal prose in the 18th cent. (perhaps in parallel with the spread of the progressive construction), but retained as a metrical resource in verse.The following Old English quotations have been proposed as examples of this construction but almost certainly show do in anticipative use with finite forms of the verb (respectively plural past indicative -on and plural present subjunctive -en) spelt with -an:
eOE tr. Orosius Hist. (BL Add.) (1980) i. x. 30 Æfter ðæm hie dydon ægþer ge cyninga ricu settan ge niwu ceastra timbredon.
OE Wulfstan Canons of Edgar (Corpus Cambr.) (1972) lv. 12 We lærað þæt preostas swa dælan folces ælmessan þæt hig ægðer don ge God gegladian ge folc to ælmessan gewænian.
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c1300 (?c1225) King Horn (Cambr.) (1901) l. 930 (MED) A writ he dude deuise, Aþulf hit dude write.
c1325 (c1300) Chron. Robert of Gloucester (Calig.) 6532 Þis lond..ofte he dude bitraie.
a1450 St. Edith (Faust.) (1883) l. 1263 In hurre lyffe, as we done rede.
1490 Caxton's Blanchardyn & Eglantine (1962) xlvii. 180 She ded call after hym ryght pyteousli.
1526 Bible (Tyndale) John i. 45 Of whom Moses in the lawe and the prophetes dyd wryte.
1549 Bk. Common Prayer (STC 16267) Celebr. Holye Communion f. xxxiv O Lord, whiche for oure sake dyddeste faste fortye dayes and fourtie nightes.
1557 in S. Tymms Wills & Inventories Bury St. Edmunds (1850) 148 He do knowe the men that do owe me the sayd monie.
1615 W. Bedwell tr. Mohammedis Imposturæ iii. §120 I do pity the case in which I do see they are.
1673 J. Ray Observ. Journey Low-countries Pref. Which doth sufficiently evince they were not of that Original.
c1710 C. Fiennes Diary (1888) 192 He did design a new house.
1748 Ld. Chesterfield Let. 6 July (1932) (modernized text) III. 1179 Good-breeding, and good-nature, do incline us rather to help and raise people up.
1787 G. Winter New Syst. Husbandry 54 The vernal heat of the sun does also influence them.
1804 W. Cruise Digest Laws Eng. Real Prop. III. 24 This being no more than the law doth appoint.
1838 H. W. Longfellow Reaper & Flowers vi The flowers she most did love.
1894 Mrs. H. Ward Marcella II. ii. viii. 99 And they do say as Jim Hurd's in it.
1921 Contested-election Case James I. Campbell v. Robert L. Doughton (U.S. House of Representatives Comm. on Elections) 7 The registrars..did unlawfully and disregardfully continue to place upon the registration lists the names [etc.].
1938 W. de la Mare Memory & Other Poems 32 Fulling moon aloft doth ride.
1965–8 in Dict. Amer. Regional Eng. (1991) II. 94/1 Beats everything I ever did hear.
2006 Ireland's Own Feb. 45/3 Cold doth not sting and pretty birds do sing.
(b) As an auxiliary to another use of do as main verb. Formerly also: as an auxiliary to a substitute or causal use of do.
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?a1400 (a1338) R. Mannyng Chron. (Petyt) ii. 54 He did Harald body do drawe vp also tite.
1415 T. Hoccleve Addr. to Sir John Oldcastle l. 238 in Minor Poems (1970) i. 16 Thogh [perhaps read that] thow no lenger do, Do by my reed.
c1450 (a1375) Octavian (Calig.) (1979) l. 902 Þe kyng hym louede..So dede al do þat yn Parys were.
1490 W. Caxton in tr. Boke yf Eneydos sig. Ajv My lorde abbot..ded do shewe to me late certayn euydences.
c1500 Melusine (1895) 103 A grete toure & bigge, whiche Julius Cesar dide doo make.
1667 S. Pepys Diary 29 July (1974) VIII. 361 He and the Duke of York do do what they can to get up an army.
1850 G. C. Oke Magisterial Formulist i. ii. 183 The said A. B... did then and there do and exercise certain worldly labour.
1890 S. S. Buckman John Darke's Sojourn in Cotteswolds ix. 105 I allus says as when a maister do do well by ers workfolk, as the workfolk do do well be 'ee.
1975 J. McCourt Mawrdew Czgowchwz (2002) vi. 150 ‘I think I'll give up the role!’ Which she did do, from that out.
1986 O. Senior Summer Lightning & Other Stories 30 The man say that they going to prison Ascot if they find him for he does do a criminal thing.
b. In affirmative sentences with inverted word order. Also in clauses with a negative other than those in sense 32f.
(a) In ordinary declarative clauses.In view of the absence of other early evidence for this use, it is likely that the following quotation (which has been variously explained: see B. Mitchell Old Eng. Syntax (1985) §666, D. Denison Eng. Hist. Syntax (1993) 261–2) does not show this construction:
lOE King Ælfred tr. Boethius De Consol. Philos. (Bodl.) (2009) I. vi. 251 Swa doð nu ða þeostro þinre gedrefednesse wiðstandan minum leohtum larum.
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a1325 (c1250) Gen. & Exod. (1968) l. 1513 An time dede hunger ysaac flen.
a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Vesp.) l. 2788 Fast þe dors þan did he sparr.
1551 R. Robinson tr. T. More Vtopia sig. Qiiiv This lawe did kynge Vtopus make.
1580 J. Lyly Euphues (new ed.) f. 8 Ah Euphues, little doest thou knowe [etc.].
1597 F. Bacon Ess. f. 23v In vayne doth he striue.
1598 W. Shakespeare Love's Labour's Lost i. i. 241 There did I see that low spirited Swaine. View more context for this quotation
1644 J. Milton Areopagitica 3 Thus did Dion Profœus counsell the Rhodians.
1749 H. Fielding Tom Jones II. v. x. 205 Such Vengeance did he mutter forth. View more context for this quotation
1766 O. Goldsmith Vicar of Wakefield I. vii. 63 Nor did she seem to be much displeased.
1849 C. Dickens David Copperfield (1850) v. 46 Not a single word did Peggotty speak.
1850 N. Hawthorne Scarlet Let. xiv. 207 Never did mortal suffer what this man has suffered.
1926 Amer. Mercury Mar. 294/1 Well do I remember the anguish I caused him by dropping my gun during a prize-drill.
1992 Economist 8 Feb. 103/1 In only one case did the banks agree.
(b) In the subordinate clause (protasis) of a conditional sentence, in place of an if-clause, in the past tense (cf. shall v. 21). Also (U.S. regional (southern)) in the present tense.
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1611 W. Raleigh Let. July (1999) 327 That ther is nothing done therin I could not but wounder with the world, did not the mallice of the world exceede the wisedome thereof.
1692 J. Locke Some Thoughts conc. Educ. (1699) 205 I should not say this..did I think that [etc.].
1782 J. Grose Ethics ii. 35 Did religion consist only in received notions..the learned and judicious would probably be the sole possessors.
1836 C. Dickens Pickwick Papers (1837) vii. 69 Did an elderly gentleman essay to stop the progress of the ball, it rolled between his legs, or slipped between his fingers. Did a slim gentleman try to catch it, it struck him on the nose.
1840 E. Bulwer-Lytton Money (1841) v. iii. 97 My dear friend, did I want your aid I would accept it.
1919 H. Walpole Secret City iii. xii. 351 As he lay there he thought of what he would do did Markovitch really go off his head.
1938 M. K. Rawlings Yearling xi. 102 Do you ever ask your Ma into leavin' you have sich as that..you belong to git one young enough to train easy.
1986 H. Kenner in M. Beja et al. James Joyce 216 Numerous eighteenth-century poems would seem wholly chaotic did we not know what to expect of..Pindaric Odes.
1993 Guardian 12 Aug. (G2 section) 11 ‘I wish I had said that,’ we might be tempted to say.., did we not..remember that this was how one legendary wit left himself open.
2007 A. Bennett Diary 20 Dec. in Keeping on keeping On (2016) 161 I am in the pigeonhole marked ‘no threat’ and did I stab Judi Dench with a pitchfork I should still be a teddy bear.
c. In interrogative sentences.The periphrastic form with do, did, is now the normal construction (except where the question word itself is the subject of the verb, e.g. in ‘who put him there’; cf. ‘who did put him there’ in quot. 1655).The use of simple inversion is now archaic and poetical.
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c1380 Sir Ferumbras (1879) l. 3889 (MED) How dost þow, harlot, þyn erand bede?
c1405 (?c1375–90) G. Chaucer Monk's Tale (Hengwrt) (2003) l. 738 Fader why do ye wepe.
?a1475 Ludus Coventriae (1922) 185 Dude ȝe hym se?
1549 H. Latimer 2nd Serm. before Kynges Maiestie 3rd Serm. sig. Gi Dyd ye see any great man?
1557 Bible (Whittingham) John xvi. 31 Now do you beleue? [1611 Do ye now believe?]
a1616 W. Shakespeare Tempest (1623) i. ii. 251 Do'st thou forget From what a torment I did free thee? View more context for this quotation
1655 tr. C. Sorel Comical Hist. Francion ix. 16 Having unblinded him, they demanded of him, who did put him there?
1676 J. Dryden Aureng-Zebe ii. 16 Why did you speak? yo've dash'd my Fancy quite.
1738 tr. S. Guazzo Art of Conversat. 76 Do'st think I never saw a Crane before?
1773 O. Goldsmith She stoops to Conquer iii. 60 What d'ye call it?
1817 Cobbett's Weekly Polit. Reg. 8 Feb. 169/1 How do you trace that riot to the Reformers?
1843 T. Smelt Brothers ii. iii. 28 Do I him favor?—no!
1852 H. B. Stowe Uncle Tom's Cabin I. viii. 110 ‘Why, Sam, what do you mean?’ said Mrs. Shelby, breathless.
1925 Woman's World (Chicago) Apr. 9/1 Why did she always have to wish for that which she should not have?
1946 A. Christie Hollow viii. 75 Do you think Hearts or Bridge or Rummy?
2007 Sunday Times Trav. May 95/3 Apart from pigs, what do they raise here? I asked a park warden.
d. In affirmative sentences, used to give emphasis, esp. in contrast with what precedes or follows.The stress is placed upon the auxiliary, as in the perfect and future tenses. There may be inversion of order as well.In many Middle English and early modern English examples it is impossible to be certain that the use is emphatic.
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c1390 (a1376) W. Langland Piers Plowman (Vernon) (1867) A. viii. l. 164 (MED) And so bileeue I lelly..Þat pardoun and penaunce and preyers don sauen Soules þat han sunget.
a1500 (?c1450) Merlin (1899) vi. 101 Loke ye, do not lye; and thow do lye, I shall it know wele.
1581 G. Pettie tr. S. Guazzo Ciuile Conuersat. (1586) i. f. 27v But these same..doe manye times more offend..than those who doe commit them [1738 tr. S. Guazzo Art Conversat. 52 Than those who actually commit them].
1600 W. Shakespeare Much Ado about Nothing ii. iii. 188 And so will hee doe, for the man doth feare God, howsoeuer it seemes not in him, by some large iestes hee will make. View more context for this quotation
a1616 W. Shakespeare Twelfth Night (1623) iii. i. 27 Vio. Thou art a merry fellow, and car'st for nothing. Clo. Not so sir, I do care for something: but..I do not care for you. View more context for this quotation
1675 W. Wycherley Country-wife v. 84 ‘Art thou sure I don't know her?’ ‘I am sure you doe know her.’
1689 W. Sherlock Pract. Disc. Death ii. §1. 93 And yet die they all did.
1705 T. Hearne Ductor Historicus (ed. 2) I. ii. v. 148 He may both be led astray, by Consulting Authors of uncertain Credit, and..by immethodically disposing those good ones he does look into.
1773 O. Goldsmith She stoops to Conquer ii. 25 I do stir about a great deal, that's certain.
1826 B. Disraeli Vivian Grey I. ii. v. 123 The floodgates of his speech burst, and talk he did.
1826 B. Disraeli Vivian Grey II. iv. v. 205 Why! Mr. Grey, I do declare you're weeping.
1832 Ld. Tennyson Death of Old Year in Poems (new ed.) 155 We did so laugh and cry with you.
1839 C. Dickens Nicholas Nickleby ix. 75 But we do want him.
1865 J. Bright Speeches Amer. Question 174 But these concessions failed, as I believe concessions to evil always do fail.
1890 Illustr. London News Christmas No. 2/1 I do wish you would let me sleep.
1900 Current Lit. May 131/2 Now tell us what they did do.
1935 Boys' Life Dec. 10/1 That's right, I did do that.
1998 Independent on Sunday 15 Nov. (Real Life section) 7 I do love this look—even though it is more for the young and less curvy amongst us.
e. In negative interrogative sentences in which the negator is not. Formerly also with the subject preceding the main verb (now only following the contracted forms don't, didn't, etc.).Now the normal construction, as in senses 32c, 32f.
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c1400 Prose Versions New Test.: James (Selwyn) (1904) ii. 7 (MED) Doþ noȝt þei blaspheme [L. nonne ipsi blasphemant] þe goode name þat is ycleped on ȝow?
c1450 (?a1400) Wars Alexander (Ashm.) l. 3571 Did noȝt ser Dary to vs write his pistill with pride?
1579 T. Lodge Protogenes 7 Did not they spende one candle by seeking another.
1581 G. Pettie tr. S. Guazzo Ciuile Conuersat. (1586) i. f. 11 Doe you not thinke that these men may be called wise? [1738 tr. S. Guazzo Art Conversat. 19 Don't you think that these men may be called Wise?]
1598 W. Shakespeare Love's Labour's Lost v. ii. 474 Do not you know my Ladies foote by'th squier? View more context for this quotation
1638 W. Chillingworth Relig. Protestants i. iii. §4 Doe not they agree in those things?
1655 T. Stanley Hist. Philos. I. iii. 117 Did he not aim at your hurt?
1704 T. Baker Act at Oxf. i. i. 8 Don't all our great Men come from Oxford?
1775 J. Wesley Let. 18 Aug. (1931) VI. 175 Does not he show beyond all contradiction that it was hatched by Augustine.
1796 H. Hunter tr. J.-H. B. de Saint-Pierre Stud. Nature (1799) I. 387 Do we not see there..talents distracted?
1841 E. W. Lane tr. Thousand & One Nights I. 83 Dost thou not believe that I was in it?
1877 H. James American xviii. 319 I adhered, to the letter, to my engagement. Did I not, sister?
1884 Ld. Salisbury in 1st Rep. Commissioners Housing of Working Classes (1885) 510/2 in Parl. Papers 1884–5 (C. 4402) XXX. 1 If you charge for betterment, do not you think you should pay for worsement?
1932 P. G. Wodehouse Hot Water xiii. 225 Didn't your mother ever teach you the facts of life, Mrs. G.?
2007 Guardian (Nexis) 6 Jan. (Review section) 7 Did it not help the reader..to know in advance what kind of sentence he or she was reading?
f. In negative declarative sentences in which the negator is not.The periphrasis with do, did, is now the normal construction with not. The alternative, using the main verb followed by not, is now chiefly for rhetorical effect: see not adv. 3.For the development of the negative construction, compare ne adv.1, not adv. I.
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1417 in H. Ellis Orig. Lett. Eng. Hist. (1827) 2nd Ser. I. 61 (MED) The mony..doth not suffice to paye so much unto the soldiors as is likly to mayntayne your warrs.
1490 Caxton's Blanchardyn & Eglantine (1962) xxxvi. 135 Whan ye dyde not knowe hym.
1490 W. Caxton tr. Foure Sonnes of Aymon (1885) xxii. 472 It is to late to repente me that I dyde not doo.
1564 E. Grindal Remains (1843) (modernized text) 22 I do not doubt but that God revealed..other parts.
1612 F. Bacon Ess. (new ed.) 156 When they converse in those things they doe not affect.
1699 J. Evelyn Kalendarium Hortense (ed. 9) 137 When it does not actually freeze.
1719 D. Defoe Farther Adventures Robinson Crusoe 69 They did not take their Measures with them as I did by my Man Friday.
1776 Trial Maha Rajah Nundocomar for Forgery 73/2 If you do not give a plain answer..you will be committed.
1822 C. M. Sedgwick New-Eng. Tale xii. 193 They..threatened to pull the house down on our heads, if we did not come out of it.
1889 J. Fiske War of Independence 139 The popular histories do not have much to say about these eighteen days.
1900 Longman's Mag. June 141 Jealousness does not seem to be the distinguishing feature of Louise's early training.
1925 Scribner's Mag. Sept. 19/1 Have you seen a radio cabinet which..actually does not look like one?
2007 N.Y. Times (National ed.) 2 Dec. ix. 13/5 I don't see smoking as a ritual... It gives me time to think.
g. Expressing habitual action or state.
(a) English regional (south-western) and Irish English. As an auxiliary to a main verb or (Irish English) copular be.Middle English examples (such as the following) have been adduced as showing this use, but all are of uncertain interpretation; moreover there appears to be no connecting evidence from the 16th and earlier 17th centuries.
c1300 All Souls (Laud) l. 97 in C. Horstmann Early S.-Eng. Legendary (1887) 423 A preost was ȝwilene in one stede, þat dude him baþie i-lome In one stude priueliche.
a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Trin. Cambr.) l. 18025 Helle ȝaf to sathan vnswere..‘þis..was he Þat dede men dud drawe [a1400 Gött. was wont to drau] fro me.’
a1425 J. Wyclif Sel. Eng. Wks. (1869) I. 379 Blessid be þe wombe þat bare þee, and þe tetis þat þou didist soke.
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c1670 Purgatorium Hibernicum (National Libr. Ireland MS 470) in A. Carpenter Verse Travesty in Restoration Ireland (2013) 97 No vonder Doit be deare in trote.
1705 J. Michelborne Ireland Preserv'd i. i. 15 I do let de Trooparr ly wid my Wife in de bad, he does ly at de one side.
1826 J. Banim & M. Banim Tales by O'Hara Family 2nd Ser. I. x. 225 They do be together in the fields at night.
1863 W. Barnes Gram. & Gloss. Dorset Dial. 25 I do meäke ‘I make’, I did meäke versus I'm a meäkèn, I meäde, I wer a-meäkèn.
1886 W. Barnes Gloss. Dorset Dial. 23 ‘They did break the ice at night, and did vind it avroze ageän nex' mornèn.’ That is they broke and found several times.
1892 J. Barlow Irish Idylls viii. 215 There do be girls will get round a man wid their slootherin'.
1912 J. Stephens Crock of Gold xiv. 201 I do be lonely in the night time.
1957 P. L. Henry Anglo-Irish Dial. Roscommon 172 It does rain a lot in winter.
1976 Neuphilologische Mitteilungen 77 615 The surplus milk they did make into cheese and then the cheese did go to the different markets.
1978 T. Murphy Crucial Week in Life of Grocer's Assistant iv, in Plays: 4 (1997) 113 The mists that do be on the bog.
1984 in Jrnl. Linguistics 20 306 When you put them on to the barrow you do have them in heaps and then you do spread them and turn them over and all.
2010 J. O'Connor Ghost Light (2011) vii. 107 These flyboys do be clever as Satan in brogues.
(b) Irish English. As an auxiliary to be and a present participle, forming a durative habitual present tense.Quot. 1800, which shows sense 31b rather than habitual action, perhaps points to the origin of the present construction in Irish English.
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1800 M. Edgeworth Castle Rackrent 172 Nay, don't be denying it, Judy, for I think the better of ye for it.]
1829 G. Griffin Collegians I. xii. 260 I do be often goen' in boats across to Cratloe, an' them places.
1834 S. Lover Legends & Stories Ireland 2nd Ser. 284 What's the raison..your cow does be threspassin' an my fields?
1922 J. Joyce Ulysses ii. 191 The drouthy clerics do be fainting for a pussful.
1997 C. McPherson Weir 44 But I do be telling this fella to be on the lookout.
2010 J. O'Connor Ghost Light (2011) iii. 47 Begging your pardon, Mr Synge. But that is not how the country people do be talking here in Ireland, sir.
33. transitive. As auxiliary of other parts of the verb.† a. With the bare infinitive of the main verb, as a periphrastic auxiliary of the present participle and infinitive, e.g. to do increase ‘to increase’, doing sprout ‘sprouting’. Obsolete (Scottish in later use).
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c1300 Havelok (Laud) (1868) l. 1754 And bad him..Hauelok wel yemen..And wel do wayten al þe nith.
a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Vesp.) l. 2818 Þe angls badd loth do him flee.
?c1425 (?c1400) Lollard Serm. 27 Þat resenable men..schul þanne do make hem redy aȝen þe comynge of þe Lord.
a1500 Partenay (Trin. Cambr.) l. 2368 Behold ho shall doo gouerne And rule this contre.
1513 G. Douglas in tr. Virgil Æneid i. Prol. 74 That na lovingis ma do incres thi fame, Nor na reproche diminew thi guid name.
a1522 G. Douglas tr. Virgil Æneid (1959) vi. iii. l. 97 With saffron hewit frute doyng furth sprowt.
1556 W. Lauder Compend. Tractate Dewtie of Kyngis sig. A2 No geir sulde do, the faltour bye.
1597 Regulations Manor of Scawby, Lincs. (MS) That the Carrgraues shall doe execute theire office truely.
b. In the perfect. With the bare infinitive of the main verb, as a periphrastic auxiliary of the past participle.† (a) Chiefly poetic. In full present perfect form, e.g. have done discuss ‘have discussed’. Obsolete (Scottish in later use).
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?a1475 Ludus Coventriae (1922) 283 And þis ȝe knowe now All and haue don here þat it stant in þe lond of galelye.
?1507 W. Dunbar Poems (1998) I. 95 He has done petuously devour The noble Chaucer, of makaris flour.
a1513 W. Dunbar Poems (1998) I. 163 The lork hes done the mirry day proclame.
1556 W. Lauder Compend. Tractate Dewtie of Kyngis sig. B4 As I afore, haue done discus.
1578 in J. G. Dalyell Scotish Poems 16th Cent. (1801) II. 189 And many other false abusion The Paip hes done invent.
