do

1 of 6

verb

did ˈdid How to pronounce do (audio)
dəd
; done ˈdən How to pronounce do (audio) ; doing ˈdü-iŋ How to pronounce do (audio) ; does ˈdəz How to pronounce do (audio)

transitive verb

1
: to bring to pass : carry out
do another's wishes
it is my earnest desire to know the will of Providence … and if I can learn what it is I will do itAbraham Lincoln
2
: put
used chiefly in do to death
had been hounded down and done to death as hereticsStringfellow Barr
3
a
: perform, execute
do some work
did his duty
b
: commit
crimes done deliberately
4
a
: bring about, effect
trying to do good
do violence
b
: to give freely : pay
do honor to her memory
5
: to bring to an end : finish
used in the past participle
The job is finally done.
6
: to put forth : exert
did her best to win the race
7
a
: to wear out especially by physical exertion : exhaust
At the end of the race they were pretty well done.
b
: to attack physically : beat
also : kill
8
: to bring into existence : produce
do a biography on the general
has done some beautiful landscapes
9
used as a substitute verb especially to avoid repetition
If you must make such a racket, do it somewhere else.
10
a
: to play the role or character of
He did Hamlet on Broadway.
b
: mimic
also : to behave like
do a Houdini and disappear
c
: to perform in or serve as producer of
do a play
11
: to treat unfairly
especially : cheat
did him out of his inheritance
12
: to treat or deal with in any way typically with the sense of preparation or with that of care or attention:
a(1)
: to put in order : clean
was doing the kitchen
(2)
: wash
did the dishes after supper
b
: to prepare for use or consumption
especially : cook
like my steak done rare
c
: set, arrange
had her hair done
d
: to apply cosmetics to
wanted to do her face before the party
e
: decorate, furnish
did the living room in Early American
do over the kitchen
13
: to be engaged in the study or practice of
do science
especially : to work at as a vocation
what to do after college
14
a
: to pass over : traverse
did 20 miles yesterday
b
: to travel at a speed of
doing 55 on the turnpike
15
: tour
doing 12 countries in 30 days
16
a
: to spend (time) in prison
has been doing time in a federal penitentiary
b
: to serve out (a period of imprisonment)
did ten years for armed robbery
17
: to serve the needs of : suit, suffice
worms will do us for bait
18
: to approve especially by custom, opinion, or propriety
You oughtn't to say a thing like that … it's not done.Dorothy Sayers
19
: to treat with respect to physical comforts
did themselves well
20
: use sense 4
doesn't do drugs
21
: to have sexual intercourse with
I'd do him.
22
: to partake of
Let's do lunch.

intransitive verb

1
: act, behave
do as I say
2
a
: get along, fare
do well in school
b
: to carry on business or affairs : manage
We can do without your help.
3
: to take place : happen
what's doing across the street
4
: to come to or make an end : finish
used in the past participle
he had done with speech for that evening and gave us no replyArnold Bennett
5
: to be active or busy
let us then be up and doingH. W. Longfellow
6
: to be adequate or sufficient : serve
half of that will do
7
: to be fitting : conform to custom or propriety
won't do to be late
8
used as a substitute verb to avoid repetition
wanted to run and play as children do
used especially in British English following a modal auxiliary or perfective have
a great many people had died, or would doBruce Chatwin
9
used in the imperative after an imperative to add emphasis
be quiet do

auxiliary verb

1
a
used with the infinitive without to to form present and past tenses in legal and parliamentary language
do hereby bequeath
and in poetry
give what she did craveShakespeare
b
used with the infinitive without to to form present and past tenses in declarative sentences with inverted word order
fervently do we prayAbraham Lincoln
, in interrogative sentences
did you hear that?
, and in negative sentences
we don't know
don't go
2
used with the infinitive without to to form present and past tenses expressing emphasis
I do say
do be careful

see also doable, done entry 1, dən, perfective done, preverbal done, unstressed done

do

2 of 6

noun (1)

plural dos or do's ˈdüz How to pronounce do (audio)
1
chiefly dialectal : fuss, ado
2
archaic : deed, duty
3
a
: a festive get-together : affair, party
an annual do
b
chiefly British : battle
4
: a command or entreaty to do something
a list of dos and don'ts
5
British : cheat, swindle
6
: hairdo
The wind messed up his do.

do

3 of 6

noun (2)

music : the first tone of the major scale in solfège

do

4 of 6

abbreviation (1)

1
ditto
2
double occupancy

DO

5 of 6

abbreviation or noun

plural DOs or D.O.s
: doctor of osteopathic medicine
Jane Smith, D.O.
He earned a DO from Arkansas College of Osteopathic Medicine.
Today, close to 120 osteopathic physicians—DOs—and about 2,050 MDs practice in Tucson, according to the [Pima] medical society.Jane Erikson

DO

6 of 6

abbreviation (2)

defense order
Phrases
do a number on
: to defeat or confound thoroughly especially by indirect or deceptive means
The scandal did a number on his career.
do away with
1
: to put an end to : abolish
chose to do away with a number of positions
doing away with formalities
2
: to put to death : kill
do by
: to deal with : treat
They did pretty well by me when I retired.
do for
chiefly British
1
: to attend to the wants and needs of : take care of
2
: to bring about the death or ruin of
He will be done for.
do it
: to have sexual intercourse
do justice
1
a
: to act justly
b
: to treat fairly or adequately
The portrait doesn't do justice to her beauty.
c
: to show due appreciation for
2
: to acquit in a way worthy of one's abilities
do proud
: to give cause for pride or gratification
she did herself proud
do the trick
: to produce a desired result
do with
: to make good use of : benefit by
could do with a cup of coffee
to do
: necessary to be done
I've done my best and all's to do againA. E. Housman

Did you know?

Feasible and Doable

Feasible comes from faire, the French verb meaning “to do.” Doable and feasible therefore originally meant literally the same thing: “capable of being done.” Indeed, doable was formed with -able, the Latin-derived French ending meaning “capable of” combined, in this instance, with do, a word with roots in Old English and one of the most basic and useful of our verbs. Though their respective etymological meanings may overlap, doable and feasible exist more in parallel with each other than as true synonyms. As with most such pairs of words, the Latin-derived term is used when describing more abstract notions. The words most commonly modified by feasible include:

option

alternative

solution

plan

approach