(b) U.S. (in African-American usage), Caribbean, and West African. With omission of have.In this use, done is equivalent to a past completive marker. Compare sense 33c.
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1809 A. B. Lindsley Love & Friendship iii. 49 Missy, mr. Seldreer done come, he dere at de door.
1821 Remarkable Particulars Negroes Sierra Leone 24 Suppose somebody beat rice; when he done beat, he take the fan and fan it.
1881 J. C. Harris Nights with Uncle Remus (1882) vii. 34 I done come dis longways fer ter gin 'im a larrupin.
1902 Atlantic Monthly Dec. 750/1 You done tell me 'bout dem befo'.
1919 Weekly Guardian (Trinidad) 16 Aug. 11 De cage don get open.
1953 J. M. Brewer Word on Brazos 62 De sermon he done preach de week befo'.
1967 Bahamas Handbk. & Businessmen's Ann. (ed. 7) 41 The Queen be allergic to shellfish... But I know the prince done eat all his.
1971 C. Achebe in C. Achebe & C. L. Innes Afr. Short Stories (1987) 32 ‘You done finish?’ asked the voice outside.
1986 E. Amadi Estrangement xii. 151 Since that woman come back for this house everything don spoil.
2000 Wasafiri Autumn 53/2 I just done tell you.
c. U.S. regional (chiefly southern). In the perfect (and with omission of have). With the past participle of the main verb, as a perfective auxiliary.In this use, done frequently has adverbial force, with the sense ‘already; completely’.
(a) With omission of have.
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1827 A. Sherwood Gazetteer Georgia 139 Done said it, for has said it. Done did it, for has performed, or done it.
1835 Amer. Railroad Jrnl. 4 July 420/2 Massa done gone, sa.
1853 ‘P. Paxton’ Stray Yankee in Texas 114 Of Alabama origin..is that funny expression, ‘done gone’, ‘done done’, implying ‘entirely gone’, and ‘entirely done’.
1887 Cent. Mag. Nov. 96/1 ‘You done had supper?’ she asked.
1917 H. T. Comstock Man thou Gavest 300 I done told Burke I—I was going to prove myself.
1945 E. T. Wallace Barington 18 I don't know what you need with another boy. You done got four.
1994 P. Baker Blood Posse v. 53 This here coconut punk done broke all the windows in my house.
2003 V. O. Carter Such Sweet Thunder 328 All my money that I done slaved for all week.
(b) In full present or past perfect form.
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1829 Virginia Lit. Museum 16 Dec. 420/2 Americanisms... Done, a prevalent vulgarism in the Southern states, as ‘done gone’, ‘what have you done do?’ Only heard amongst the lowest classes; probably obtained from Ireland.
1844 Spirit of Times (N.Y.) 14 Sept. 343/3 I'd done got the licker, and I was satisfied.
1845 W. T. Thompson Major Jones' Chron. Pineville 107 The horse and cart is done gone, and everything in it.
1854 M. J. Holmes Tempest & Sunshine ii. 24 I've done let my best horse and nigger go off with a man from the free States.
1873 J. H. Beadle Undeveloped West xix. 356 People have done forgot they had any Injun blood in 'em.
1897 R. M. Stuart In Simpkinsville 23 I see my pipe has done gone out while I've been talkin'.
1938 M. K. Rawlings Yearling vii. 65 You couldn't see 'em. There ain't none left. They've done left here, jest like the Injuns.
1949 L. Lenski Cotton in my Sack xi. 146 ‘Miz Shands' goose is done et up, Uncle Shine,’ said Ricky. ‘You come too late.’
1997 J. Daugharty Earl in Yellow Shirt 5 Smells like he's done made a stop by The Line on his way back from the undertaker's.
Phrases
P1. In the infinitive. Cf. ado n. and adj.2, to-do n.
a. to be to do: to be necessary to be done. Hence what's to do?: what is the matter? †to have somewhat to do: to have something the matter with one (obsolete). Now regional.
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OE Vercelli Homilies (1992) iii. 74 Sio andetnes is to donne be eallum þam sinnum þe man awðer þurhtyhð, oððe an geþohte oððe on spræce oððe on worce.
OE tr. Bede Eccl. Hist. (Cambr. Univ. Libr.) i. xi. 50 Hi..ræddon, hwæt him to donne wære.
c1175 ( Homily: De Confessione (Bodl. 343) in A. S. Napier Wulfstan (1883) 290 Nu sæcge ic þe her, hwæt ðe is to donne, hwæt to forletenne.
c1175 Ormulum (Burchfield transcript) l. 2949 Þe bettste raþ Off whatt himm wass to donne.
c1300 St. Thomas Becket (Laud) 476 in C. Horstmann Early S.-Eng. Legendary (1887) 120 ‘We schullen do,’ seint Thomas seide, ‘al þat is to done.’
a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Trin. Cambr.) l. 1651 Wreche to take hit is to done.
tr. Palladius De re Rustica (Duke Humfrey) (1896) i. l. 11 What is to rere or doon in euery thinge.
1489 (a1380) J. Barbour Bruce (Adv.) i. l. 586 For God wate weill quhat is to do.
c1515 Ld. Berners tr. Bk. Duke Huon of Burdeux (1882–7) cxxxix. 521 I can not beleue but that my wyfe hath sumwhat to do.
1523 Ld. Berners tr. J. Froissart Cronycles I. ccxlii. 357 If it were to do agayn.
a1616 W. Shakespeare Macbeth (1623) v. ix. 5 And little is to do . View more context for this quotation
a1616 W. Shakespeare Measure for Measure (1623) i. ii. 104 What's to doe heere, Thomas Tapster? let's withdrawe. View more context for this quotation
1694 P. A. Motteux tr. F. Rabelais 5th Bk. Wks. iii. 9 There was the Devil and all to do.
2003 C. Birch Turn again Home iv. 61 ‘What's to do, old Bob?’ asked Dad gently, lifting him up to sit on his arm.
b. With complement introduced by with and similar prepositions.
(a) to have to do with (also †mid, †of, †on).† (ii) To have sexual intercourse with. Obsolete.
(i) To have dealings or business with; to have connection or interaction (of any kind) with; to have relation to.
(1) With pronominal object (what, anything, etc.) of have. Also to have got to do with.to have nothing to do with: see nothing pron., n., adv., and int. Phrases 10.
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the world > action or operation > doing > activity or occupation > occupy or engage (a person) [verb (transitive)] > have to do with or be involved in or with
to have to do with (also mid, of, on)lOE
meddle1413
intromit1522
fretc1540
make1564
to have a finger in1583
converse1592
cope with1594
trade1595
play1928
lOE St. Margaret (Corpus Cambr.) (1994) 160 Seo eadiga Margareta him to cwæð: ‘Geswiga þu earmingc, ne hæfh [read hæfst] þu nan þingc on me to donne.’
c1225 (?c1200) St. Katherine (Royal) (1981) 362 Of mine bileaue, beo ha duhti oðer dusi, naue þu nawt to donne.
c1275 (?a1200) Laȝamon Brut (Calig.) (1978) l. 9509 Þee king hire wende to..& hæfde him to done wið leofuest wimmonne.
a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Gött.) l. 16487 Han we noght þar-of to do.
1530 J. Palsgrave Lesclarcissement 634/1 You medyll you with maters that you have naught to do with.
1630 J. Wadsworth Eng. Spanish Pilgrime (new ed.) viii. 90 I neuer had any thing to doe with the said Duke.
1695 W. Congreve Love for Love iii. i. 46 Hoity toity, What have I to do with his Dreams or his Divination?
1759 R. Jackson Hist. Rev. Pennsylvania 11 If Craft had any Thing to do with them, never was Craft better hid.
1868 Trades Union Comm.: Manch. Outrages Inq.: Rep. II. 132/1 in Parl. Papers 1867–8 XXXIX. 597 Tetlow made answer and said, ‘What have you got to do with it?’ and they began fighting.
1876 ‘G. Eliot’ Daniel Deronda III. v. xxxv. 10 The white silk..might have something to do with the new imposingness of her beauty.
1881 Blackwood's Edinb. Mag. Dec. 756/1 To associate or have anything to do with blacks..is an unpardonable offence in a Boer's eyes.
1927 V. Woolf To Lighthouse iii. ii. 226 The Lighthouse! The Lighthouse! What's that got to do with it? he thought impatiently.
1955 T. Williams Let. 12 June in Five O'Clock Angel (1991) 116 The liquor has a lot to do with that.
1961 ‘W. Cooper’ Scenes Married Life 98 What's that got to do with it?
1994 J. Birmingham He died with Felafel in his Hand (1997) vii. 152 He obviously hadn't had much to do with women.
2004 New Yorker 5 Jan. 86/1 Television had something to do with turning Presidential campaigns into tactical image wars.
(2) Without object of have.
ΘΚΠ
the world > relative properties > relationship > relate or connect [verb (intransitive)] > be or become concerned or involved
to have to do with (also mid, of, on)a1225
interlacec1380
to do with ——a1400
bedrive1481
concern1614
bear1658
connect1709
a1225 MS Lamb. in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1868) 1st Ser. 77 (MED) Na Mon mine likame irineð ne mid me flesliche nefde to donne.
a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Vesp.) l. 14974 (MED) Þe lauerd has Wit þam for to do.
a1500 (a1460) Towneley Plays (1994) I. x. 97 I had neuer with the to do; How shuld it [sc. that chyld] then be myne?
1555 R. Eden tr. Peter Martyr of Angleria Decades of Newe Worlde i. vii. f. 34v He wolde not haue to doo with suche myscheuous men.
1711 R. Steele Spectator No. 33. ⁋1 Insolent towards all who have to do with her.
1750 S. Johnson Rambler No. 14. ⁋5 The difference between pure science, which has to do only with ideas, and the application of its laws to the use of life.
1816 W. Scott Old Mortality vi, in Tales of my Landlord 1st Ser. IV. 104 I thought I had to do with the son of an old round-headed rebel.
1875 B. Jowett in tr. Plato Dialogues (ed. 2) V. 34 All law has to do with pleasure and pain.
1930 Amer. Speech 6 92 The following expressions have to do with automobiles and their accessories.
1960 New Scientist 10 Mar. 604/1 It seems that the first step in germination by abrasion has to do with weakening and cracking in the outer spore layer.
2005 C. Sittenfeld Prep 81 Most of their dads had jobs having to do with investments and brokerage.
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the world > physical sensation > sexual relations > sexual activity > engage in sexual activity [verb (intransitive)] > have sexual intercourse
playOE
to do (also work) one's kindc1225
bedc1315
couple1362
gendera1382
to go togetherc1390
to come togethera1398
meddlea1398
felterc1400
companya1425
swivec1440
japea1450
mellc1450
to have to do with (also mid, of, on)1474
engender1483
fuck?a1513
conversec1540
jostlec1540
confederate1557
coeate1576
jumble1582
mate1589
do1594
conjoin1597
grind1598
consortc1600
pair1603
to dance (a dance) between a pair of sheets1608
commix1610
cock1611
nibble1611
wap1611
bolstera1616
incorporate1622
truck1622
subagitate1623
occupya1626
minglec1630
copulate1632
fere1632
rut1637
joust1639
fanfreluche1653
carnalize1703
screw1725
pump1730
correspond1756
shag1770
hump1785
conjugate1790
diddle1879
to get some1889
fuckeec1890
jig-a-jig1896
perform1902
rabbit1919
jazz1920
sex1921
root1922
yentz1923
to make love1927
rock1931
mollock1932
to make (beautiful) music (together)1936
sleep1936
bang1937
lumber1938
to hop into bed (with)1951
to make out1951
ball1955
score1960
trick1965
to have it away1966
to roll in the hay1966
to get down1967
poontang1968
pork1968
shtup1969
shack1976
bonk1984
boink1985
1474 W. Caxton tr. Game & Playe of Chesse (1883) iii. iii. 103 He demanded of her what he shold gyue to haue to doo wyth her.
a1492 W. Caxton tr. Vitas Patrum (1495) i. xlvi. f. lxxxi/1 There was a beeste namyd Parde, Of whyche beest whan the lyon hadde to doo wyth her he engendred on her a nother beest callyd a Leoparde.
1567 H. G. tr. G. Boccaccio Pleasaunt Disport Diuers Noble Personages xii. f. 51v As many times as thou shalt kisse, or haue to do with hir.
1600 C. Lumsden tr. R. Rollock Expos. Select Psalmes David 282 Hee sendeth for her, and having had to do with her, he sendeth her away againe.
1699 J. Stevens tr. J. de Mariana Gen. Hist. Spain xxii. vii. 380 Prince Henry was Divorced from Blanch his Wife, pretending that by reason of some Witchcraft he could not have to do with her.
1751 Universal Mag. Aug. 91/1 D—n your eyes, you have had to do with her.
1792 Conjuror's Mag. Apr. 375/1 A woman that has lines at the root of the thumb..if they verge towards the outside of the hand, so many men will have to do with her, or marry her.
1875 Proc. Old Bailey 22 Sept. 462 My husband asked Stonestreet if he had had to do with the old woman, and he said yes, there were four of them, and all four had to do with her.
(b) Chiefly British. to be to do with: to be connected with, to be related to; to be of concern to. Cf. to have to do with (also †mid, †of, †on) at Phrases 1b(a).
(i) With pronominal complement (what, anything, etc.) of be.
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1906 Minutes of Evid. Royal Comm. Worcester Election 153/2 I have given it to him gratuitously, never thinking that it was anything to do with the Election whatever.
1929 P. Gibbs Hidden City xxxix. 189 It's something to do with that poisonous little beast Benito..the boy she dances with.
1937 H. Jennings et al. May 12th Mass-observ. Day-surveys (1987) ii. 360 He was full of grouses that it was nothing to do with him.
1959 Daily Tel. 12 Dec. 6/2 Association with the America of that period might involve her unnecessarily in troubles which were little to do with Asia.
2010 J. Powell Breaking of Eggs (2011) ii. 19 I came to realise that for Benoît it was all to do with money.
(ii) Without complement.
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1909 H. G. Wells Ann Veronica xvi. 324 It's to do with adolescence.
1932 W. Lewis Filibusters in Barbary ii. xii. 258 There are certain rules that have to be observed. One of the most striking is to do with what the German Korps Student would call ‘fixing’.
1957 Life 18 Mar. 79/1 I suppose it's to do with the trip.
1990 New Scientist 21 July 31/2 The reason for the success of these ‘notebook’ computers is more to do with size than portability.
2005 E. Morrison Last Bk. you Read 55 The first time I was depressed, it was to do with drugs they said.
(c) to do with (in a non-finite clause used as a postmodifier): connected with, relating to.
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1932 C. Beaton Diary Feb. in Self Portrait with Friends (1979) iv. 36 Schoolboy jokes, particularly those to do with the posterior portions of the anatomy.
1938 D. Thomas Let. 31 Aug. (1987) 322 None evasively or circumlocutionarily to do with fucking.
1948 Times 7 Dec. 5/4 Globical, globoid, globose, and globular all denote something to do with a globe.
1952 T. Armstrong Adam Brunskill i. 33 After leisurely exchanges to do with the weather, hay prospects and certain newsy items, the fun started.
1963 K. Tynan Let. 20 Feb. (1994) v. 271 Anything to do with words is sure to make me prick up my mind.
1998 P. Grace Baby No-eyes (1999) xii. 104 Anything to do with computers is wanky.
c. to have to do: to have something to do, to have business, or concern. what has he (she, etc.) to do? what business has he (she, etc.) to do something? Now archaic and rare.
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a1225 (c1200) Vices & Virtues (1888) 27 All ðat ȝe habbeð to donne [L. uultis facere], an godes name doþ hit, mit gode ȝeleaue.
a1375 (c1350) William of Palerne (1867) l. 2553 Do we þat we haue to done & diȝt we vs henne!
a1450 in R. L. Greene Early Eng. Carols (1935) 261 If I haue to don fer or ner, And Peny be myn massangar.
1530 J. Palsgrave Lesclarcissement 596/2 If I kembe my heed tyll to morowe what have you to do?
1576 W. Lambarde Perambulation of Kent 1 All these Nations haue had to doe within this our Countrie.
1603 P. Holland tr. Plutarch Morals 135 Neither any man hath to doe, to forbid and warne them.
1611 Bible (King James) Psalms l. 16 What hast thou to doe, to declare my Statutes? View more context for this quotation
1747 S. Richardson Clarissa I. xxvii. 168 What has he to do to controul you?
1894 R. Bridges Feast of Bacchus i. 376 What has he to do to push his nose into our affairs?
P2. In the present participle.
a. to be doing (with passive sense): to be in the course of being done, to be happening. Now chiefly in negative contexts: cf. there is nothing doing at Phrases 2b; also without auxiliary verb (cf. nothing doing at Phrases 2c).
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a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Vesp.) l. 26812 Þat þere er dedis doand neu, þat þai agh sare wit resun reu.
1526 Bible (Tyndale) Coloss. iv. 9 All thynges which are adoynge here.
a1591 H. Smith Wks. (1867) II Sin, which is here expressed (while it is a-doing) to be, not bitter, but sweet.
a1715 Bp. G. Burnet Hist. Own Time (1724) I. 110 While these things were doing.
1749 Lady M. W. Montagu Let. 7 May (1966) II. 428 What is doing amongst my Acquaintance at London.
1847 J. J. Oswandel Notes Mexican War (1885) iv. 199 This morning there is not much doing, except the soldiers are growling about our long delay at these quarters.
1855 T. B. Macaulay Hist. Eng. IV. xviii. 211 The peal and flash of gun after gun gave notice, from three different parts of the valley at once, that murder was doing.
1891 T. Hardy Tess of the D'Urbervilles II. xxxiv. 187 There is not much doing now, being New Year's Eve, and folks mops and brooms from what's inside 'em.
1907 Oakland (Calif.) Tribune 6 Oct. (Sporting section) 9/3 Nothing doing in the first round. Little doing in the second round.
1944 Ld. Alanbrooke Diary 26 Aug. in War Diaries (2001) 585 Attended COS again, but not much doing.
1986 P. Barker Century's Daughter xi. 192 Stephen was already wondering why he's come. ‘Not a lot doing,’ he said.
2001 C. Glazebrook Madolescents iii. 13 I'm not involved in..embalming and that, but I like to watch if there's not much doing.
b. there is (was, etc.) nothing doing: nothing is (was, etc.) happening, usually implying that something was suspected or expected.
ΚΠ
1700 Earl of Manchester Let. 29 Dec. in C. Cole Mem. Affairs of State 1697–1708 (1733) 274 He always says there is nothing doing; whatever I acquainted you with, came from other Hands.
1717 D. Defoe Minutes Negotiations M. Mesnager 187 They had resolved to have the Rumour spread on their Side, while there was really nothing doing.
1827 T. De Quincey in Blackwood's Mag. Feb. 211/2 Complaining ‘that there was nothing doing’.
1858 Leisure Hour 25 Mar. 186/2 There's nothing doing now.
1915 Harper's Mag. Oct. 723/1 Suzanne, that was a castle of cards we were building. There's nothing doing.
1929 P. G. Wodehouse Mr. Mulliner Speaking vi. 206 If you're trying to propose to me, sign off. There is nothing doing.
1930 W. S. Maugham Gent. in Parlour x. 46 Then my girl asked me to marry her... I told her there was nothing doing.
2006 Church Times 12 May 44/3 A lean tomcat calls to pay court to Kitty, who eyes him sanguinely, safe in the knowledge that there is nothing doing.
c. colloquial (originally Business). nothing doing: no transaction is happening (or has happened, or is likely). Now usually as an announcement of refusal of a request or offer, failure in an attempt, etc.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > language > statement > refusal > [noun] > a denial or refusal > announcement of
nothing doing1910
no soap1926
nossir1930
nyet1950
1859 Economist 26 Feb. 240/2 The home market for refined sugar remains without any alteration to note. For export nothing doing.
1870 Porcupine 26 Mar. 503/3 A friend of mine hailed an outfitter the other day, ‘How is business?’ ‘Nothing doing.’
1910 N.Y. Evening Post 13 Dec. 7 Spottford offered the porter a dime. The negro waved it aside and said: ‘Nothing doing; my price is a quarter at least.’
1923 R. D. Paine Comrades of Rolling Ocean i. 5 I'm all through. Nothing doing.
1937 W. S. Maugham Theatre xii. 107 He can hardly expect me to ask him to come and sleep in here... Nothing doing, my lad.
1991 F. Kanga Heaven on Wheels (1992) xi. 185 They said I could go bankrupt—I said, nothing doing. I'll pay my debts.
P3. Proverb. do as I say, not as I do and variants. [Partly in allusion to Matthew 23:3 (R.V.) ‘but do not ye after their works; for they say, and do not’ (post-classical Latin secundum opera vero eorum nolite facere dicunt enim et non faciunt (Vulgate), Hellenistic Greek κατὰ δὲ τὰ ἔργα αὐτῶν μὴ ποιεῖτε· λέγουσιν γὰρ καὶ οὐ ποιοῦσιν); compare also ancient Greek ἄλλα μὲν λέγουσιν, ἄλλα δὲ πράττουσιν ‘they say one thing, but do another’ (Aesop Fables 163).]
ΚΠ
OE Priest's Advice in Lent (Tiber. C.i.) in P. Clemoes Anglo-Saxons (1959) 277 Ac þeah ic wyrs do þonne ic þe lære ne do þu na swa swa ic do, ac do swa ic þe lære gyf ic þe wel lære.]
c1450 MS Douce 52 in Festschrift zum XII. Neuphilologentage (1906) 53 (MED) Thow shall do as þe preste says but not as þe preste doos.
1546 J. Heywood Dialogue Prouerbes Eng. Tongue ii. v. sig. Hivv Ye could tell a nother herein, the best way. But it is as folke dooe, and not as folke say.
a1591 H. Smith Lawiers Question (1595) sig. H3v If you seeme to mislike their dooings, then..they aunswere for themselues; Doo as we say, and not as wee doo.
1689 R. Milward Selden's Table-talk 45 Preachers say, Do as I say, not as I do.
1783 London Med. Jrnl. 3 76 Even the spiritual and medical advisers of temperance and regularity, are themselves infected with the love of this kind of..good living; and the old phrase,—Do as I say, but don't do as I do, is no where more necessary.
1811 E. Parker Elfrida II. vii. 109 Mind how you proceed, lest we liken you to the drunken Parson, who preached in favor of sobriety, crying out—‘Do as I say, not as I do!’
1889 Med. Current Dec. 549 In life, do not most teachers impress us with this fact, ‘Do as we say, not as we do’.
1916 H. E. Luccock Five-minute Shop-talks xix. 108 Many a man will say, ‘Don't do as I do; do as I say’.
1951 Mason City (Iowa) Globe-Gaz. 29 Sept. 12/1 The rulers of the Soviet Union..expect others to do as they say, not as they do.
1989 J. Epstein Iron Pen ii. iii. 104 He tells his ward to do as he says rather than as he does.
2011 Sunday Times (Nexis) 13 Nov. 25 Do as I say, not as I do is the first law of politics.
P4. In passive.
a. Proverbs.
(a) what's done cannot be undone and variants.
ΚΠ
c1450 King Ponthus (Digby) in Publ. Mod. Lang. Assoc. Amer. (1897) 12 107 The thynges that be doone may not be vndoone.
a1616 W. Shakespeare Macbeth (1623) v. i. 65 What's done, cannot be vndone. View more context for this quotation
a1640 P. Massinger City-Madam (1658) v. iii. 80 I care not where I go, what's done with words Cannot be undone.
1767 B. Thornton tr. Plautus Miser v. iii. in B. Thornton et al. tr. Plautus Comedies II. 231 'Tis past—What's done Cannot be undone.—I believe, the Gods Would have it so.
1836 F. Marryat Mr. Midshipman Easy III. vii. 138 I felt much the same—but what's done cannot be undone.
1981 J. Stubbs Ironmaster xxii. 292 What is done cannot be undone..but you must take responsibility for it.
2011 Capital (Annapolis, Maryland) (Nexis) 29 Apr. b3 I made an apology because an apology needed to be made... What's been done can't be undone.
(b) what's done is done.
ΚΠ
a1616 W. Shakespeare Macbeth (1623) iii. ii. 14 Things without all remedie Should be without regard: what's done, is done . View more context for this quotation
1732 H. Baker & J. Miller tr. Molière School for Wives ii. v 59 in Sel. Comedies IV I'll say no more of it: What's done is done.
1803 M. Charlton Wife & Mistress (ed. 2) II. iii. 61 No, I'll never go back; but I'll follow you—what's done is done.
1960 Kansas City (Missouri) Star 5 Feb. You've nicked me already and what's done is done.
2001 M. Blake 24 Karat Schmooze xvii. 188 What's done is done. You've dumped me and now I can live without you.
b. to take (something) as done: to treat (something) as if it has been, or shortly will be, done. Frequently in imperative as an assurance that something will be done. Cf. to take (something) as read at read v. Phrases 9.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > mental capacity > expectation > expect [verb (intransitive)] > assume completion
to take (something) as done1656
1656 A. Burgess CXLV Expository Serm. lxxiv. 392 Should the faith of a godly man turn the future tense into the present, and what God saith he will do, to take as done already.
1795 Mod. Rep. (ed. 5) 9 391 As this is a covenant for valuable consideration for a thing to be done, this Court ought to take it as done.
1893 E. F. Benson Dodo I. i. 9 You haven't congratulated me. Never mind, we'll take that as done.
1919 K. Howard Peculiar Major vi. 77 ‘Let me have a quiet night to-night, and you can treat me like a prize turkey for the rest of my stay.’ ‘Take it as done,’ said she.
1999 E. K. Sedgwick Dialogue on Love 91 Shannon (perhaps wildly): Pat you on the head? Tell you it'll be all right? Me: Oh, I'm taking that as done.
2010 E. Cameron tr. P. Dijan Unforgivable 112 You have my word. I'll come and sign my books. I will sit behind a stall. Take it as done, old friend.
c. colloquial. not done and variants: forbidden by custom, opinion, or propriety; badly thought of, unseemly. Frequently in it is not (frequently isn't) done.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > attention and judgement > bad taste > unseemliness or unbecomingness > [adjective]
unthewfulc1050
unhend?c1225
uncomelyc1230
unseemlya1300
unseeminga1340
unseemc1425
untowardly1483
indecent1570
unbeseeming1583
uncivil1586
unbecoming1598
unbefitting1598
unhandsome1645
untoward1658
incorrect1672
indecorous1682
outré1722
improper1739
indelicate1741
unproper1797
pah1835
it is not (frequently isn't) done1879
1879 E. Gosse in Life & Lett. (1931) 126 We haven't the originality to think of dying. It's never done here, in our set.
1911 R. W. Chambers Common Law i ‘You know,’ he said, ‘models are not supposed to come here unless sent for. It isn't done in this building.’
1926 E. M. Dell Black Knight i. viii ‘Oh, but you couldn't—you couldn't—live there by yourself!’ protested Joyce. ‘It isn't done, Ermine. It wouldn't be fitting.’
1928 Observer 29 Jan. 22/1 Undergraduates regard the conduct of the night of December 13 as the sort of thing that ‘isn't done’.
1932 Times Lit. Suppl. 5 May 318/4 A first-class book made up of things which emphatically are ‘not done’.
1963 A. Heron Towards Quaker View of Sex 56 When it is ‘not done’ to discuss sexuality—as in many Western sub-cultures.
1971 P. Worsthorne Socialist Myth viii. 188 That kind of behaviour simply is not done, simply is not cricket.
1998 R. L. Fleming She's All That (film script, revised) (O.E.D. Archive) 14 The same reason we never eat in the quad. It's simply not done.
P5. Without object.
a. to do or die: to perform deeds or perish; to give one's all. Frequently expressing a determination not to compromise or be deterred. Cf. do-or-die adj.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > will > decision > resolve or decide [verb (intransitive)] > be determined not to be deterred from doing
to do or die1487
the world > action or operation > manner of action > effort or exertion > exert oneself or make an effort [verb (intransitive)] > do one's utmost
to do (also lay) one's mightc1175
to do, make one's wisec1290
to do (also make) one's powerc1390
to hold (also keep) foot withc1438
to do one's force?c1450
to do or die1487
to do one's endeavour(sc1500
to do the best of one's power1523
to do (also try) one's best1585
to do one's possible1792
to pull out all the stops1927
to bust (also break) one's balls1968
1487 Thewis Gud Women (St. John's Cambr.) l. 301 in R. Girvan Ratis Raving & Other Early Scots Poems (1939) 99 Than is þar nocht bot do or de.
1488 (c1478) Hary Actis & Deidis Schir William Wallace (Adv.) (1968–9) iv. l. 593 Her is no chos bot owdir do or de.
a1500 R. Henryson tr. Æsop Fables: Paddock & Mouse l. 2886 in Poems (1981) 107 And quhen scho saw thair wes bot do or de.
1567 Compend. Bk. Godly Songs (1897) 142 Than suld we outher do or die.
a1625 J. Fletcher Island Princesse ii. ii, in F. Beaumont & J. Fletcher Comedies & Trag. (1647) sig. Nnn3/2 Let's meet, and either doe, or dye.
1793 R. Burns Scots, wha Hae in Poems & Songs (1968) II. 708 Liberty's in every blow! Let us Do—or Die!
1809 T. Campbell Gertrude of Wyoming iii. xxxvii. 71 To-morrow let us do or die!
1863 L. M. Alcott Hospital Sketches i. 13 The head..fermented with all manner of high thoughts and heroic purposes ‘to do or die’,—perhaps both.
1922 E. Dorrance & J. Dorrance Lonesome Town x. 97 Jane Lauderdale should notice his readiness to do or die in her service.
1995 K. Toolis Rebel Hearts (1996) iii. 171 We would be the team that would be sent in to hit a barracks, do or die.
b. that will do (also that'll do): that is sufficient; often as an exclamation used either dismissively (Nautical to dismiss the crew at the end of a voyage), or repressively, esp. to children, ‘stop (doing) that!’ Cf. sense 15a.
ΘΚΠ
the world > relative properties > quantity > sufficient quantity, amount, or degree > (in) sufficient amount or degree [phrase] > that is enough
that will do1736
that'll do1856
1736 A. Hill Epil. in Connoisseur Silence—sit down, Sirs,—Hats off, that will do, I know, you love a Joke, if it be new.
1764 A. Murphy No One's Enemy but his Own i. 38 If you will but press more tenderly on my windpipe..a little too tight still, Sir..a little looser—that will do.
1836 F. Marryat Mr. Midshipman Easy II. x. 287 A small pull of that weather main-top-gallant brace—that will do.
1856 C. Dickens Little Dorrit (1857) i. xxxii. 287 Give me a back, Mr. Rugg—a little higher, sir—that'll do!
1863 M. E. Braddon Eleanor's Victory III. vi. 89 ‘That will do, Jepcott,’ said Miss Sarah, ‘you may go now.’
1902 B. Lubbock Round Horn x. 374 ‘That'll do, men!’ were the magic words, and we quietly walked off to our various bunks.
1937 L. Jones Cwmardy vii. 115 That will do for now. Let's go back.
1957 ‘F. Gaite’ Far Traveller i. 19 ‘But it is what one would do..if one saw a pretty girl.’.. ‘That will do, Franz,’ said the Graf.
1968 L. Morton Long Wake i. 37 Then the magic words which the sailors always wait for from the Mate at the end of a voyage: ‘That will do, you men, pay off tomorrow at the Shipping Office.’
1987 P. Redmond & D. Angus Grange Hill Rebels xiv. 59 ‘Er..that'll do,’ said the teacher, concerned by Wimbledon's violent tendencies.
2009 G. Shields Immortal xviii. 137 ‘That will do, girls; quiet down,’ said Miss Scratton.
P6. With do as auxiliary verb.
a. don't —— me: do not speak or refer to me as (a specified form of address).
ΚΠ
1715 S. Centlivre Gotham Election i. v. 65 Tick. Mr. Sly my hearty Service to you. Roger. Don't Master me Sir.
1774 J. Burgoyne Maid of Oaks iii. ii. 41 Don't dear me, I won't rest a moment 'till I have seen her.
1829 F. Marryat Naval Officer III. v. 135 Don't dear me, Sir Hurricane. I am not one of your dears.
1870 A. Trollope Vicar of Bullhampton xli. 263 ‘But, Mrs. Brattle——’ ‘Don't Mrs. Brattle me, Mr. Fenwick, for I won't be so treated.’
1892 C. M. Yonge Cross Roads x. 112 ‘Emmie!’ ‘Don't Emmie me!’
1904 E. Jepson Admirable Tinker xiii. 234 ‘Woman, you're mad!’ said McNeill, rising with a scared face. ‘Don't you woman me, you low Scotchman!’
1991 M. Nicholson Martha Jane & Me (1992) xxiv. 197 They came up close to us, holding out a hand and pleading that they hadn't eaten for a week, darling. ‘Don't darling me’, she'd tell them.
b. no, you don't: you will not be allowed to do what you intend; I shall prevent you from doing (something implied).
ΚΠ
1796 F. Reynolds Fortune's Fool v. 65 No—you don't—you shan't quit the room.
1884 Boy's Own Paper 4 Oct. 2/2 ‘No, you don't!’ muttered Soady, starting his melody.
1912 P. Nash Let. 21 Aug. in G. Bottomley & P. Nash Poet & Painter (1955) 48 I started a new outdoor drawing—but the devil or someone said ‘no you don't’, and at half hour intervals I was interrupted by heavy rain.
1926 B. A. McKelvie Huldowget ii. 27 ‘No, you don't,’ exclaimed Collishaw, and he caught the girl's arm and gently drew it aside.
1952 W. G. Hardy Unfulfilled 176 But then Barty started toward Pam, his face blazing, his fist up and Peter jumped forward. ‘No, you don't.’
1999 T. Parker et al. South Park (film script, 8th draft) 135 Satan I am the dark master! Kyle's mother Oh no you don't!
c. U.S. colloquial. let's don't: let's not, don't let's (do something specified or implied).
ΘΚΠ
the mind > language > statement > negation > [phrase]
I'll be far (enough) if1752
I'll be shot (occasionally shortened to shot!) if1761
over my dead body1796
let's don't1854
I'll see you shot first1894
1854 G. E. Rice Blondel ii. ii. 38 A shabby trick! Let's do n't.
1900 W. F. Drannan Thirty-one Years on Plains & in Mountains xxv. 425 Let's don't talk about that, please don't ask any more questions about it.
1939 D. Parker Here Lies 33 Let's don't think about a lot of Chinese.
1986 New Yorker 24 Mar. 34/2 Let's don't go yet.
2003 Technol. Rev. Mar. 70/2 But let's don't beat up on the pharmaceutical industry.
d. U.S. don't ask, don't tell, (don't pursue) and variants: (designating) a policy on homosexuality adopted by the U.S. military from 1994–2011, under which personnel were not asked about their sexual orientation and gays and lesbians were allowed to serve provided they did not openly reveal their sexuality. Also in extended use.
ΚΠ
1993 Chicago Tribune 31 Jan. iv. 4/4 Sociologist Moskos suggested this formula as a compromise for both sides to help them deal with the question of homosexuality in the military: ‘Don't ask, don't tell, don't seek, don't flaunt.’
1993 Washington Times (Nexis) 25 June a1 Under ‘don't ask, don't tell’, the military would end the practice of asking recruits if they are homosexual.
1996 Rocky Mountain News (Denver) (Nexis) 22 Sept. 30 a A..teacher contacted the Immigration and Naturalization Service and reported one of her students as an illegal immigrant... The incident sent tremors through the Albuquerque Public Schools where the district policy has been don't ask, don't tell.
1997 San Diego Union-Tribune (Electronic ed.) 2 Oct. Soldiers..may be discharged from the military if they are found to have violated the military's ‘don't ask, don't tell, don't pursue’ policy on gays.
2010 Independent 1 Dec. 41/1 Members of the Senate Armed Services Committee are due to begin hearings tomorrow on a provision to repeal the ‘don't ask, don't tell policy’.., which is seen by many today as perpetuating anti-gay prejudice in America.
P7. With complement expressing (satisfactory) result.
a.
(a) colloquial. to do (a person) well: to provide food, lodgings, or entertainment for; to treat or entertain (a person) liberally; (reflexive) to make liberal provision for one's own material comfort.
ΚΠ
1792 Minutes Evid. House of Lords:Trade to Afr. 152 They have said, ‘No, you do me well;’ which is as much as to say, you treat me well; ‘You give me plenty to eat, plenty to drink.’
1871 Temple Bar May 466 His person was of aldermanic proportions, and went to prove that ‘he did himself well’ every day of the year.
1897 Punch 23 Oct. 185/1 The nightmare of an artist who does himself not wisely but far too well, at an unnecessary supper.
1902 Daily Chron. 16 Aug. 3/4 For ten francs a day one is done well there.
1928 Daily Express 7 Sept. 1/1 They do you well, with plenty of eggs, cream, [etc.].
1940 G. D. H. Cole & M. Cole Murder at Munition Works iv. 55 The Chief Constable will bear me out that they do one quite well there.
2008 K. Burk & M. Bywater Is this Bottle Corked? 167 You could give them yesterday's leavings..and they'd say, ‘Mmm, yes, delicious, they do me very well here, you know.’
(b) to do (a person) proud: see proud adj., n., and adv. Phrases 2.
b. to do well out of: to profit by or from.
ΘΚΠ
society > trade and finance > management of money > income, revenue, or profit > getting or making money > get or make money [verb (intransitive)] > make profit
win1340
to wind the penny1546
vantage1563
to turn a profit1843
to do well out of1857
1857 Rep. Sel. Comm. House of Lords on Coalwhippers Act 73 in Parl. Papers 1857: Session 2 (H.C. 286) XII. 1 The second [answer] was, ‘Did very well out of the old Act of Parliament office; 1l. a week, and no deduction.’
1884 Graphic 29 Nov. 562/3 The second category of companies is usually so managed that the originators do pretty well out of it whether those of the shareholders who are not ‘in the swim’ gain a profit or lose their Capital.
1919 J. M. Keynes Econ. Consequences of Peace v. 133 They are a lot of hard-faced men..who look as if they had done very well out of the war.
1951 J. B. Priestley Festival at Farbridge iii. iii. 577 Seth..had done very well out of the Festival.
1987 Daily Tel. 31 Oct. (Weekend Suppl.) p. vi/3 Russell is often portrayed as one of the greediest of the Tudor ‘New Men’ who did well out of the Dissolution of the Monasteries.
2005 C. Tudge Secret Life Trees ix. 173 For a time, Brazil did very well out of rubber. Indeed it seemed set to transform the country's economy.
P8. With it as object.
a. —— does it (with an adverb as grammatical subject): used to warn, advise, or encourage a person to act in a specified way (typically calmly or cautiously) in order to achieve the best result or avoid accidents or mishaps; as carefully does it, gently does it, etc.See also easy does it at easy adv. 4a.
ΚΠ
1828 P. Egan Boxiana New Ser. I. p. xxviii ‘Gently does it’, is the phrase of the most habile of our city horse-breakers.
1888 Cornhill Mag. Sept. 300 When he comes, hold your powder straight an' knock him over. Steady does it, old boy.
1907 Baroness Orczy Gates of Kamt vi. 62 Swiftly does it, Mark.
1915 D. H. Lawrence Rainbow v. 130 ‘Fair and softly does it,’ cried his aunt... ‘You don't want to fall over yourself,’ said his uncle.
1984 C. Barker Bks. of Blood (1986) I. 79 Carefully does it, he told himself, carefully does it.
2017 Waikato Times (Hamilton, N.Z.) (Nexis) 4 Oct. 8 Don't whisk it too hard or you will make it foamy and bubbly—gently does it.
b.
(a) colloquial. to have done it: to have acted extremely foolishly; to have made a mess of things. Frequently in now you've done it.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > mental capacity > knowledge > conformity with what is known, truth > disregard for truth, falsehood > lack of truth, falsity > an error, mistake > blunder [verb (intransitive)] > make a mess of
to have done it1837
to fuck up1944
to make a pig's ear (out) of1954
to make a porridge (of)1969
1837 C. Dickens Pickwick Papers xxxv. 391 Well, young man, now you have done it.
1842 S. Lover Handy Andy xlii. 320 By the powers, you have done it this time!
1856 C. Dickens Little Dorrit (1857) i. viii. 62 ‘You've done it,’ observed Tip; ‘you must be sharper than that, next time.’
1883 G. M. Hopkins Let. 28 Sept. (1938) 164 I began to fear I had, as people say, ‘done it this time’.
1914 ‘E. Bramah’ Max Carrados Myst. 82 ‘Now you've done it,’ commented Mr. Carlyle.
1930 H. Belloc New Cautionary Tales 45 His father made a fearful row. He said ‘By Gum, you've done it now!’
2006 G. Malkani Londonstani xxiii. 289 You were too busy laughin with all your fun friends to even pick up your fone. Shit, now you've done it.
(b) to have (gone and) done it again and variants: used to express one's exasperation or surprise at the repetition of an action (esp. a mistake or triumph).
ΚΠ
1839 C. Dickens Nicholas Nickleby xliv. 435 ‘Oh! Mr. Nickleby, sir’, said the girl. ‘Go up, for the love of Gracious. Master's been and done it again.’
1844 Dublin Univ. Mag. Dec. 741/1 His book on ‘Paris and its People’..might well have deterred him from further essays in print... Notwithstanding all this, in the words of Dickens, ‘He has gone and done it again’.
1889 Frank Leslie's Pop. Monthly Mar. 269/2 Oh, my dear! giddy thing that I am, I've done it again!
1902 Atlanta Constit. 16 July 6/3 General Bragg has gone and done it again! His happy faculty of putting his foot in his mouth whenever he opens it hangs to him like a toper's appetite.
1938 Observer 9 Oct. 16/2 Well, Hitchcock has done it again... The Lady Vanishes is possibly the best..of all his pictures.
1987 M. Bard in M. E. Ahrari Ethnic Groups & U.S. Foreign Policy iii. 58 The president had..done it again, snatching victory from what appeared just a few days earlier to be certain defeat.
1999 Odds On Feb. 14/2 Crazy Horse has gone and done it again... He has earned the biggest speed rating I've given a novice hurdler all term by taking what turned out to be an incredibly hot contest at Ayr.
2013 Daily News (N.Y.) (Nexis) 1 Jan. 20 They've done it again. In their seemingly endless ability to surmount previous feats of incompetence, elected representatives in Washington have failed to uphold their most basic responsibilities to the nation.
(c) that does (or did) it: indicating an event or action which (finally) brings about a change or provokes a reaction (in later use esp. anger); ‘that is (or was) the last straw’.
ΚΠ
1867 G. M. Fenn Orig. Penny Readings 219 That did it; for before I knew where I was, she was down on her knees with her head in my lap, crying.
1946 W. F. Brown Through Windows xiii. 64 Again I did not go and pleaded the same reason. That apparently did it, as they say—she stopped asking me to lunch parties.
1968 S. L. Elliott Rusty Bugles in E. Hanger Three Austral. Plays ii. iv. 95 That does it. He puts Vic on a charge sheet.
1999 B. Griffith in Zippy Ann. No. 1 (2000) 39 (cartoon caption) That does it! Get me my enemies list!!
c. that will (also that'll) do it and variants: that will achieve the required result; that will be sufficient or enough; frequently used to express satisfaction, assent, or approval.
ΚΠ
1841 J. F. Cooper Deerslayer I. vi. 101 If there's any delay, I'll call like a loon—yes, that'll do it—the call of a loon shall be the signal.
1873 M. H. Holt Ned's Search ix. 96 He..counted the little heaps [of coins] with an intense satisfaction. ‘Yes, that'll do it, I b'lieve; I'll go..an' ask what a jacket would cost.’
1939 Jefferson (Iowa) Bee 26 Dec. 2/3 Interfere with any of these three functions—sustenance, replacement, expansion—and you weaken all of them. Consume the income in living costs—that will do it; use it all for expansion—that will do it.
1958 I. Blasingame Dakota Cowboy (1964) 303 Just got three bullets.., but that ought to do it.
1985 P. F. McManus Grasshopper Trap (1989) 91 You'll need..a down parka and some thermal underwear and an orange hunting vest and a red cap. Heck, that should do it.
2013 Evening Standard (Nexis) 9 Oct. 44 I started to panic and dropped the price again... That'll do it, I thought, and waited for the phone to ring.
d. to do it yourself: (in imperative) used to recommend carrying out a task oneself, esp. making or repairing something, instead of relying on others. Cf. do-it-yourself adj. and n.
ΚΠ
1667 S. Rolle Burning of London 65 Let me conjure you..liberally to contribute to the re-building of those noble Schools..; yea, do it yourselves, as some have done before you, if you have wherewithall.
1693 W. Penn Some Fruits of Solitude §214. 66 Have but little to do, and do it thy self.]
1842 R. H. Barham Ingoldsby Penance! in Ingoldsby Legends 2nd Ser. 109 If it's business of consequence, Do it yourself!
1881 Daily Evening Bull. (San Francisco) 26 Nov. Do it Yourself. A Hint to Young Women Whose Hands are Idle... The answer is simple. Do it yourself. It may sound alarming to speak of recovering with your own hands those chairs, sofa, etc.
1898 Chicago Jrnl. 4 May 6/7 Do it yourself. You can tell just as well as a physician whether your kidneys are diseased or healthy.
1907 Pop. Mech. June 699/1 (advt.) Don't call the plumber every time you need a little soldering done. Do it yourself.
1920 Times 11 May 19/40 That excellent advice which was placarded at the Ideal Homes Exhibition:—Do it yourself and save money.
1999 D. Haslam Manchester, Eng. v. 113 The momentum behind music in Manchester today remains this punk ethic: do it yourself.
e. colloquial. to do it.
(a) To have sexual intercourse. Also with to (a person). Cf. it pron. 10.
ΚΠ
1922 J. Joyce Ulysses iii. xviii. [Penelope] 691 Not that I care two straws who he does it with.
1954 R. P. Bissell High Water xvii. 181 Them island girls they'd rather do it than eat.
1965 C. Brown Manchild in Promised Land iii. 77 K. B. said he had done it to her one time up on the roof.
1986 New Yorker 31 Mar. 31/3 He said he had done it to Chrissie last winter.
(b) To urinate or defecate. slang.
ΘΚΠ
the world > life > the body > organs of excretion > defecation or urination > [verb]
to do it1922
1922 J. Joyce Ulysses iii. xviii. [Penelope] 721 They ought to make chambers a natural size so that a woman could sit on it properly he kneels down to do it.
1956 H. Gold Man who was not with It (1965) xxxiii. 222 It's so easy, boy, after you do it once. Before that it's hard. You sweat. You do it in your pants.
1963 M. McCarthy Group xiv. 323 As soon as they took him off [the toilet-seat], he would do it in his crib.
1995 Daily Tel. 9 Feb. 17/1 Dad, I done it in my nappy.
P9. do what one will (also can, may, might, etc.): (used parenthetically) despite what one does or is able to do; despite one's efforts to the contrary.
ΚΠ
1540 L. Ridley Comm. vpon Sayncte Paules Epyst. to Ephesyans i. sig. A7v Yf we be elected and chosen of god to immortal glorye..do what we wyll we shal at the laste come to that glory and blysse.
1576 G. Whetstone Rocke of Regard 110 I was into a quarterne brought... Do what I could, it held mee till I dide.
1609 T. Heywood Troia Britanica x. 221 Your kindnesse conquers me do what I can.
c1650 J. Spalding Memorialls Trubles Scotl. & Eng. (1851) II. 96 In end he over-ballanced the erll, do what he could, and wan his poynt.
c1710 Lady M. W. Montagu Let. in Wks. (1803) I. 148 I had better not vow, for I shall certainly love you, do what you will.
1797 Two Cousins 12 Boys will be boys, do what we will, and it is not in their nature to like old people.
1820 W. Irving Little Brit. in Sketch Bk. vii. 117 Do what they might, there was no keeping down the butcher.
1897 B. Stoker Dracula ii. 19 A horrible feeling of nausea came over me, which, do what I would, I could not conceal.
1974 W. Berry Memory Old Jack iii. 32 He knows now that, do what he may, his history is about to wash over his mind again.
1993 J. B. Stockdale Courage under Fire 9 Do what you will, reputation is at least as fickle as your station in life.
P10. what have I (also we, etc.) done to deserve, what did I (also we, etc.) do to deserve (something unwanted, unpleasant, etc.): used to express despair or frustration at having to endure a specified circumstance, person, etc., with the implication that one is being punished unjustly or malevolently. Also sometimes used in positive contexts to express surprise, joy, delight, etc., at (seemingly) unearned success, honour, or good fortune. Frequently in what have I done to deserve this?
ΚΠ
1588 G. Babington Profitable Expos. Lords Prayer vi. 480 This grieueth them, they wonder at it, and thinke what haue they done to deserue this alteration.
1607 S. Rowlands Diogines Lanthorne sig. A3 Alas poore Vertue, what hast thou done to deserue this contempt?
1702 T. Brown tr. G. B. Gelli Circe iii. 69 Oh my untoward destiny! what have I done to deserve this Unhappiness?
1763 ‘North Briton’ Let. to Author of North Briton 31 What has lord Bute done to deserve such uncommon persecution?
1802 H. Blair Serm. 364 One of the first questions, which, in such a situation, he puts to himself, is, What have I done to deserve this?
1821 Morning Chron. 12 Oct. 3/1 ‘Ah!’ he exclaimed, ‘how delightful it is to be so beloved! and what have I done to deserve it?’
1922 D. G. Mackail Bill the Bachelor vii. 340 What, Bill asked himself, had he ever done to deserve such a wonderful friend as George had always been to him?
1967 J. Speight Till Death us do Part (1973) 77 Oh God, what have I done to deserve this, why me?
1989 C. Harkness Time of Grace xi. 189 What a pestilential man. What ever did I do to deserve him?
2013 Daily Record (Glasgow) (Nexis) 7 Oct. 9 I cried for days and couldn't sleep. I kept asking myself, ‘Why are they picking on me? What have I done to deserve this?’
P11. to do something (also things) for (also to) and variants.
a. To improve; to render more pleasing or attractive.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > goodness and badness > quality of being good > improvement > [verb (transitive)]
beetc975
betterOE
goodOE
sharpa1100
amendc1300
enhance1526
meliorate1542
embetter1568
endeara1586
enrich1598
meliorize1598
mend1603
sweeten1607
improve1617
to work up1641
ameliorate1653
solace1667
fine1683
ragout1749
to make something of1778
richen1795
transcendentalize1846
to tone up1847
to do something (also things) for (also to)1880
rich1912
to step up1920
uprate1965
up1968
nice1993
1880 Quiver 15 410/1 The outlines of her figure were too angular for grace, yet..time might do something for the girlish figure.
1942 D. Powell Time to be Born (1943) ii. 43 The bathing-suit would have to be..very carefully cut indeed to ‘do things for her’.
1960 Daily Express 21 Jan. 1/3 A beret always seems to do something to generals.
1961 Sunday Express 12 Nov. 18/7 Here it is—a suit that does things for a woman.
1961 Guardian 13 Dec. 6/6 A coffee flavoured liqueur..really does something to the ice-cream.
2007 J. McKnight Love in Fast Lane xiii. 238 No two ways about it, high heels did something for a woman's legs.
b. colloquial. To have a powerful effect on; (also) to excite, interest. Also in negative constructions.
ΚΠ
1899 F. Remington in J. W. Buel Hero Tales Amer. Soldier 323 Begad, this waiting and waiting in this fleet is surely doing things to me.
1904 M. E. Waller Wood-carver of 'Lympus ii. 20 The shock did something to me.
1922 Cent. Mag. Aug. 523/1 It was n't [sic] right to be alone like that; it did things to a person.
1969 R. D. Pharr Bk. of Numbers (1970) xi. 128 Nooky does things to your head, love.
?1974 E. Chappell Rising Damp (2002) i. iii. 72/1 Oh, Perry Como. Yes, I do like him. He does things to me.
1984 G. Kilworth in Interzone Autumn 41/2 Although your poetry..might not be considered great art, it does things for me.
2000 R. J. Faber in A. L. Benson I shop, therefore I Am (2004) 40 ‘You don't like to drive fast?’ He responded, ‘No, it doesn't do anything for me’.
Phrasal verbs
PV1. With prepositions in specialized senses. to do after —— to do by —— to do for —— † to do of —— to do out of —— † 1. transitive. To put or take away out of (a place or situation). Obsolete. to do to —— to do with ——
See after prep. 9.
1. intransitive.
a. To act towards or deal with in a specified way (see by prep. 26). See also to do right by at right n. Phrases 1a(c).
ΚΠ
a1225 (?OE) MS Lamb. in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1868) 1st Ser. 51 (MED) Þenne do we bi ure sunne al swa me deað bi þe deade.
a1387 J. Trevisa tr. R. Higden Polychron. (St. John's Cambr.) (1874) V. 213 If a man..doþ wel by hym as þey he were his owne childe.
1408 in F. J. Furnivall Fifty Earliest Eng. Wills (1882) 15 That he do be me, as he wolde y dede by hym.
a1500 (c1370) G. Chaucer Complaint to his Lady (BL Add.) (1886) l. 123 With right buxum hert holy I prey As youre most plesure so doth by me.
1667 S. Pepys Diary 29 Apr. (1974) VIII. 190 My Lord Arlington hath done like a gentleman by him.
1713 S. Sewall Diary 24 Apr. (1973) II. 711 [She] said Mr. Alford had done ungentlemanly by her.
1853 W. Howitt & M. Howitt Stories Eng. & Foreign Life 96 Both you and I, through blind, mistaken affection, have done wrong by him.
1976 Irish Times 15 July 10/8 A great many of them [sc. repertory companies] do honourably by their audiences.
1994 P. D. James Original Sin xv. 106 He had slipped away almost unnoticed and unthanked, leaving Matt feeling that somehow they had done badly by the old man.
b. In prepositional passive. Frequently in proverbial phrase to do as one would be done by.hard done by: see hard adv. Phrases 4.
ΚΠ
1523 J. Fitzherbert Bk. Surueyeng xiii. f. xxviv It were a charytable dede, to euery noble man.., to do as they wolde be done by.
1674 R. Godfrey Var. Injuries in Physick 54 Whilst forgetting that Golden Law do as you would be done by, they make self the center of their actions.
a1706 J. Evelyn Hist. Relig. (1850) I. i. 3 Everybody agrees that there is in our very nature sentiments of right and wrong; to do as we would be done by;..to clothe our bodies, and the like.
1865 J. W. Carlyle Let. 3 June in Lett. & Memorials (1883) III. 261 You are so good about writing that you deserve to be goodly done by.
1866 C. Kingsley Hereward the Wake I. ix. 209 To do as he would be done by.
1916 Jrnl. Agric. (N.Z.) 20 Sept. 174 Ewes have been..‘well done by’ during the winter.
1922 A. Jekyll Kitchen Ess. 108 You will..be doing as you would be done by, and the supper-party will be the merrier and more prolonged.
1992 Independent 4 May 13/4 There were other people who seemed to be better dressed, better housed, in all ways better done by.
2. transitive. To carry out (a particular kind of action) towards a person or thing; esp. in to do the —— thing by (see to do the —— thing at thing n.1 Phrases 6a).
ΚΠ
1721 C. Cibber Refusal iii. 44 Why; have you the Confidence to suppose I won't do the fair thing by the Gentleman.
1725 R. Bradley Chomel's Dictionaire Œconomique at Poupelin You must plunge the nether crust first,..and afterwards do the same by the upper crust of the Poupelin.
1782 F. Burney Cecilia III. vi. i. 218 I can't pretend for to say I think Mr. Harrel did quite the honourable thing by us.
1890 Cent. Mag. Feb. 527/1 You know I've tried to do the square thing by you.
1945 V. Bell Let. 12 May (1993) 497 The D., seeing Edgar..waltz round gallantly with Ruby, tried to do the same by Grace, who simply sent him packing.
1963 P. White Let. 20 Oct. (1994) viii. 241 Trying to do the right thing by Fanny.
2008 New Scientist 15 Nov. 36 (heading) In principle, doing the right thing by the planet is fairly straightforward.
1. intransitive.
a. To act for or on behalf of; to manage or provide for. Now rare.
ΘΚΠ
the world > action or operation > safety > protection or defence > care, protection, or charge > care or protect [verb (intransitive)]
yemeOE
to do for ——?a1300
tend1809
?a1300 Dame Sirith l. 35 in G. H. McKnight Middle Eng. Humorous Tales (1913) 2 (MED) Fol bleþeli willi don for þe Wiþhouten gref.
1454 T. Denys in Paston Lett. & Papers (2004) II. 91 I hope to put my frendes in gretter corage to do for me.
1523 Ld. Berners tr. J. Froissart Cronycles I. ccccxiii. 723 God dyde for them..to abate the pride of the flemynges.
1526 Bible (Tyndale) Luke vi. f. lxxxiijv Yf ye do for them which do for you: what thanke are ye worthy of?
1658 T. Wall God's Revenge 2 When God does for man, he expects that man should do for God.
1712 R. Steele Spectator No. 426. ⁋3 Men who would do immoderately for their own offspring.
2009 N.Y. Times (National ed.) 11 May c1/4 ‘We do for each other no matter what,’ Cundo tells Foley. In other words, they're buddies.
b. colloquial. To attend to; esp. to perform household tasks for, esp. as an employee.
ΘΚΠ
society > authority > control > be in control [verb (intransitive)] > manage or administrate > manage household
to keep housec1405
to hold or keep householdc1425
to housewife it1566
economize1649
housekeep1813
to do for ——1844
1844 J. T. J. Hewlett Parsons & Widows III. xliii. 123 The slip-shod maid who did for the lodgers.
1878 I. L. Bird Lady's Life Rocky Mts. (1879) ix. 156 The men don't like ‘baching’, as it is called in the wilds—i.e. ‘doing for themselves’.
1914 B. Stoker Judge's House in Dracula's Guest 21 He..got..the name of an old woman who would probably undertake to ‘do’ for him.
1936 A. Christie Cards on Table xiv. 136 The superintendent's researches..led him..to Mrs. Astwell—who ‘did’ for the ladies at Wendon Cottage.
1997 Daily Tel. 3 Apr. 34/6 Mrs Simmons has ‘done for’ Mrs Lynton-Smith for 24 years.
2. intransitive. colloquial. To ruin, damage, or injure fatally; to destroy, wear out entirely. Now frequently in prepositional passive.
ΘΚΠ
the world > existence and causation > creation > destruction > damage > [verb (intransitive)] > be damaged
to do for ——a1475
suffer1609
damnify1712
damage1821
injure1848
the world > action or operation > prosperity > success > mastery or superiority > have or gain mastery, superiority, or advantage [verb (intransitive)] > defeat completely
to break one's back or neck1579
to be too many for1692
to do for ——1740
to cook (rarely do) one's goose1835
to fix (another's) flint1836
to cut the ground from under one (or one's feet)1855
a1475 Sidrak & Bokkus (Laud) (1998) I. l. 5902 By thre skyllis may hit come to Why hit [sc. a stillborn child] is don for [Lansd. fordone] alsoo.
1740 Sessions' Paper 9 July 190/2 D–mn you, I'll do for you.
1752 H. Fielding Amelia II. vi. iv. 215 He said he would do for him..and other wicked bad Words.
1803 Ld. Nelson 28 Dec. in Dispatches & Lett. (1845) V. 334 The Kent is almost done for, and she is going to Malta.
1811 J. Austen Sense & Sensibility III. v. 104 He has done for himself completely!—shut himself out for ever from all decent society. View more context for this quotation
a1817 J. Austen Persuasion (1818) IV. xi. 279 Give Anne your arm... She is rather done for this morning. View more context for this quotation
1843 J. S. Robb Streaks Squatter Life 128 They found Sam holding the straw figure in his arms, and looking in a state of stupor at the horse; he thought his master was ‘done for’.
1876 C. D. Warner Winter on Nile i. 18 The railway up the Nile had practically ‘done for’ that historic stream.
1918 S. Sassoon General in Counter-attack & Other Poems 26 He did for them both by his plan of attack.
1991 D. Dabydeen Intended (1992) 188 They come in and try to steal, if you don't keep a sharp eye on them you're done for.
2004 H. Strachan Make a Skyf, Man! xix. 220 It's the Durban mice that are going to do for me.
1. transitive. To put out of, deprive of, rid of. Obsolete.to do of dawe, to do of adawe: see day n. Phrases 1c.to do of live: see life n. Phrases 12a(b).
ΘΚΠ
the mind > possession > loss > taking away > take away [verb (transitive)] > deprive (of)
benimc890
to do of ——eOE
bedealc1000
disturbc1230
bereavec1275
reave?a1300
acquitc1300
benemec1300
deprivec1330
privea1382
subvertc1384
oppressc1395
abridgea1400
to bate of, from1399
lessa1400
nakena1400
dischargea1425
privatec1425
to bring outa1450
abatec1450
sever?1507
spulyie?1507
denude1513
disable1529
distrain1530
destituec1540
destitutec1540
defalk1541
to turn out of ——1545
discomfit1548
wipe1549
nude1551
disannul?a1556
bereft1557
diminish1559
benoom1563
joint1573
uncase1583
rid1585
disarm1590
visitc1592
ease1600
dispatch1604
unfurnisha1616
rig1629
retrench1640
unbecomea1641
disentail1641
cashier1690
twin1722
mulct1748
fordo1764
to do out of ——1796
to cut out1815
bate1823
deprivate1832
devoid1878
eOE tr. Orosius Hist. (BL Add.) (1980) iv. xi. 108 Him bebead se consul þæt hie eal hiera heafod bescearen, to tacne þæt he hie of ðeowdome dyde.
lOE Anglo-Saxon Chron. (Laud) (Peterborough interpolation) anno 656 Þa wæs Winfrid Myrcene biscop don of his biscoprice, & Saxulf abbot was þær gecoren to biscop.
c1300 St. Lucy (Harl.) l. 95 in C. D'Evelyn & A. J. Mill S.-Eng. Legendary (1956) 568 Nemai no womman..of hire maidenhod beo ido.
a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Vesp.) l. 5944 Drightin sua þam did of all.
2. transitive. To carry out (an action) that affects a person or thing; = to do with —— 2a at Phrasal verbs 1. Obsolete.
ΚΠ
OE Anglo-Saxon Chron. (Tiber. B.iv) anno 1072 Þa menn ealle he toc, & dyde of heom þæt he wolde.
c1175 Ormulum (Burchfield transcript) l. 2904 Iosæp..mikell ummbeþohhte. Off whatt himm wære bettst to don. Off þatt himm wass bilummpenn.
c1325 (c1300) Chron. Robert of Gloucester (Calig.) 7106 Of þe croune of engelond he nuste wat best do.
a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Vesp.) 19040 Þai sald þam and þe pris laght, Be-for þe apostels fete it broght, Þar-of to do quat þaim god thoght.
c1410 (c1390) G. Chaucer Melibeus (Harl. 7334) (1885) §2223 To knowen what schulde be doon of [c1405 Hengwrt with, a1477 Hunterian to] hir persone.
1490 W. Caxton tr. Foure Sonnes of Aymon (1885) i. 26 We..shalle doo of hym that he troweth to doo of me.
1566 in E. Peacock Eng. Church Furnit. (1866) 32 What was done of them we knowe not.
ΘΚΠ
the world > movement > motion in a certain direction > going or coming out > letting or sending out > let or send out [verb (transitive)] > expel > specific people from a place, position, or possession
outshoveOE
to do out of ——OE
shovec1200
to put out of ——c1225
to cast out1297
void13..
usurpa1325
to put outa1350
outputa1382
outrayc1390
excludea1400
expulse?a1475
expel1490
to shut forth1513
to put forth1526
to turn out1546
depel?1548
disseisin1548
evict1548
exturb1603
debout1619
wincha1626
disseise1627
out-pusha1631
howster1642
oust1656
out1823
purge1825
the bum's rush1910
outplace1928
the world > space > place > removal or displacement > extraction > extract [verb (transitive)] > put out
outdoc1300
to do out of ——a1325
to put outa1350
outset?1533
output1588
to turn out1654
OE Restoration of Sandwich to Christ Church (Sawyer 1467) in A. J. Robertson Anglo-Saxon Charters (1956) 176 Hit næfre næs na his ræd na his dæd þæt man sceolde æfre Sandwic don ut of Cristes cyrcean.
c1225 (?c1200) St. Juliana (Royal) 212 He walde anan don hire ut of dahene.
a1325 (c1250) Gen. & Exod. (1968) l. 381 He ben don ut of paradis.
?a1425 Mandeville's Trav. (Egerton) (1889) 2 To do it oute of straunge men handes.
1496 (c1410) Dives & Pauper (de Worde) ii. sig. aiv/1 I do the out of doubte.
1660 Scutum Regale: Royal Buckler 39 They have undone themselves by doing thee out of thy Kingdom.
2. transitive. To deprive or dispossess of; (now) esp. to deprive of by sharp practice or fraud (cf. sense 20).
ΘΚΠ
the mind > possession > loss > taking away > take away [verb (transitive)] > deprive (of)
benimc890
to do of ——eOE
bedealc1000
disturbc1230
bereavec1275
reave?a1300
acquitc1300
benemec1300
deprivec1330
privea1382
subvertc1384
oppressc1395
abridgea1400
to bate of, from1399
lessa1400
nakena1400
dischargea1425
privatec1425
to bring outa1450
abatec1450
sever?1507
spulyie?1507
denude1513
disable1529
distrain1530
destituec1540
destitutec1540
defalk1541
to turn out of ——1545
discomfit1548
wipe1549
nude1551
disannul?a1556
bereft1557
diminish1559
benoom1563
joint1573
uncase1583
rid1585
disarm1590
visitc1592
ease1600
dispatch1604
unfurnisha1616
rig1629
retrench1640
unbecomea1641
disentail1641
cashier1690
twin1722
mulct1748
fordo1764
to do out of ——1796
to cut out1815
bate1823
deprivate1832
devoid1878
1796 Sporting Mag. Aug. 236/2 He ‘had done him out of two ducks’.
1825 T. Creevey in J. Gore Creevey Papers (1963) xii. 209 Mrs. Taylor and I having done Mylord and Mylady out of £3. apiece at Ecarté.
1831 B. Disraeli Young Duke III. iv. vi. 50 Who boasted of having done his brothers out of their..£5000.
1840 R. Barham in Bentley's Misc. Mar. 269 Rubuked 'em For unhandsomely doing him out of his Dukedom.
1929 H. Walpole Hans Frost ii. i. 118 Your aunt's so unselfish, she'd do herself out of anything.
1973 J. Stevens Medieval Romance iv. 82 Gamelyn is the youngest of three brothers, and has been done out of his share of the inheritance.
1993 B. Mukherjee Holder of World (1994) 21 Perhaps primogeniture did him out of land or inheritance.
For the transitive use, see sense 4a(c).
to do unto —— intransitive. To act or behave to; to treat. Also in prepositional passive, esp. in to do as one would be done to (cf. do as you would be done by at by prep. 26a).
ΘΚΠ
the world > action or operation > behaviour > follow (a course of behaviour) [verb (transitive)] > behave towards
ateec1000
leadc1175
makec1175
farec1230
beleadc1275
dightc1275
beseec1300
servec1300
treatc1374
usea1382
proceeda1393
demean1393
to deal witha1400
treatc1400
to do to ——a1425
entreat?a1425
handc1440
ferea1450
entertain1490
ray1509
to do unto ——?1523
tract1548
deal1573
to carry a strict (also severe, etc.) hand over (also upon, to)c1591
play1597
to comport with1675
to behave towards or to1754
usen1814
a1425 Rule St. Benet (Lansd.) (1902) 11 (MED) My lauerd munde do to my saul als þe barne þat is done fra his modir milke ouir-arlike.
c1450 How Good Wijf (Lamb. 853) in Babees Bk. (2002) i. 44 To do to þem as þou woldist be doon to.
1549 Bk. Common Prayer (STC 16267) Confirmacion f. xi* To do to al men as I would they should do to me.
1609 Bible (Douay) I. Susanna i. 61 They did to them as they had dealt naughtely against their neighbour.
a1718 W. Penn Great Case Liberty of Consc. v, in Wks. (1726) I. 453 That Great Synteresis, so much renowned by Philosophers and Civilians, learns Mankind, To do as they would be done to.
1825 Telescope (N.Y.) 26 Nov. 101/4 The number of those who in their dealings are strictly just, or do as they would be done to, is exceedingly small.
1965 Guardian 8 Dec. 10/5 Dr Pigache..may find himself hard done to.
2012 R. Goolrick Heading out to Wonderland xxiv. 223 He had nothing.., and was there to be caught and captured and done to as she wished.
intransitive. = to do to —— at Phrasal verbs 1. Now archaic.
ΘΚΠ
the world > action or operation > behaviour > follow (a course of behaviour) [verb (transitive)] > behave towards
ateec1000
leadc1175
makec1175
farec1230
beleadc1275
dightc1275
beseec1300
servec1300
treatc1374
usea1382
proceeda1393
demean1393
to deal witha1400
treatc1400
to do to ——a1425
entreat?a1425
handc1440
ferea1450
entertain1490
ray1509
to do unto ——?1523
tract1548
deal1573
to carry a strict (also severe, etc.) hand over (also upon, to)c1591
play1597
to comport with1675
to behave towards or to1754
usen1814
?1523 J. Fitzherbert Bk. Husbandry f. lviii If thou woldest haue any goodnes done vnto the..likewyse shulde thou do vnto thy neighbour, if it lye in thy power.
1733 J. Bland Ess. in Praise of Women v. 139 She so well knows both the Law and the Prophets, that she doth unto all Men as she would they should do unto her.
1748 G. White Serm. (MS.) We should..do as we have been done unto.
1956 A. G. Haley in Proc. 7th Internat. Astronaut. Congr. 437 The maxim of metalaw..is ‘Do unto others as they would have you do unto them.’
2006 Philos. Now Feb. 15/1 Tolstoy supposed that religions of all kind demand us to act by the model of the Golden Rule (i.e. ‘Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.’).
Cf. senses 10a(d), 10b(b), 10a(b).
to do without —— 1. intransitive.† b. In progressive tenses: to be engaged with, at work with, engaged in active hostilities with. Obsolete.
a. To deal with, have to do with; to make use of. Cf. Phrases 1b(a)(i). Now English regional (south-western) and rare.In quot. c1515: to have sexual intercourse with. Cf. sense 18, Phrases 1b(a)(ii).
ΘΚΠ
the world > relative properties > relationship > relate or connect [verb (intransitive)] > be or become concerned or involved
to have to do with (also mid, of, on)a1225
interlacec1380
to do with ——a1400
bedrive1481
concern1614
bear1658
connect1709
the world > action or operation > doing > activity or occupation > be occupied or busy (in or at something) [verb (intransitive)] > be involved in or have to do with something
entermetec1300
to make (a) market1340
meddlec1390
to do with ——a1400
mell1416
intermeddle1477
intermell1480
to have art or (and) part ina1500
participate1531
to have a finger (also hand) in the pie?1553
tigc1598
get1727
concern1791
involve1843
to mix up1882
tew1891
to screw with ——1973
a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Vesp.) l. 26833 Namli wit fals scrift doand.
a1470 T. Malory Morte Darthur (Winch. Coll. 13) (1990) I. 103 ‘I may nat do therewith,’ seyde the kynge.
c1515 Ld. Berners tr. Bk. Duke Huon of Burdeux (1882–7) xlvi. 155 She is myn owne, therfore I wyll do with her at my pleasure.
1607 T. Middleton Revengers Trag. i. sig. A2 And thou his Dutchesse that will doe with Diuill.
1848 S. S. Ellis Social Distinction vii. 125 Having grown, as the world said, a little old fashioned in his notions, and moreover crotchety, and difficult to do with.
1923 J. Read Cluster-O'-Vive 182 I wur over to Butcher Culliver's next morning, a-doing wi' a bull o' mine.
1959 W. Mayne Thumbstick iii. 20 ‘I'll get Jess... There might be a rat or two.’ ‘We can't do with her... Get that black cat.’
ΘΚΠ
society > armed hostility > [verb (intransitive)]
to do with ——1608
to hostile it1656
1554 J. Proctor Hist. Wyates Rebellion f. 15 Syr Thomas Cheynie lorde Warden.., had sent him suche salutacions as of honour oughte to be vsed to a traitour. And beinge verie desirous to be doing with him, and to proue on his bodie what in wordes of greetinge he had affirmed [etc.].
1576 A. Fleming tr. Seneca in Panoplie Epist. 308 One while I wil be dooing with this booke, another while with that.
1601 P. Holland tr. Pliny Hist. World I. 106 As if he would now and then be doing with the seas.
1608 P. Golding tr. J. Sleidane Epit. Frossard ii. 127 The truce..being expired, the French King had a meruailous desire to bee doing with the King of England.
1720 D. Defoe Mem. Cavalier 285 Our General would fain have been doing with him again.
2. transitive. With indefinite pronoun or (esp.) what (in an interrogative clause) as object.
a. To carry out (an action) that affects, influences, or makes use of a person or thing.to tell (someone) what to do with (something): see tell v. Phrases 18b.
ΚΠ
?a1425 (c1400) Mandeville's Trav. (Titus C.xvi) (1919) 200 So riche þat þei wyte not what to done with hire godes.
1526 W. Bonde Rosary sig. Bvv What wyll ye shalbe done with Jesu, that is Christ and sauyour of the worlde.
1558 P. Morwen tr. A. ben David ibn Daud Hist. Latter Tymes Iewes Commune Weale f. ccxxxix Iosephe therfore seinge that Titus coulde do nothinge wyth the sedicious, said vnto their princes.
a1616 W. Shakespeare Merry Wives of Windsor (1623) iv. iv. 46 What shall be done with him? What is your plot? View more context for this quotation
1663 E. Waterhouse Fortescutus Illustratus xxxvii. 463 The King [was] led wholly by..those Gratioso's, neither Earl, Baron, Bishop, or other could do any thing with the King but by their favour.
1719 D. Defoe Farther Adventures Robinson Crusoe 34 We knew not what to do with this poor Girl.
1763 H. Walpole Vertue's Anecd. Painting III. iv. 112 Ratcliffe replied peevishly, ‘Tell him he may do any thing with it but paint it.’
1789 Trans. Soc. Arts (ed. 2) 2 210 We can do nothing with the guns when there is any swell.
1843 Fraser's Mag. 28 729 What is to be done with Ireland now?
1895 Argosy Nov. 144/2 Keep on chafing that hand while I do the same with this one.
1908 Church Times 7 Feb. 173/1 He gathered into a leather pouch the remains of his cigarettes, and left the room. ‘What does he do with all those fags?’ asked Conway.
1974 M. Butterworth Man in Sopwith Camel i. i. 19 I've been trying to bully him into pulling up stumps and doing something with the rest of his life.
2006 G. Malkani Londonstani xiv. 162 What the fuck was he gonna do with em?
b. With reflexive prepositional object: to occupy oneself with (an activity). Frequently in not to know what to do with oneself: to be unsure as to how to occupy oneself; to be at a loss as to how to act or behave, esp. as a result of distress, embarrassment, etc.
ΚΠ
?1600 Earl of Essex Apologie sig. A2v Consider what choice I had, or what else could I haue done with myselfe.
1699 tr. G. Buchanan Hist. Scotl. in Ld. Ruthven Relation Death David Rizzi 3 He came to be in such extream want, that he knew not well what to do with himself.
1765 Gentleman's Mag. Jan. 12 He was for some time much at a loss to know what to do with himself.
1820 Edinb. Rev. 33 93 They are so happy that they know not what to do with themselves.
1858 S. Hancock Confession v. 76 He..burst into tears, and begged me not to judge him too hardly—I didn't know what to do with myself for passion.
1898 W. J. Locke Idols v. 64 What have you been doing with yourself all this time?
1958 J. Barth End of Road vi. 86 I had no self-convincing reason for continuing for a moment longer to do any of the things that I happened to be doing with myself.
1976 A. Purdy in G. Lynch & D. Rampton Canad. Ess. (1991) 205 Native kids have nothing to do with themselves.
1991 Rage 13 Feb. 38/2 I was just about to start chatting to them when their mother slapped them both across the head... I didn't know what to do with myself.
2010 H. Jacobson Finkler Question xi. 256 He was beginning to look like a man who didn't know what to do with himself next.
3. intransitive.
a. To make do with, put up with, manage with.
ΘΚΠ
the world > action or operation > advantage > usefulness > use (made of things) > recourse > have recourse [verb (intransitive)] > make do with what is available
doc1300
scamble1608
to make the best of a bad bargain1670
shift1680
fenda1682
to do with ——1715
manage1762
to make do1927
1715 S. Switzer Nobleman, Gentleman, & Gardener's Recreation vii. 160 For the other [sc. chestnut seedlings].., some will do with less Care.
1792 W. Borrow in M. F. G.-B. Giner & M. Montgomery Knaresborough Workhouse Daybk. (2003) 164 Robt Arey is an Jollo lad but will do with hard driving.
1816 J. Austen Emma II. ix. 176 A mind lively and at ease, can do with seeing nothing. View more context for this quotation
1842 Penny Cycl. XXII. 128/2 Persons in middle life can do with less sleep than children or very old persons.
2011 L. Gilkeson Backyard Bounty x. 222 Artichokes can do with less irrigation than other vegetables.
b. colloquial. one could do with: one could make use of or profit from; one would be glad to have; one needs.
ΚΠ
1783 R. Benson Let. 3 Nov. in T. W. Thompson Wordsworth's Hawkshead (1970) 335 I cd. also do with some Apples.
1859 ‘G. Eliot’ Adam Bede II. iii. xxv. 197 Well, I could do wi't, if so be ye want to get rid on't.
1891 Law Times 90 443/1 We..could well do with a little leaven of the Nisi Prius leader.
1936 J. B. Priestley They walk in City vi. 140 Ah'll pay up, ay, an' Ah'll give it to t'lad. He could do wi' it.
1955 M. Gilbert Sky High xiv. 205 You look as if you could do with a wash and brush up.
1999 BBC Music Mag. Apr. 88/1 While the recording is admirably clear, I could have done with rather more resonance.
c. British colloquial (originally Scottish). one cannot be doing with: one is unwilling to tolerate or be bothered with.
ΚΠ
1896 ‘L. Keith’ Indian Uncle 166 We canna be doing wi' sick folks, us that has a fine gentleman veesitor on our hands.
1908 S. R. Crockett Deep Moat Grange iv. 33 Jeremy cannot be doing with grown women about the hoose o' Breckonside.
1966 B. Brophy Don't never Forget 313 Snobberies and titles are to her absurd affectations which she can't, as she says, ‘be doing with’.
1984 A. N. Wilson Hilaire Belloc (1986) iv. 67 Belloc was a man to whom sex was visibly important, but who nevertheless could not be doing with it.
2004 D. Peace GB 84 370/1 They'd come up to you in street and call you a liar to your face—I couldn't be doing with it.
1. intransitive.
a. To manage without; to dispense with.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > possession > relinquishing > casting or laying aside > [verb (intransitive)] > not take or take up
to do without ——1645
pass1902
1645 J. Milton Tetrachordon 11 Som heroick magistrat, whose mind..dares lead him both to know and to do without their frivolous case-putting.
1713 J. Addison Cato ii. vi Come 'tis no matter, we shall do without him.
1849 J. Ruskin Seven Lamps Archit. vii. 189 But there are some things which..all the real talent and resolution in England, will never enable us to do without.
1861 J. S. Mill Utilitarianism ii. 22 Happiness is done without involuntarily by nineteen-twentieths of mankind.
1884 W. C. Smith Kildrostan i. ii. 238 I daresay..you did without a frock, Until those debts were paid.
1903 H. James Ambassadors i. iii. 26 He detained her as pleadingly as if he had already..learned to be unable to do without her.
1997 D. Hansen Sole Survivor xviii. 202 She could do without butter, or meat, and had enough essential foodstuffs to get by.
b. colloquial. one can do without: one would prefer not to have or deal with.
ΚΠ
1935 M. Anderson Winterset ii. 83 I interrupt a love scene, I believe. We can do without your adolescent mawkishness.
1968 P. Ustinov Halfway up Tree i. 28 Lesley and I can do without your sarcasm.
1980 A. E. Fisher Midnight Men vii. 78 He could do without unfavourable weather reports.
1997 SPIN July 55/1 Although I could do without his NAMBLA involvement, there is no doubt that Ginsberg was one of the greats.
2. intransitive. With prepositional object implied by the context: to manage without something.
ΚΠ
1779 F. Burney Diary Feb. in Diary & Lett. (1891) I. 135 Never mind, my dear,—ah, you'll do without,—you want no rules.
1899 R. Whiteing No. 5 John St. 75 His one principle of conduct is to do without.
1951 Panama Canal Rev. 3 Aug. 9/3 Zonians..need no longer do without—just because the commissaries are closed.
2004 Opera Now Mar. 31/1 Verrett does not absolutely reject the use of portamento..but mostly prefers to do without.
PV2. With adverbs. (Chiefly transitive in passive) to do about † to do abroad † 3. transitive and intransitive. In imperative = to do way at Phrasal verbs 2. Obsolete. to do down † 1. transitive. To put down; to take down; to lower; to subdue; to depose. Obsolete. to do in † 1. transitive. To put in. Obsolete. to do off † to do on † 1. transitive. To put out, expel, extirpate, remove. Obsolete.† 2. transitive. To put out (a light or fire), extinguish. Cf. dout v. Obsolete. to do over † to do to to do up † 1. transitive. To put up; to raise; to open. Cf. dup v. Also reflexive: to get up, arise. Obsolete (archaic in later use). to do way † to do withal
transitive. To surround, enclose. Now rare.
ΘΚΠ
the world > space > relative position > condition of being external > surrounding > surround or lie around [verb (transitive)]
befong971
beclipc1000
begoc1000
belieOE
bestandc1000
to go about ——OE
umbegangc1200
behema1250
befallc1275
berunc1275
girdc1290
bihalvena1300
umlapa1300
umlaya1300
umlouka1300
umbegoc1300
belayc1320
halsea1340
enclose1340
umbelapa1350
embracec1360
betrendc1374
circlec1374
umbecasta1375
to give about1382
environa1393
umbeclipa1395
compassa1400
encircle?a1400
enourle?a1400
umbegivea1400
umbeseta1400
umbeliec1400
umbetighc1400
enroundc1420
measurec1425
umbsteadc1450
adviron?1473
purprise1481
umbeviron1489
belta1500
girtha1500
overgirda1500
engirt15..
envirea1513
round?a1513
brace1513
umbereach1513
becompass1520
circuea1533
girtc1540
umbsetc1540
circule1553
encompass1555
circulate?a1560
ingyre1568
to do about1571
engird1573
circumdate1578
succinge1578
employ1579
circuate1581
girdle1582
wheel1582
circumgyre1583
enring1589
ringa1592
embail1593
enfold1596
invier1596
stem1596
circumcingle1599
ingert1599
engirdle1602
circulize1603
circumscribe1605
begirt1608
to go round1610
enwheela1616
surround1616
shingle1621
encirculize1624
circumviron1632
beround1643
orba1644
circumference1646
becircle1648
incircuitc1650
circumcinge1657
circumtend1684
besiege1686
cincture1789
zone1795
cravat1814
encincture1820
circumvent1824
begirdle1837
perambulate1863
cordon1891
1571 T. Fortescue tr. P. Mexia Foreste iii. xvii. f. 100v He caused the Shoppe, to bee doen about with Marble, curiously cutte.
1657 R. Ligon True Hist. Barbados 89 A little platforme..done about with a double rayle.
1768 W. Guthrie Gen. Hist. Scotl. IX. 309 Guns..of white iron tinned, and done about with leather.
1887 W. Morris tr. Homer Odyssey I. xi. 199 His children twain; Who first built up and settled Thebes.., And did it about with towers.
1988 B. Lott Stranger's House 99 A sleeveless white cotton nightgown, the lowneck and shoulders done about with lace.
Obsolete.
to do away transitive. To diffuse, promulgate, publish.
ΘΚΠ
society > communication > information > publishing or spreading abroad > publish or spread abroad [verb (transitive)]
sowc888
blowc1275
dispeple1297
to do abroadc1300
fame1303
publyc1350
defamea1382
publisha1382
open?1387
proclaima1393
slandera1400
spreada1400
abroachc1400
throwc1400
to give outa1425
promote?a1425
noisec1425
publicc1430
noisec1440
divulgea1464
to put outc1475
skail1487
to come out witha1500
bruit1525
bruita1529
to bear out1530
divulgate1530
promulgate1530
propale?1530
ventilate1530
provulgate1535
sparple1536
sparse1536
promulge1539
disperse1548
publicate1548
forthtell1549
hurly-burly?1550
propagate1554
to set abroada1555
utter1561
to set forth1567
blaze1570
evulgate1570
scatter1576
rear?1577
to carry about1585
pervulgate1586
celebrate?1596
propalate1598
vent1602
evulge1611
to give forth1611
impublic1628
ventilate1637
disseminate1643
expose1644
emit1650
to put about1664
to send abroad1681
to get abroad1688
to take out1697
advertise1710
forward1713
to set abouta1715
circulate1780
broadcast1829
vent1832
vulgate1851
debit1879
float1883
c1300 St. Thomas Becket (Laud) 1764 in C. Horstmann Early S.-Eng. Legendary (1887) 157 Þe lettres..to Engelond he sende, to don þe sentence al a-brod bi-fore him ase he wende.
1. transitive. To put away, dismiss; to take away, remove, subtract. Now rare.
ΘΚΠ
the world > space > place > removal or displacement > remove or displace [verb (transitive)] > remove or take away
ateec885
withbreidec890
animOE
overbearOE
to do awayOE
flitc1175
reavec1175
takec1175
to have away?a1300
to draw awayc1300
weve13..
to wend awaya1325
withdrawa1325
remuec1325
to carry away1363
to take away1372
waive1377
to long awaya1382
oftakec1390
to draw offa1398
to do froa1400
forflitc1420
amove?a1425
to carry out?a1425
surtrayc1440
surtretec1440
twistc1440
abstract1449
ostea1450
remove1459
ablatea1475
araisea1475
redd1479
dismove1480
diminish?1504
convey1530
alienate1534
retire1536
dimove1540
reversec1540
subtractc1540
submove1542
sublate1548
pare1549
to pull in1549
exempt1553
to shift off1567
retract?1570
renversec1586
aufer1587
to lay offa1593
rear1596
retrench1596
unhearse1596
exemea1600
remote1600
to set off1600
subduct1614
rob1627
extraneize1653
to bring off1656
to pull back1656
draft1742
extract1804
reef1901
the world > space > place > removal or displacement > remove or displace [verb (transitive)] > do away with or eradicate
to do awayOE
to do outOE
to put awaya1382
outroot?a1425
to set awayc1430
to set apart1455
roota1500
weed1526
ridc1540
root1565
displace1580
root1582
put1584
eradicate1647
eliminate1650
eruncate1651
to knock out1883
the world > relative properties > number > arithmetic or algebraic operations > perform arithmetic or algebraic operations [verb (transitive)] > subtract
to do awayOE
drawc1392
to take out of ——a1398
to take offa1400
withdrawc1400
subtray?c1425
ydraw?c1425
surtretec1440
to take away?1537
rebate1543
subtract1543
subduct?1556
substra?1558
pull?a1560
subduce?a1560
substract1559
to pull back?1574
difference1658
take1798
minus1963
OE West Saxon Gospels: John (Corpus Cambr.) xi. 39 And se Hælend cwæð, doð aweg þone stan.
OE Byrhtferð Enchiridion (Ashm.) (1995) i. ii. 44 Nouember hæfð seofon. Do þrittig þærto; þonne beoð þær seofon and þrittig. Do þa þrittig aweg and nim þa seofon.
c1275 (?a1200) Laȝamon Brut (Calig.) (1963) l. 1692 Do we awai þane twenti a tene beoð inohȝe.
a1325 (c1250) Gen. & Exod. (1968) l. 1724 Sep or got, haswed, arled, or grei, Ben don fro iacob fer a-wei.
a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Vesp.) l. 3028 Yon bastard Do him a-wai.
?a1425 (c1400) Mandeville's Trav. (Titus C.xvi) (1919) 154 He byddeth hem to don here hond awey.
1486 Bk. St. Albans sig. cijv Cast it out and doo a way the bonis.
a1542 T. Wyatt Coll. Poems (1969) xcii. 3 Arrise for shame! do away your sluggardie!
1596 E. Spenser Second Pt. Faerie Queene vi. xi. sig. Ii3v Doe feare away, and tell. View more context for this quotation
1819 W. Scott Ivanhoe III. ii. 39 A smith and a file..to do away the collar from the neck of a freeman!
1990 Boating May 28/2 This new model has done away the teak trim, the square-framed windshield, and safety chains.
2.
a. transitive. To put an end to, abolish, destroy, undo. Cf. to do away with. Now literary.
ΘΚΠ
the world > existence and causation > creation > destruction > destroy [verb (transitive)] > bring to ruin or put an end to
undoc950
shendOE
forfarea1000
endc1000
to do awayOE
aquenchc1175
slayc1175
slayc1175
stathea1200
tinea1300
to-spilla1300
batec1300
bleschea1325
honisha1325
leesea1325
wastec1325
stanch1338
corrumpa1340
destroy1340
to put awayc1350
dissolvec1374
supplanta1382
to-shend1382
aneantizec1384
avoidc1384
to put outa1398
beshenda1400
swelta1400
amortizec1405
distract1413
consumec1425
shelfc1425
abroge1427
downthringc1430
kill1435
poisonc1450
defeat1474
perish1509
to blow away1523
abrogatea1529
to prick (also turn, pitch) over the perka1529
dash?1529
to bring (also send) to (the) pot1531
put in the pot1531
wipea1538
extermine1539
fatec1540
peppera1550
disappoint1563
to put (also set) beside the saddle1563
to cut the throat of1565
to throw (also turn, etc.) over the perch1568
to make a hand of (also on, with)1569
demolish1570
to break the neck of1576
to make shipwreck of1577
spoil1578
to knock on (in) the head (also rarely at head)1579
cipher1589
ruinate1590
to cut off by the shins1592
shipwreck1599
exterminate1605
finish1611
damnify1612
ravel1614
braina1616
stagger1629
unrivet1630
consummate1634
pulverizea1640
baffle1649
devil1652
to blow up1660
feague1668
shatter1683
cook1708
to die away1748
to prove fatal (to)1759
to knock up1764
to knock (or kick) the hindsight out or off1834
to put the kibosh on1834
to cook (rarely do) one's goose1835
kibosh1841
to chaw up1843
cooper1851
to jack up1870
scuttle1888
to bugger up1891
jigger1895
torpedo1895
on the fritz1900
to put paid to1901
rot1908
down and out1916
scuppera1918
to put the skids under1918
stonker1919
liquidate1924
to screw up1933
cruel1934
to dig the grave of1934
pox1935
blow1936
to hit for six1937
to piss up1937
to dust off1938
zap1976
OE tr. Medicina de Quadrupedibus (Vitell.) x. 264 Wearras & weartan onweg to donne, nim wulle & wæt mid biccean hlonde.
?a1200 (?OE) Peri Didaxeon (1896) 47 Ȝif þu wylt þe werinyssa aweȝ don of þan mann, þann þat yfel hyne ȝeþreadne hæfð..: Nim hwyt cudu and gyngyfere.
c1225 (?c1200) Hali Meiðhad (Bodl.) (1940) 136 Do þu hit eanes awei, ne schalt tu neauer nan oðer swuch acourin.
a1387 J. Trevisa tr. R. Higden Polychron. (St. John's Cambr.) (1869) II. 33 Kynadius, kyng of Scotland..dede away þe Pictes.
Promptorium Parvulorum (Harl. 221) 126 Doon a-wey,..deleo.
a1500 (c1340) R. Rolle Psalter (Univ. Oxf. 64) (1884) Prol. 3 It dosaway & distroys noy and angire of saule.
1530 Myroure Oure Ladye (Fawkes) (1873) iii. 294 Thou that doest away the synnes of the worlde.
1552 R. Huloet Abcedarium Anglico Latinum Do awaye or vndo, abrogo.
1631 W. Gouge Gods Three Arrowes ii. §25. 168 Sundry and ancient demaines of husbandmen were in a manner quite done away.
1768 C. Beatty Jrnl. Two Months' Tour 47 All anger and strangeness of mind, might be for ever done away.
1794 R. Southey Wat Tyler ii. iii Your grievances shall all be done away.
1804 Med. & Physical Jrnl. 12 47 To do away every jealousy.
1855 W. H. Prescott Hist. Reign Philip II of Spain I. ii. vii. 214 Necessary to do away this impression.
1919 J. N. Figgis Hopes for Eng. Relig. 179 Invocation of saints was done away.
2010 A. Dean Woman of Consequence (2012) xli. 343 A revolution in his ideas, which was slowly doing away the resentment of fifteen years' standing.
b. intransitive. to do away with.
(a) To put an end to, abolish, get rid of. Also: to remove, take away.
ΘΚΠ
the world > existence and causation > creation > destruction > destroy [verb (intransitive)] > be destroyed, ruined, or come to an end
losec888
fallOE
forlesea1225
perishc1275
spilla1300
to go to wreche13..
to go to the gatec1330
to go to lostc1374
miscarryc1387
quenchc1390
to bring unto, to fall into, to go, put, or work to wrakea1400
mischieve?a1400
tinea1400
to go to the devilc1405
bursta1450
untwindc1460
to make shipwreck1526
to go to (the) pot1531
to go to wreck (and ruin)a1547
wrake1570
wracka1586
to hop (also tip, pitch over, drop off, etc.) the perch1587
to lie in the dusta1591
mischief1598
to go (etc.) to rack (and ruin)1599
shipwreck1607
suffera1616
unravel1643
to fall off1684
tip (over) the perch1699
to do away with1769
to go to the dickens1833
collapse1838
to come (also go) a mucker1851
mucker1862
to go up1864
to go to squash1889
to go (to) stramash1910
to go for a burton1941
to meet one's Makera1978
1769 D'Alenzon tr. ‘Hoamchi-Vam’ Bonze II. xxvii. 287 This dreadful lapse will answer one superb end in the universe; and that is, it will do away with the very essence of recidivation.
1789 S. Romilly in Bentham's Wks. X. 225 Doing away with..the amenability to law.
1793 J. Scott Baptism Christ i. 20 The reprobate silver..is separated and done away with from the gold.
1832 Fraser's Mag. 5 149 This does away with much of the disgustfulness.
1891 Law Times 91 204/2 The Act of Parliament which does away with the distinctions.
1900 Harper's Weekly 24 Mar. 278/2 The post of Finnish minister to the court of St. Petersburg had been done away with.
1948 Times 3 Apr. 4/6 New inventions could not yet do away with the need for man-power in war.
2007 Wired Aug. 126/3 One philosophy says to do away with passwords and use passphrases instead.
(b) To kill, murder. Cf. to make away with 1 at make v.1 Phrasal verbs 1.
ΘΚΠ
the world > life > death > killing > kill [verb (transitive)]
swevec725
quelmeOE
slayc893
quelleOE
of-falleOE
ofslayeOE
aquellc950
ayeteeOE
spillc950
beliveOE
to bring (also do) of (one's) life-dayOE
fordoa1000
forfarea1000
asweveOE
drepeOE
forleseOE
martyrOE
to do (also i-do, draw) of lifeOE
bringc1175
off-quellc1175
quenchc1175
forswelta1225
adeadc1225
to bring of daysc1225
to do to deathc1225
to draw (a person) to deathc1225
murder?c1225
aslayc1275
forferec1275
to lay to ground, to earth (Sc. at eird)c1275
martyrc1300
strangle1303
destroya1325
misdoa1325
killc1330
tailc1330
to take the life of (also fro)c1330
enda1340
to kill to (into, unto) death1362
brittena1375
deadc1374
to ding to deathc1380
mortifya1382
perisha1387
to dight to death1393
colea1400
fella1400
kill out (away, down, up)a1400
to slay up or downa1400
swelta1400
voida1400
deliverc1400
starvec1425
jugylc1440
morta1450
to bring to, on, or upon (one's) bierc1480
to put offc1485
to-slaya1500
to make away with1502
to put (a person or thing) to silencec1503
rida1513
to put downa1525
to hang out of the way1528
dispatch?1529
strikea1535
occidea1538
to firk to death, (out) of lifec1540
to fling to deathc1540
extinct1548
to make out of the way1551
to fet offa1556
to cut offc1565
to make away?1566
occise1575
spoil1578
senda1586
to put away1588
exanimate1593
unmortalize1593
speed1594
unlive1594
execute1597
dislive1598
extinguish1598
to lay along1599
to make hence1605
conclude1606
kill off1607
disanimate1609
feeze1609
to smite, stab in, under the fifth rib1611
to kill dead1615
transporta1616
spatch1616
to take off1619
mactate1623
to make meat of1632
to turn up1642
inanimate1647
pop1649
enecate1657
cadaverate1658
expedite1678
to make dog's meat of1679
to make mincemeat of1709
sluice1749
finisha1753
royna1770
still1778
do1780
deaden1807
deathifyc1810
to lay out1829
cool1833
to use up1833
puckeroo1840
to rub out1840
cadaverize1841
to put under the sod1847
suicide1852
outkill1860
to fix1875
to put under1879
corpse1884
stiffen1888
tip1891
to do away with1899
to take out1900
stretch1902
red-light1906
huff1919
to knock rotten1919
skittle1919
liquidate1924
clip1927
to set over1931
creasea1935
ice1941
lose1942
to put to sleep1942
zap1942
hit1955
to take down1967
wax1968
trash1973
ace1975
1899 E. Œ. Somerville & ‘M. Ross’ Some Experiences Irish R.M. iv. 81 If it was any of those mountainy men did away with him you might scrape Ireland with a small-tooth comb and you'll not get him.
1927 E. Lewis Trader Horn (1930) i. xiii. 147 Many useless slaves were drowned or done away with after their usefulness as rubber cutters was over.
1976 Cumberland & Westmorland Herald 4 Dec. 3/6 He started to talk about doing away with himself.
1990 CU Amiga Apr. 4/3 This..game pits you against..drug traffickers whom you do away with in graphically gory ways.
ΚΠ
c1300 Evangelie (Dulwich Coll.) l. 406 in Publ. Mod. Lang. Assoc. Amer. (1915) 30 572 Zacarie þei wolde him cal[l]e..þe modir..seide nay..doz alle away. Jon he schal bi-hote.
a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Vesp.) l. 4149 For godds luue, dos a-wai [a1400 Gött do way; a1400 Trin. Cambr. dowey].
ΘΚΠ
the world > movement > motion in a certain direction > downward motion > causing to come or go down > cause to come or go down [verb (transitive)] > take down
to do downc1175
to take downa1400
reach1483
OE tr. Medicina de Quadrupedibus (Vitell.) ii. 238 Eft do hyne [sc. æppel] adune [?a1200 Harl. 6258B ætdun] & onlut.]
c1175 Ormulum (Burchfield transcript) l. 11357 Ȝiff þatt tu godess sune arrt..Cumm skaþelæs till eorþe. Do þe nu þurrh þe sellfenn dun.
a1382 Bible (Wycliffite, E.V.) (Bodl. 959) (1959) Gen. xxxviii. 19 Þe habyte done doun þat sche toke.
c1384 Bible (Wycliffite, E.V.) (Douce 369(2)) (1850) Mark xv. 36 Se we, if Hely come for to do hym down.
a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Fairf. 14) l. 19167 Euer wiþ conquest ȝe do vs doun.
?a1400 (a1338) R. Mannyng Chron. (Petyt) ii. 90 To wend with Sir Dunkan, & do Dufnald doune.
?a1425 Constit. Masonry (Royal 17 A.i) l. 603 in J. O. Halliwell Early Hist. Freemasonry in Eng. (1844) 34 Furst thou most do down thy hode.
1587 G. Turberville Tragicall Tales f. 111 And do their wrathful weapons down.
2. transitive. colloquial. To overcome, get the better of, bring to grief; to cheat, swindle; to disparage, belittle.
ΘΚΠ
the world > action or operation > prosperity > success > mastery or superiority > have or gain mastery or superiority over [verb (transitive)]
overcomeeOE
forecomec1000
overwieldlOE
masterc1225
overmaistrie1340
overmatcha1375
overpassa1382
surmount1390
to have the fairer (of)c1400
maistriec1400
overmasterc1425
winc1440
overc1485
bestride1526
rixlec1540
overreach1555
control1567
overmate1567
govern1593
to give (a person) the lurch1598
get1600
to gain cope of1614
top1633
to fetch overa1640
down1641
to have the whip hand (of)1680
carberry1692
to cut down1713
to be more than a match for1762
outflank1773
outmaster1799
outgeneral1831
weather1834
best1839
fore-reach1845
to beat a person at his (also her, etc.) own game1849
scoop1850
euchrec1866
bemaster1871
negotiate1888
to do down1900
to get (someone) wetc1926
lick1946
1900 Cassell's Mag. 20 510/1 If he gets a chance of doing us down, do us down he will.
1911 H. Walpole Mr. Perrin & Mr. Traill viii. 154 He saw nothing but a spiteful and malignant world trying, as he phrased it, to ‘do him down’.
1922 D. H. Lawrence England my England 257 Poor Fanny! She was such a lady, and so straight and magnificent. And yet everything seemed to do her down.
1923 Daily Mail 12 Mar. 6 Sir Arthur Griffith-Boscawen..said they had been done down by what had been rightly called an act of treachery.
1936 L. A. G. Strong Last Enemy 13 To get your rights from Fosdyke was to cheat him, since he had never meant you to have them... It was a real injury to stop him from doing you down.
1958 Economist 29 Nov. 784/1 School for them is the great game of doing down, or being done down by, the teacher.
1980 Daily Tel. 29 May 14/3 Yet no biographer quite succeeded in doing down the unsullied image of the snow-white Quakeress.
1992 J. Cartwright Rise & Fall of Little Voice ii. 48 Don't do yoursen down Ray. You're Elvis in my eyes.
2000 M. Barrowcliffe Girlfriend 44 i. 24 I would carry grudges, plot revenge.., if I could just notice or recall when people had done me down.
ΘΚΠ
the world > space > place > placing or fact of being placed in (a) position > insertion or putting in > insert or put in [verb (transitive)]
to do ineOE
to put ina1300
insetc1374
to throw ina1382
inducec1420
intriec1420
to set ina1425
tryc1440
enter1489
insert1529
turn1544
insere1557
infer1572
input1593
intromitc1600
introduce1695
to run in1756
eOE tr. Bede Eccl. Hist. (Tanner) ii. iii. 106 Sona þæs þe heo gehalgad wæs, þa dyde mon his lichoman in [L. intro inlatum].
c1390 (?c1350) Joseph of Arimathie (1871) l. 40 Make a luytel whucche, Forte do in þat ilke blod.
a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Vesp.) l. 11411 Ilk yere. Quen þair corns war in-don [Gött. in done].
?c1450 in G. Müller Aus Mittelengl. Medizintexten (1929) 45 And loke þat þou do in þi pessarie whanne þat þe menstruis ben at þe hiest.
2. transitive. slang (chiefly Australian and New Zealand). To spend completely (cf. sense 25).
ΚΠ
1889 Referee 19 May 2/1 A young fellow..rushes to ‘do in’ every spare fiver or tenner that comes into his possession.
1909 T. H. Thompson Ballads about Business 27 I'd..never make for home again until I'd ‘done it in’.
1930 V. Palmer in Bulletin (Sydney) 19 Feb. 51/1 Now he's done his money in.
2005 L. Brown & R. Jeffrey Glasgow Crimefighter xiv. 157 He had the cheek to tell me he had done his cash in and ask for a lift home in a squad car.
3. transitive. slang.
a. To damage greatly, do injury to, ruin, wear out.to do a person's head in: see head n.1 Phrases 2b.
ΘΚΠ
the world > existence and causation > creation > destruction > damage > damage or injure [verb (transitive)]
mareOE
shendOE
hinderc1000
amarOE
awemc1275
noyc1300
touchc1300
bleche1340
blemisha1375
spill1377
misdoa1387
grieve1390
damagea1400
despoil?a1400
matea1400
snapea1400
mankc1400
overthrowa1425
tamec1430
undermine1430
blunder1440
depaira1460
adommage?1473
endamage1477
prejudicec1487
fulyie1488
martyra1500
dyscrase?1504
corrupt1526
mangle1534
danger1538
destroy1542
spoil1563
ruinate1564
ruin1567
wrake1570
injury1579
bane1587
massacre1589
ravish1594
wrong1595
rifle1604
tainta1616
mutilea1618
to do violence toa1625
flaw1665
stun1676
quail1682
maul1694
moil1698
damnify1712
margullie1721
maul1782
buga1790
mux1806
queer1818
batter1840
puckeroo1840
rim-rack1841
pretty1868
garbage1899
savage1899
to do in1905
strafe1915
mash1924
blow1943
nuke1967
mung1969
the world > action or operation > adversity > calamity or misfortune > have befallen as a misfortune to [verb (transitive)] > bring disaster upon
doa1375
pluckc1475
ruin1558
tragedize1593
disaster1596
planet-strike1600
to bring to grief1850
to do in1905
to wreak havoc1926
1905 Daily Chron. 22 May 6/3 I heard people tell her to do me an injury, throw glasses at me, and ‘do me in’.
1918 W. J. Locke Rough Road vi If you engage a second-rate man..who isn't used to this make of car, he'll do it in for you pretty quick.
1919 J. B. Morton Barber of Putney xiv. 235 ‘Yes,’ said Graves. ‘That's what did my nerves in. Still sleep bad.’
1928 J. Galsworthy Swan Song i. ix. 66 That house had ‘done in’ her father.
1979 O. Clark Diary 8 July (1998) 86 I, of course, had to have a go on the roller disco and did my leg in.
2004 Adirondack Life Feb. 10/1 I had abandoned our car... The minus-fifteen-degree temperature had done in the timing belt.
b. To cheat, defraud. Now rare.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > mental capacity > knowledge > conformity with what is known, truth > deceit, deception, trickery > cheating, fraud > treat fraudulently, cheat [verb (transitive)]
deceivec1330
defraud1362
falsec1374
abuse?a1439
fraud1563
visure1570
cozen1583
coney-catch1592
to fetch in1592
cheat1597
sell1607
mountebanka1616
dabc1616
nigglea1625
to put it on1625
shuffle1627
cuckold1644
to put a cheat on1649
tonya1652
fourbe1654
imposturea1659
impose1662
slur1664
knap1665
to pass upon (also on)1673
snub1694
ferret1699
nab1706
shool1745
humbug1750
gag1777
gudgeon1787
kid1811
bronze1817
honeyfuggle1829
Yankee1837
middle1863
fuck1866
fake1867
skunk1867
dead-beat1888
gold-brick1893
slicker1897
screw1900
to play it1901
to do in1906
game1907
gaff1934
scalp1939
sucker1939
sheg1943
swizz1961
butt-fuck1979
the mind > possession > taking > stealing or theft > defrauding or swindling > perpetrate (a swindle) [verb (transitive)] > defraud or swindle
defraud1362
deceivec1380
plucka1500
lurch1530
defeata1538
souse1545
lick1548
wipe1549
fraud1563
use1564
cozen1573
nick1576
verse1591
rooka1595
trim1600
skelder1602
firk1604
dry-shave1620
fiddle1630
nose1637
foista1640
doa1642
sharka1650
chouse1654
burn1655
bilk1672
under-enter1692
sharp1699
stick1699
finger1709
roguea1714
fling1749
swindle1773
jink1777
queer1778
to do over1781
jump1789
mace1790
chisel1808
slang1812
bucket1819
to clean out1819
give it1819
to put in the hole1819
ramp1819
sting1819
victimize1839
financier1840
gum1840
snakea1861
to take down1865
verneuk1871
bunco1875
rush1875
gyp1879
salt1882
daddle1883
work1884
to have (one) on toast1886
slip1890
to do (a person) in the eye1891
sugar1892
flay1893
to give (someone) the rinky-dink1895
con1896
pad1897
screw1900
short-change1903
to do in1906
window dress1913
ream1914
twist1914
clean1915
rim1918
tweedle1925
hype1926
clip1927
take1927
gazump1928
yentz1930
promote1931
to take (someone) to the cleaners1932
to carve up1933
chizz1948
stiff1950
scam1963
to rip off1969
to stitch up1970
skunk1971
to steal (someone) blind1974
diddle-
1906 Daily Chron. 11 Dec. 4/4 It seems funny that the first blooming order I got in Enfield I should be done in.
1924 Truth (Sydney) 27 Apr. 6 Do in, to defraud.
1928 A. Huxley Let. 2 July (1969) 298 The table..was a real horror. Not antique... I suppose one must be on the spot personally: otherwise one gets done in.
1975 Publishers Weekly 8 Sept. 52/3 A gambling man who is twice done in by some Tyne Dock ne'er-do-wells.
c. To kill; to murder.
ΘΚΠ
the world > life > death > killing > man-killing or homicide > murder or assassination > murder or assassinate [verb (transitive)]
amurderOE
murderc1175
homicidec1470
murdresc1480
murtrish1490
manquell1548
slaughter1582
massacre1591
assassinate1600
remove1609
assassin1620
to do the business for a person1759
Septembrize1794
croak1823
square1888
shift1898
to take out1900
to bump off1907
bump1914
to do in1914
to put out1917
to knock off1919
terminate1920
to give (a person) the works1929
scrag1930
snuff1932
wash1941
waste1964
wipe1968
to terminate with extreme prejudice1969
neutralize1970
snuff1973
stiff1974
1914 G. B. Shaw Pygmalion 111 in Nash's Mag. Dec. 308 My aunt died of influenza: so they said... But it's my belief they done the old woman in.
1917 I. A. R. Wylie Duchess in Pursuit 60 ‘Dear Sir John,’ (the Duchess had scrawled)—‘I am not murdered—“done in” I think is the local expression.’
1928 E. Cadbury in C. F. S. Gamble Story North Sea Air Station xii. 194 As an awful sea got up about noon we knew he must be done in unless he was picked up.
1963 Listener 4 Apr. 585/2 These were professional killers who ‘did in’ John Regan.
1980 K. Boyle Fifty Stories 207 Did you ever think about doing yourself in?
2007 V. Jewiss tr. R. Saviano Gomorrah i. 125 On March 3, Davide Chiarolanza is killed in Melito... He was done in as he tried to flee to his car.
1. transitive. To put off, take off, remove (something that is on). Cf. doff v. Now archaic.
ΘΚΠ
the world > textiles and clothing > clothing > providing with clothing > undressing or removing clothing > undress or remove clothing [verb (transitive)] > take off clothing
to do offeOE
to lay downc1275
to weve offc1290
stripc1320
doffa1375
loose1382
ofdrawa1393
casta1400
to take offa1400
warpa1400
to cast offc1400
to catch offc1400
waivec1400
voidc1407
to put off?a1425
to wap offc1440
to lay from, offc1480
despoil1483
to pull offc1500
slip1535
devest1566
to shift off1567
daff1609
discuss1640
to lay off1699
strip1762
douse1780
shuffle1837
derobe1841
shed1858
skin1861
peel1888
pull1888
eOE Bald's Leechbk. (Royal) (1865) i. xxxvi. 86 Do þonne of þa rinda.
OE Old Eng. Hexateuch: Gen. (Claud.) xxxviii. 14 Ða dyde heo of hyre wydewan reaf..& scrydde hi mid oðrum reafe.
c1275 (?a1200) Laȝamon Brut (Calig.) (1978) l. 8364 Alle heo..duden of claðes.
a1325 (c1250) Gen. & Exod. (1968) l. 2781 Moyses, moyses, do of ðin s[h]on.
a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Trin. Cambr.) l. 20211 Of dud she hir cloþes.
c1450 tr. G. Deguileville Pilgrimage Lyfe Manhode (Cambr.) (1869) 71 Dauid dide of the armure.
c1515 Ld. Berners tr. Bk. Duke Huon of Burdeux (1882–7) x. 27 Huon..dyd of his brothers gowne.
c1557 Enterlude of Youth (new ed.) sig. Bii Euery pore felowe..Will do of his cap and make you curteisie.
1606 P. Holland tr. Suetonius Hist. Twelve Caesars 156 As wee use to veile bonet or do of our hats.
1870 W. Morris Earthly Paradise I. i. 313 He did off all his rich array.
2007 L. McM. Bujold Sharing Knife: Legacy 272 She wriggled up to do off her boots and belt.
2. transitive. U.S. To finish off with decoration or ornament; to array, deck out. Now rare.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > attention and judgement > beautification > beautify [verb (transitive)] > ornament > trim or deck out
perfurnish1375
enflourish?a1400
varnish14..
perform1420
to pick outc1429
polish?1440
trimc1516
to set out1523
trick?1532
face1542
trick1545
prank1546
tricka1555
bawdefy1562
tickle1567
prink1573
finify1586
deck1587
decore1603
betrima1616
fangle1615
beprank1648
prim1688
to garnish outa1704
decorate1782
to do off1794
dizen1807
tricolatea1825
fal-lal1845
1794 tr. P. N. Chantreau Philos., Polit., & Lit. Trav. Russia II. xiv. 213 Such [houses] as are of wood are done off in the outside with so much art, that they exceed the stone houses in beauty.
1839 C. M. Kirkland New Home xxxiv. 227 I..reconnoitred the company who were ‘done off’ (indigenous,) ‘in first-rate style’, for this important occasion.
1909 Pop. Electr. Nov. 462/1 Perhaps the finest room of all is the French Room, done off in beautiful brown wood.
3. transitive. To sketch or dash off in a piece of writing. rare.
ΘΚΠ
society > leisure > the arts > literature > art or occupation of writer or author > be the author of or write (a work) [verb (transitive)] > present by literary treatment > by specific kind of literary treatment
hitch1749
to do off1819
kill1867
tea-table1938
1819 Edinb. Mag. & Literary Misc. Jan. 14/2 This is beautiful, and quite done off in the style of a court pastoral.
1879 J. C. Shairp Robert Burns viii. 195 In this..poem you have the whole toiling life of a ploughman and his horse, done off in two or three touches.
1921 J. F. A. Pyre Formation Tennyson's Style iii. 47 Milton, Shakspere, and Dante are done off in one stanza.
4. transitive. U.S. To set (a room) aside for a particular purpose; spec. to partition off. Now rare.
ΚΠ
1861 Beauty of Holiness Feb. 52 He..had a room done off for a ‘praying room’.
1874 2nd Rep. Vermont State Board Agric. 1873–4 514 I have also one small room done off for storing butter in the fall.
1919 W. H. Bishop Anti-Babel 134 Her laboratory was a bright room neatly done off from the cottage veranda.
Obsolete (archaic in later use).
to do out transitive. To put on. Cf. don v.
ΘΚΠ
the world > textiles and clothing > clothing > providing with clothing > provide with clothing [verb (transitive)] > put on
to do oneOE
graitha1375
puta1382
to take on1389
to let falla1400
takea1400
to put on?a1425
endow1484
addressa1522
to get on1549
to draw on1565
don1567
to pull on1578
dight1590
sumpterc1595
to get into ——1600
on with1600
array1611
mount1785
to cast on1801
endoss1805
endue1814
ship1829
eOE Bald's Leechbk. (Royal) (1865) i. ii. 32 Wiþ flie haran geallan do wearmne on.
OE Fortunes of Men 87 Sum sceal wildne fugel wloncne atemian,..deþ he wyrplas on.
c1275 (?a1200) Laȝamon Brut (Calig.) (1963) l. 852 Brutus hehte his beornes don on heora burnan.
c1330 Sir Orfeo (Auch.) (1966) l. 343 His sclauain he dede on also spac.
a1393 J. Gower Confessio Amantis (Fairf.) ii. l. 2283 Hercules this scherte on dede.
a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Vesp.) l. 20214 A neu smock scho did hiron [Trin. Cambr. on she dude].
c1450 Urbanitatis (Calig. A.ii) in Babees Bk. (2002) i. 13 Holde of þy cappe..Tylle þou be byden hit on to do.
1535 Bible (Coverdale) Song of Sol. v. 3 I haue put off my cote, how can I do it on agayne?
1582 Bible (Rheims) Rom. xiii. 14 Doe ye on [L. induite] our Lord Jesus Christ.
1606 P. Holland tr. Suetonius Hist. Twelve Caesars 185 He did the diademe on.
1828 W. Scott Fair Maid of Perth vi, in Chron. Canongate 2nd Ser. III. 131 ‘I did on my harness,’ said Simon.
ΘΚΠ
the world > space > place > removal or displacement > remove or displace [verb (transitive)] > do away with or eradicate
to do awayOE
to do outOE
to put awaya1382
outroot?a1425
to set awayc1430
to set apart1455
roota1500
weed1526
ridc1540
root1565
displace1580
root1582
put1584
eradicate1647
eliminate1650
eruncate1651
to knock out1883
the world > space > place > removal or displacement > extraction > extract [verb (transitive)] > thrust out
to pilt out?c1250
to do outa1500
OE Laws of Cnut (Nero) ii. xxx. §5. 332 Gif he þonne gyt mare wurc [sc. crime] geworht hæbbe, þonne do man ut his eagan.
a1225 (c1200) Vices & Virtues (1888) 51 Mid rihte godes dome he was ut ȝedon.
a1325 (c1250) Gen. & Exod. (1968) l. 3012 Ðis fleges fligt vt is don.
a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Vesp.) 988 Adam..was wroght at vndern tide, At middai eue draun of his side..þai war bath don out at none.
a1500 (?a1450) Gesta Romanorum (Harl. 7333) (1879) 35 His yen were don out.
1573 G. Gascoigne & F. Kinwelmersh Iocasta iii. i. in G. Gascoigne Hundreth Sundrie Flowres 119 Thine angrie Queene, For deepe disdayne did both mine eyes do out.
ΘΚΠ
the world > matter > light > darkness or absence of light > make dark [verb (transitive)] > quench (light)
aquenchc1000
quenchOE
to do outa1425
extinct1483
to put outa1500
out-quencha1522
dout1526
pop1530
extinguish1551
to put forth1598
snuff1688
douse1753
douse1780
smoor1808
to turn out1844
outen1877
to turn off1892
to black out1913
a1425 (?a1350) Seven Sages (Galba) (1907) l. 1755 (MED) He did out torches al bidene, For no man sold his whif sene.
?c1450 Life St. Cuthbert (1891) l. 1856 Þe fire with water oute to do.
1572 R. Harrison tr. L. Lavater Of Ghostes i. ix. 44 Hauing the candles done out.
a1652 R. Brome Novella i. ii. sig. H8, in Five New Playes (1653) Doe out the uselesse taper.
3. transitive.
a. To clean (a room, house, etc.), esp. thoroughly.
ΘΚΠ
the world > physical sensation > cleanness and dirtiness > cleaning > cleaning house > clean house or room [verb (transitive)]
to do out1728
to make up1891
spring clean1894
1728 C. Cibber Vanbrugh's Provok'd Husband ii. i. 22 Are all the Rooms done out?
1850 Common Sense for Housemaids 51 If it is sweeping-day when the room is to be completely done out, a wooden pail should be brought up with warm water.
1881 S. Evans Evans's Leicestershire Words (new ed.) 139 Ye're ollus a-doin' out the house of a Saturday!
1910 A. Bennett Clayhanger iii. i. 326 Once a week..his room was ‘done out’.
1955 J. Cannan Long Shadows iii. 44 'E's not arriving till..this afternoon but I did the room out yesterday.
1999 M. Branton House of Whacks 201 The maid had done out the room and the stockings were still knotted around the bedposts.
b. British. To decorate or renovate (a room, house, etc.) thoroughly. Cf. to do up 3a at Phrasal verbs 2.
ΚΠ
1982 J. Sullivan Only Fools & Horses (1999) I. 2nd Ser. Episode 7. 121 Grandad. The House—is it old? Lady R. Yes, the original structure was built in 1642. Grandad. Oh! Still you've done it out nice!
1990 Daily Star 20 Mar. 23 We're doing the whole place out and I've just bought a new bedroom, bathroom, and kitchen.
2003 Archit. Rev. Jan. 36/3 The room done out like a Lichtenstein painting.
1. transitive. To overlay, overspread, cover, coat. Now rare.
ΘΚΠ
the world > space > relative position > condition of being external > covering > cover [verb (transitive)]
beteec893
wryOE
heelOE
hilla1240
forhilla1300
covera1400
curea1400
covertc1420
paviliona1509
overdeck1509
heild?a1513
deck?1521
overhale1568
line1572
skin1618
operculate1623
endue1644
theek1667
to do over1700
sheugh1755
occlude1879
the world > space > relative position > condition of being external > covering > coating or covering with a layer > coat or cover with a layer [verb (transitive)]
lay?a1366
overlaya1400
coverc1400
sheeta1616
glidder1631
candy1639
face1648
to do over1700
coat1753
candify1777
bed1839
to lay down1839
overcoat1861
1558 P. Morwen tr. A. ben David ibn Daud Hist. Latter Tymes Iewes Commune Weale f. ccvii Leather, whiche..was smered and done ouer with pitche, oyle, and brimstone.
1611 R. Cotgrave Dict. French & Eng. Tongues Ardiller..to dawbe, or doe ouer, with clay.
1659 C. Hoole tr. J. A. Comenius Orbis Sensualium Pictus xci. 186 The Ancients writ in Tables done over with Wax with a brasen poitrel [L. Stilo].
1700 Moxon's Mech. Exercises: Bricklayers-wks. 7 [It] is done over with Linseed Oil.
1725 R. Bradley Chomel's Dictionaire Œconomique at Tapestries Rub out the Chalk with which you have done it all over.
1870 W. Morris Earthly Paradise: Pt. IV 6 A mighty club with bands of steel done o'er.
1937 Amer. Home Apr. 161/1 The bedroom..looks invitingly clean now that its walls and woodwork have been done over with a blue-white pigment.
2. transitive. slang. To have sexual intercourse with; to seduce.
ΘΚΠ
the world > physical sensation > sexual relations > sexual activity > engage in sexual activity with [verb (transitive)] > have sexual intercourse with
mingeOE
haveOE
knowc1175
ofliec1275
to lie with (or by)a1300
knowledgec1300
meetc1330
beliea1350
yknowc1350
touchc1384
deala1387
dightc1386
usea1387
takec1390
commona1400
to meet witha1400
servea1400
occupy?a1475
engender1483
jangle1488
to be busy with1525
to come in1530
visitc1540
niggle1567
mow1568
to mix one's thigh with1593
do1594
grind1598
pepper1600
yark1600
tumble1603
to taste of1607
compressc1611
jumble1611
mix?1614
consort?1615
tastea1616
bumfiddle1630
ingressa1631
sheet1637
carnal1643
night-work1654
bump1669
bumble1680
frig?c1680
fuck1707
stick1707
screw1719
soil1722
to do over1730
shag1770
hump1785
subagitatec1830
diddle1879
to give (someone) onec1882
charver1889
fuckeec1890
plugc1890
dick1892
to make a baby1911
to know (a person) in the biblical sense1912
jazz1920
rock1922
yentz1924
roll1926
to make love1927
shtupa1934
to give (or get) a tumble1934
shack1935
bang1937
to have it off1937
rump1937
tom1949
to hop into bed (with)1951
ball1955
to make it1957
plank1958
score1960
naughty1961
pull1965
pleasurea1967
to have away1968
to have off1968
dork1970
shaft1970
bonk1975
knob1984
boink1985
fand-
society > morality > moral evil > licentiousness > unchastity > loss of chastity > deprive of chastity [verb (transitive)] > seduce
sardc950
jape1382
transvertc1450
seducec1560
debauch1711
betray1766
to do over1823
make1910
to race off1965
1730 Proc. Old Bailey 4 July 19/2 She..did ask her, what she did there with the young Man? And she answer'd, what if I have a mind he should do me over.
1823 Rambler's Mag. 1 Jan. 22 Magistrate. Then you were completely done over? Miss Smith. Aye, as completely done as any young woman ever was. Magistrate. You say you were ravished by Mr. Ridley—describe to the court how he did it.
1874 Hotten's Slang Dict. (rev. ed.) 145 Done over..also means among low people seduced.
1961 R. Amato in C. K. Stead N.Z. Short Stories (1966) 2nd Ser. 233 All the sailors..want to marry the girl they've done over.
1961 John o' London's 3 Aug. 163/2 A truly Moravian rape-scene in a ruined church, with Cesira and Rosetta both done over by a screeching pack of Moroccan goums.
1996 K. Lette Mad Cows x. 97 This is what Maddy reminded herself, as she contemplated having sex with her solicitor..Peregrine lolloped behind her chair. ‘Done.’ ‘Done over, you mean.’
3. transitive.
a. slang. To cheat, swindle, get the better of.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > possession > taking > stealing or theft > defrauding or swindling > perpetrate (a swindle) [verb (transitive)] > defraud or swindle
defraud1362
deceivec1380
plucka1500
lurch1530
defeata1538
souse1545
lick1548
wipe1549
fraud1563
use1564
cozen1573
nick1576
verse1591
rooka1595
trim1600
skelder1602
firk1604
dry-shave1620
fiddle1630
nose1637
foista1640
doa1642
sharka1650
chouse1654
burn1655
bilk1672
under-enter1692
sharp1699
stick1699
finger1709
roguea1714
fling1749
swindle1773
jink1777
queer1778
to do over1781
jump1789
mace1790
chisel1808
slang1812
bucket1819
to clean out1819
give it1819
to put in the hole1819
ramp1819
sting1819
victimize1839
financier1840
gum1840
snakea1861
to take down1865
verneuk1871
bunco1875
rush1875
gyp1879
salt1882
daddle1883
work1884
to have (one) on toast1886
slip1890
to do (a person) in the eye1891
sugar1892
flay1893
to give (someone) the rinky-dink1895
con1896
pad1897
screw1900
short-change1903
to do in1906
window dress1913
ream1914
twist1914
clean1915
rim1918
tweedle1925
hype1926
clip1927
take1927
gazump1928
yentz1930
promote1931
to take (someone) to the cleaners1932
to carve up1933
chizz1948
stiff1950
scam1963
to rip off1969
to stitch up1970
skunk1971
to steal (someone) blind1974
diddle-
1781 G. Parker View Society & Manners II. 43 And now, Hostler, can't you tell me how you have done 'em over?
1789 G. Parker Life's Painter v. 45 His huntsman was his prime-minister..who could, at any time, do him over, as they phrased it, for half-a-crown or half-a-guinea.
1895 Derby Mercury 9 Jan. 8/3 All I could do him over for was a couple of bob.
1939 H. Hodge Cab, Sir? xv. 219 ‘Doing a man over’, or ‘doing the rank over’, is..‘wrongfully..taking away the fare from any other driver who..appears to be fairly entitled to it’.
1984 Sounds 29 Dec. 32 (heading) Been done over? ripped off? Or think you're going to be?
2001 C. Mullin Diary 19 June in View from Foothills (2010) 208 He is not keen on Nick Davies, who did him over when he was education secretary.
b. colloquial. To rob, burgle; to ransack.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > possession > taking > stealing or theft > robbery > rob [verb (transitive)]
reaveeOE
benima1325
berob1340
pelfa1400
distress1490
derob1546
heave1567
shrive1630
strubc1680
spung1719
to do over1785
strong-arm1896
make1926
heist1930
to take off1937
hit1955
to knock off1960
1785 F. Grose Classical Dict. Vulgar Tongue Do over, do any one over, to rob or cheat him; I have done him over, I have robbed him.
1855 Sessions Papers Central Criminal Court 41 iv. 376 Doing a drum over—I understand that this is breaking into a house.
1864 National Police Gaz. (U.S.) in Comments on Etymol. (1988) Apr. 7 The old lady has been ‘done over’ before.
1976 F. Dhondy East End at Your Feet v. 77 I walked through their flat yesterday and it's been done over.
1993 ‘A. McNab’ Bravo Two Zero (1994) ii. 19 Expeditions that were financed by him doing over his aunty's gas meter.
2006 Hi Life Issue 5. 22/1 Sadly, fitting an alarm alone isn't going to prevent someone from doing your house over.
4. transitive. slang. To disable, wear out, tire out; to bring down, defeat; to handle (a person) roughly; to beat up.
ΘΚΠ
the world > physical sensation > sleeping and waking > weariness or exhaustion > weary or exhaust [verb (transitive)]
wearyc897
tirea1000
travailc1300
forwearya1325
taryc1375
tarc1440
matec1450
break1483
labour1496
overwearya1500
wear?1507
to wear out, forth1525
fatigate1535
stress1540
overtire1558
forwaste1563
to tire out1563
overwear1578
spend1582
out-tire1596
outwear1596
outweary1596
overspend1596
to toil out1596
attediate1603
bejade1620
lassate1623
harassa1626
overtask1628
tax1672
hag1674
trash1685
hatter1687
overtax1692
fatigue1693
to knock up1740
tire to death1740
overfatigue1741
fag1774
outdo1776
to do over1789
to use up1790
jade1798
overdo1817
frazzlea1825
worry1828
to sew up1837
to wear to death1840
to take it (also a lot, too much, etc.) out of (a person)1847
gruel1850
to stump up1853
exhaust1860
finish1864
peter1869
knacker1886
grind1887
tew1893
crease1925
poop1931
raddle1951
the world > movement > impact > striking > beating or repeated striking > beat [verb (transitive)] > specifically a person
to-beatc893
threshOE
bustc1225
to lay on or upon?c1225
berrya1250
to-bunea1250
touchc1330
arrayc1380
byfrapc1380
boxc1390
swinga1400
forbeatc1420
peal?a1425
routa1425
noddlea1450
forslinger1481
wipe1523
trima1529
baste1533
waulk1533
slip1535
peppera1550
bethwack1555
kembc1566
to beat (a person) black and blue1568
beswinge1568
paik1568
trounce1568
canvass1573
swaddle?1577
bebaste1582
besoop1589
bumfeage1589
dry-beat1589
feague1589
lamback1589
clapperclaw1590
thrash1593
belam1595
lam1595
beswaddle1598
bumfeagle1598
belabour1600
tew1600
flesh-baste1611
dust1612
feeze1612
mill1612
verberate1614
bethumpa1616
rebuke1619
bemaul1620
tabor1624
maula1627
batterfang1630
dry-baste1630
lambaste1637
thunder-thump1637
cullis1639
dry-banga1640
nuddle1640
sauce1651
feak1652
cotton1654
fustigate1656
brush1665
squab1668
raddle1677
to tan (a person's) hide1679
slam1691
bebump1694
to give (a person) his load1694
fag1699
towel1705
to kick a person's butt1741
fum1790
devel1807
bray1808
to beat (also scare, etc.) someone's daylights out1813
mug1818
to knock (a person) into the middle of next week1821
welt1823
hidea1825
slate1825
targe1825
wallop1825
pounce1827
to lay into1838
flake1841
muzzle1843
paste1846
looder1850
frail1851
snake1859
fettle1863
to do over1866
jacket1875
to knock seven kinds of —— out of (a person)1877
to take apart1880
splatter1881
to beat (knock, etc.) the tar out of1884
to —— the shit out of (a person or thing)1886
to do up1887
to —— (the) hell out of1887
to beat — bells out of a person1890
soak1892
to punch out1893
stoush1893
to work over1903
to beat up1907
to punch up1907
cream1929
shellac1930
to —— the bejesus out of (a person or thing)1931
duff1943
clobber1944
to fill in1948
to bash up1954
to —— seven shades of —— out of (a person or thing)1976
to —— seven shades out of (a person or thing)1983
beast1990
becurry-
fan-
1789 W. Dunlap Darby's Return 13 For while we were watching, like sportsmen for plover, The linen took fire—and did us all over.
1789 Done Over Taylor in Musical Misc. 238 Her cruel frowns have almost done me over.
1819 Plough Boy (Albany, N.Y.) 6 Nov. 1/3 ‘The critics have done the rascal over, like a done over tailor’... ‘My dear fellow, if the critics, as you say, have “done him over”, then we had better let him rest quietly on the bookseller's shelf.’
1832 P. Egan Bk. Sports 27/1 Napoleon was floored! Marc Antony was defeated! Suwarrow licked! Tippoo Saib ‘done over’! all great masters in the art of war—and a thousand others have been compelled to surrender in turns to superior tactics.
1866 Maungatapu Murders 17 Since we are going to do these people [sc. their murder/robbery victims] over..I think we had better prevent him from doing us any harm.
1912 Proc. Old Bailey 1 Dec. 183 I..informed him he was wanted on a warrant for assaulting with intent to rob. He said, ‘Who is it that I am supposed to have done over?’
1953 A. Upfield Murder must Wait ix. 81 ‘Done over properly, wasn't he?’ ‘From appearances, yes. Mitford must be a rough place.’
1982 S. Townsend Secret Diary Adrian Mole 34 Barry Kent said he would do me over unless I gave him twenty-five pence every day.
2002 M. Thebo Saint who loved Me xxii. 270 I can't go into A&E and tell them my wife's just done me over.
5. transitive. To renovate, refurbish, redecorate; = to make over 3 at make v.1 Phrasal verbs 1.
ΘΚΠ
society > occupation and work > industry > decorating and painting > decorate [verb (transitive)]
decorate1858
to do over1866
interior-decorate1930
1866 Galaxy 15 Aug. 748 Has she been.., as the ladies say, done over, like a last year's gown?
1894 A. M. Douglas In King's Country ii. 28 Everybody wants modern appointments, and it's too late to do the house over.
1905 E. Wharton House of Mirth i. i. 10 It must be pure bliss to arrange the furniture just as one likes... If I could only do over my aunt's drawing-room I know I should be a better woman.
1941 J. P. Marquand H. M. Pulham, Esq. xxxiv. 386 We ought to keep this as the spare room and do the nursery over.
1992 E. Pearce Election Rides vi. 57 Jones..gives it as his purpose in life that Midwinter Avenue and everywhere like it shall be done over with tender attention.
2002 Jack Sept. 37/1 A pair of neighbours..take a stab at doing over one room in their neighbour's house.
6. transitive. North American. To do again, redo.
ΚΠ
1884 in Testimony Joint Comm. Signal Service (U.S. Senate, 49th Congr., 1st Session) (1886) 154 I do not propose to do it over, but merely to check the work done where necessary.
1898 Jrnl. Amer. Med. Assoc. 27 Aug. 451/1 The work will have to be finally counted a failure or will have to be done over.
1921 Proc. Constit. Convent. Illinois 1920 II. 1924 As a famous doctor once said, ‘The work you accomplish after the brain has begun to fag will have to be done over.’
1958 F. O'Connor Let. 11 Jan. (1979) 262 Those two pieces of paper I sent you—the beginning and end—were no good and I have done them over in a different way.
1991 U.S. News & World Rep. 27 May 63 We'll give you your own service supervisor to make sure that your place of business is cleaned..to your satisfaction—or we'll do it over.
1. transitive. To add, apply. Obsolete.
ΚΠ
eOE Bald's Leechbk. (Royal) (1865) i. ii. 28 Do hunig to & baldsamum gif þu hæbbe.
c1400 Comm. on Canticles (Bodl. 288) in T. Arnold Sel. Eng. Wks. J. Wyclif (1871) III. 70 Þis vers han Cristen men doon to, over þat it is in Danyelis book.
tr. Palladius De re Rustica (Duke Humfrey) (1896) iii. l. 926 Askes & chalk do to.
2. transitive. To shut (a book). Obsolete.
ΘΚΠ
the world > space > relative position > closed or shut condition > close or shut [verb (transitive)] > by folding together
to fold upc888
shut?a1366
to do to1562
to make up1629
to shut up1833
1562 Great Curse in T. Becon Reliq. Rome (1563) 254 b Do to the boke. Quenche the candle. Ring the Bell.
ΘΚΠ
the world > space > relative position > condition of being open or not closed > open [verb (transitive)] > a door, gate, etc.
to do upOE
to-thrustc1175
to weve upc1275
unshutc1315
to set upa1387
unyarka1400
to let up1400
yark upc1400
reclude?1440
dupa1549
dub1699
the world > space > relative position > posture > action of standing up or rising > rise [verb (reflexive)]
risec1175
arearc1220
right?c1225
to do up?c1335
dressa1400
raisec1450
to stand up1533
rearc1580
upend1900
OE Ælfric Lives of Saints (Julius) (1881) I. 450 Þa se bisceop aðelwold mid abbodum and munecum dyde up þone sanct mid sange wurðlice, and bæron into cyrcan.
c1275 (?a1200) Laȝamon Brut (Calig.) (1963) l. 2850 Doð up an waritreo þer-on heo scullen winden.
c1275 (?a1200) Laȝamon Brut (Calig.) (1963) l. 854 Vp heo duden [c1300 Otho dude] heora castles ȝæten.
?c1335 (a1300) Land of Cokaygne l. 160 in W. Heuser Kildare-Gedichte (1904) 149 Þe ȝung monkeþ..doþ ham vp, and forþ hi fleeþ And commiþ to þe nunnes.
c1405 (c1390) G. Chaucer Miller's Tale (Hengwrt) (2003) l. 613 Vp the wyndow dide he hastely.
1820 W. Scott tr. Noble Moringer in Edinb. Ann. Reg. 1816 9 ii. p. ccccxcix ‘Do up the gate,’ she said, ‘And bid the wanderer welcome be to banquet and to bed.’
2.
a. transitive. To fasten (something) securely; to tie up, wrap up, make tight.
ΘΚΠ
the world > space > relative position > condition of being external > covering > wrapping > wrap [verb (transitive)] > as a parcel
to turn up1701
to do up1806
c1300 St. Kenelm (Laud) l. 262 in C. Horstmann Early S.-Eng. Legendary (1887) 352 (MED) Þis writ was wel nobleliche i-wust and up i-do, And iholde for gret relike.
1340 Ayenbite (1866) 232 Þeruore ssel þet tresor by wel be-sset and wel y-do op, þet hit ne by uorlore.
a1450 (?a1390) J. Mirk Instr. Parish Priests (Claud.) (1974) l. 1894 Do vppe so þat sacrement Þat it be sekyr in ilka way, So no best it touche may.
1667 S. Pepys Diary 4 Feb. (1974) VIII. 44 Mrs. Steward, very fine, with her locks done up with puffes, as my wife calls them.
1711 Boston News-let. 9 July 2/2 A quantity of Druggs and Apothecary's Ware, done up in large and others in small boxes.
1764 G. G. Beekman Let. 20 Jan. in Beekman Mercantile Papers (1956) I. 456 Lett it be Securly done up Stored in some Safe Place in your Ship.
1806 J. Beresford Miseries Human Life I. xii. 307 Labouring in vain to do up a parcel, with..weak..paper.
1824 New Hampsh. Hist. Soc. Coll. I. 295 The hair was done up in a bunch on the back part of the head.
1882 Cent. Mag. 24 842/2 The peasants are bundles done up in fur caps.
1969 I. Murdoch Bruno's Dream xii. 99 She did not do up her dress but left it hanging open.
1985 D. Holloway Which? Bk. Plumbing & Central Heating (1992) i. 14/3 The easiest way to undo and do up nuts is with adjustable spanners.
1997 H. Kureishi Love in Blue Time 159 He watched her as she did up her shoes.
b. intransitive. Of a garment, etc.: to admit of being fastened.
ΚΠ
1936 G. Gorer Bali & Angkor 160 The coat does up at the neck.
1988 M. Gee Grace vii. 121 Skirts..never quite do up.
2003 Here's Health Sept. 87/2 The duvet cover does up with tagua nut buttons.
2007 Esquire Nov. 184/2 Jackets that did up so high that their ties were almost obscured.
3. transitive.
a. To repair, restore, put into proper order; (now usually) to decorate, refurbish (a room, house, etc.).
ΘΚΠ
society > occupation and work > industry > manufacturing processes > mending or repairing > [verb (transitive)]
beetc975
menda1200
amenda1250
rightc1275
botcha1382
reparela1382
cure1382
repaira1387
dighta1400
emend1411
to mend up1479
restablishc1500
help1518
trimc1520
redub1522
reparate1548
accommodate1552
reinstaure1609
reconcinnate1623
to do up1647
righta1656
fixa1762
doctor1829
vamp1837
service1916
rejig1976
the world > relative properties > order > put in (proper) order [verb (transitive)]
rightlOE
attire1330
ettlea1350
to set (also put) in rulea1387
redress1389
dress?a1400
fettlea1400
governc1405
yraylle1426
direct1509
settlec1530
tune1530
instruct1534
rede1545
commodate1595
square1596
concinnate1601
concinnea1620
rectify1655
fix1663
to put (also bring) into repair1673
arrange1802
pipeclay1806
to get together1810
to do up1886
to jack up1939
1647 in D. Yaxley Researcher's Gloss. Hist. Documents E. Anglia (2003) 98 To Richard Froste for helpeinge him to doe up the hangings 6d.
1666 A. Wood Life & Times (1892) II. 79 To my taylor for dying and doing up my puff suit.
a1740 J. Comyns Rep. Cases King's Bench (1744) 630 As where an House is burnt by Thunder, or blown down by the Wind..; but yet he is bound to do it up and repair it in convenient Time.
1766 O. Goldsmith Vicar of Wakefield I. xi. 108 They can do up small cloaths.
1829 P. Hawker Diary (1893) II. 4 [I] found the gun..newly done up.
1861 H. M. G. Smythies Daily Governess I. 243 A very smart piano, new done up with fluted crimson silk.
1886 W. Besant Children of Gibeon I. i. x. 229 But who is to do up your room every day?
1928 R. A. Knox Footsteps at Lock vi. 55 The walls are very bare and beautifully whitewashed... The inn has been recently ‘done up’.
1969 J. Gaskell Sweet Sweet Summer 54 They had done the cellar up quite nice and home-like.
2008 Victorian Mar. 4/2 Her Irish home, done up to the nines, lavishly staffed and the height of luxury.
b. To dress (a person) up; to make up (one's face).
ΘΚΠ
the world > textiles and clothing > clothing > providing with clothing > provide with clothing [verb (transitive)] > in specific way > dress up or dress elaborately
disguisec1325
quaintisea1333
guisea1400
to dress up?a1513
deck?1521
garnisha1535
trim1594
gallant1614
sprug1622
dizena1625
to dress out1649
bedizen1661
rig1723
trim1756
bedress1821
gaudy1838
buck up1854
garb1868
clobber1887
mum1890
to do up1897
dude1899
toff1914
lair1941
1897 M. Kingsley Trav. W. Afr. 21 Here and there in the street you come across a black man done up in a tweed suit, or in a black coat and tall hat.
1920 G. Richards Double Life iii. vi. 252 New neighbours from four doors away, a mother and daughter, all done up to the nines.
1964 C. Dale Other People x. 178 There's Mum, hair tinted, face done up, everything on bar the kitchen stove.
1970 Sunday Times 3 May 28/6 Women take hours getting themselves done up to attract men, slapping on pancake, painting their eyes.
1986 Times 13 Oct. 13/1 I really did myself up..best knickers and all that.
2002 C. Slaughter Before Knife (2003) i. 32 A King Neptune, done up in robes and beard, with trident and mitre, presided over the ceremony.
4. transitive.† a. To finish; to complete; to bring to an end, wind up. Obsolete.
ΘΚΠ
the world > action or operation > completing > complete (an action or piece of work) [verb (transitive)]
to make an endc893
afilleOE
endc975
fullOE
full-doOE
full-workOE
fullendOE
fullfremeOE
full-forthlOE
fillc1175
fulfilc1300
complec1315
asum1340
full-make1340
performa1382
finisha1400
accomplishc1405
cheve1426
upwindc1440
perfurnish?c1450
sumc1450
perimplish1468
explete?a1475
fullcome1477
consume1483
consomme1489
perimplenish1499
perfect1512
perfinish1523
complete1530
consummate1530
do1549
to run out1553
perfectionate1570
win1573
outwork1590
to bring about1598
exedifya1617
to do up1654
ratifyc1720
ultimate1849
terminate1857
1654 J. Trapp Comm. Minor Prophets (Malachi iii. 17) 891 Iohn Baptist did up his work, and is gone to take up his wages.
1827 W. Maginn Whitehall 276 He..was much employed in the slave business until that was done up.
1861 Amer. Agriculturist July 213/2 A villainous concoction of lime, potash, spirits of turpentine, etc., did up the cleansing in double quick time.
b. colloquial. To ruin (esp. financially); to finish off; (also) to get the better of, esp. by deception or fraud.
ΘΚΠ
society > trade and finance > management of money > insolvency > [verb (transitive)] > injure the credit of > ruin financially
to do up1780
unbank1834
swamp1864
1780 E. Griffith Times ii. ii. 19 L. Mary... But the poor man, I suppose, was ruined by her extravagance. Mrs. Bromley. Yes, yes, he was done-up, very soon after.
1795 H. Cowley Town before You ii. iv. 35 Whu! I am done up as a connoisseur.
1812 M. Edgeworth Absentee i, in Tales Fashionable Life V. 222 There was a pleasure in doing up a debtor, which none but a creditor could know.
1833 Fraser's Mag. 8 113 They have reformed them [sc. the West Indies] so totally, that they are done up.
1835 S. T. Coleridge Table-talk I. 5 It is not easy to put me out of countenance,..yet once I was thoroughly done up, as you would say.
1894 Harper's Mag. Aug. 389/1 They lame Bob Griffiths fer life. And then they do up Buck. Shoot a hole through his spine.
1904 W. H. Smith Promoters ii. 54 The thing to do is to do up your competitor.
1942 Z. N. Hurston Let. 15 Apr. in Life in Lett. (2002) 465 I think the alkaline dust of the deserts I crossed did me up.
1999 H. Redknapp & D. McGovern 'Arry (new ed.) vii. 96 Just then it dawned on Mel that he'd been done up like a kipper.
c. colloquial (originally U.S.). To beat up.
ΘΚΠ
the world > movement > impact > striking > beating or repeated striking > beat [verb (transitive)] > specifically a person
to-beatc893
threshOE
bustc1225
to lay on or upon?c1225
berrya1250
to-bunea1250
touchc1330
arrayc1380
byfrapc1380
boxc1390
swinga1400
forbeatc1420
peal?a1425
routa1425
noddlea1450
forslinger1481
wipe1523
trima1529
baste1533
waulk1533
slip1535
peppera1550
bethwack1555
kembc1566
to beat (a person) black and blue1568
beswinge1568
paik1568
trounce1568
canvass1573
swaddle?1577
bebaste1582
besoop1589
bumfeage1589
dry-beat1589
feague1589
lamback1589
clapperclaw1590
thrash1593
belam1595
lam1595
beswaddle1598
bumfeagle1598
belabour1600
tew1600
flesh-baste1611
dust1612
feeze1612
mill1612
verberate1614
bethumpa1616
rebuke1619
bemaul1620
tabor1624
maula1627
batterfang1630
dry-baste1630
lambaste1637
thunder-thump1637
cullis1639
dry-banga1640
nuddle1640
sauce1651
feak1652
cotton1654
fustigate1656
brush1665
squab1668
raddle1677
to tan (a person's) hide1679
slam1691
bebump1694
to give (a person) his load1694
fag1699
towel1705
to kick a person's butt1741
fum1790
devel1807
bray1808
to beat (also scare, etc.) someone's daylights out1813
mug1818
to knock (a person) into the middle of next week1821
welt1823
hidea1825
slate1825
targe1825
wallop1825
pounce1827
to lay into1838
flake1841
muzzle1843
paste1846
looder1850
frail1851
snake1859
fettle1863
to do over1866
jacket1875
to knock seven kinds of —— out of (a person)1877
to take apart1880
splatter1881
to beat (knock, etc.) the tar out of1884
to —— the shit out of (a person or thing)1886
to do up1887
to —— (the) hell out of1887
to beat — bells out of a person1890
soak1892
to punch out1893
stoush1893
to work over1903
to beat up1907
to punch up1907
cream1929
shellac1930
to —— the bejesus out of (a person or thing)1931
duff1943
clobber1944
to fill in1948
to bash up1954
to —— seven shades of —— out of (a person or thing)1976
to —— seven shades out of (a person or thing)1983
beast1990
becurry-
fan-
1887 Lantern (New Orleans) 30 Apr. 2/2 The idea of this gang jumping on J. C. Matthews and doing him up.
1890 Iron Era 31 Oct. in J. Lee Tales Boatmen Told (1977) xx. 261 Dirty Ike had got into a muss with Dan Dagan and had done him up.
1906 U. Sinclair Jungle (1972) xvi. 185 He had done up the scoundrel pretty well..; the ends of his fingers were still tingling from their contact with the fellow's throat.
1962 ‘R. Simons’ Killing Chase vi. 77 Some of the boys did me up last night.
2005 A. Masters Stuart xi. 109 If you do someone up, you'll probably get a five-stretch or an eight-stretch on top of your original sentence.
In imperative.† 2. transitive. To put away; to leave off, abandon, have done with. Obsolete.
1. intransitive. To leave off, cease, stop. Now archaic.
ΘΚΠ
the world > action or operation > ceasing > cease activity [verb (intransitive)] > leave off! or stop it!
to do waya1325
stay1601
go and eat coke1669
to leave off1785
whoa1838
drop it!1843
cut1859
turn it up1867
to come off ——1896
to chuck it1901
knock it off!1902
cut it out1903
nix1903
break it down1941
to shove it1941
leave it out!1969
a1325 (?a1300) in G. H. McKnight Middle Eng. Humorous Tales (1913) 21 Do way, by crist and leonard!
a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Trin. Cambr.) l. 5976 Do wey þei seide hit is not so.
1488 (c1478) Hary Actis & Deidis Schir William Wallace (Adv.) (1968–9) v. l. 979 ‘Do way’, he said, ‘tharoff as now no mar.’
c1530 A. Barclay Egloges i. sig. Biij Do way Coridon, for goddys loue let be.
1572 (a1500) Taill of Rauf Coilȝear (1882) 436 ‘Do way’, said Schir Rolland, ‘me think thow art not wise.’
2003 P. Ackroyd Clerkenwell Tales (2005) 69 Do way! Do way! I know nothing of this!
ΘΚΠ
the world > action or operation > ceasing > cease from (an action or operation) [verb (transitive)]
aswikec975
linOE
beleavec1175
forletc1175
i-swikec1175
restc1175
stutte?c1225
lina1300
blinc1314
to give overc1325
to do wayc1350
stintc1366
finisha1375
leavea1375
yleavec1380
to leave offa1382
refuse1389
ceasec1410
resigna1413
respite?a1439
relinquish1454
surcease1464
discontinue1474
unfill1486
supersede1499
desist1509
to have ado?1515
stop1525
to lay aside1530
stay1538
quata1614
to lay away1628
sist1635
quita1642
to throw up1645
to lay by1709
to come off1715
unbuckle1736
peter1753
to knock off1767
stash1794
estop1796
stow1806
cheese1811
to chuck itc1879
douse1887
nark1889
to stop off1891
stay1894
sling1902
can1906
to lay off1908
to pack in1934
to pack up1934
to turn in1938
to break down1941
to tie a can to (or on)1942
to jack in1948
to wrap it up1949
c1350 Psalter (BL Add. 17376) in K. D. Bülbring Earliest Compl. Eng. Prose Psalter (1891) l. 2 Do way my wickednes.
a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Vesp.) l. 13049 Do wai fra þe yon wicked womman.
1578 in J. G. Dalyell Scotish Poems 16th Cent. (1801) II. 163 Idolatrie do way, do way.
intransitive. To do anything about it; to help it. Only in negative and interrogative contexts. Obsolete.
ΚΠ
a1470 T. Malory Morte Darthur (Winch. Coll. 13) (1990) II. 609 Hit was his owne desyre..and therefore I myght nat do wythall, for I have done all that I can and made them at accorde.
?1577 F. T. Debate Pride & Lowlines sig. Dv It was agreed, The craftes man could not dooe there with all.
1596 ‘L. Piot’ tr. A. van den Busche Orator sig. T1 But what can a woman doe withall, if men doe loue her?
1611 G. Chapman May-day A iv It is my infirmity, and I cannot doe withall, to die for 't.
1660 J. Trapp Comm. Holy Script. (Jer. i. 1) 220 He [sc. Josiah] alass could not do withall: the Reformation in his dayes was forced by him: and there was foul work in secret.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, March 2014; most recently modified version published online June 2022).
> as lemmas
D.O.
D.O. n. District Officer.
Π
1954 G. Durrell Bafut Beagles iii. 60 Sometimes I get palaver with the D.O., an' dat de tire me most of all.
1958 Times 6 Sept. 8/6 Even in these progressive times when authority is fast being transferred into African hands, the D.O., often under a new name and guise, and with new functions, may still be the administrative Jack-of-all-Trades, still tour his District, and still review cases in the Native Courts.
<
n.11580
n.21722
v.eOEas lemmas
- upward and downward
- upward compatibility
- upward mobility
- upward of
- upward pointed
- upward-bound
- upward-climbing
- upward-compatible
- upward-curving
- upward-gazing
- upward-mobile
- upward-parted
- upward-rushing
- upward-shooting
- upward-stirring
- upward-striving
- upwardbound
- upwardclimbing
- upwardcompatible
- upwardcurving
- upwarder
- upwardest
- upwardgazing
- upwardlier
- upwardliest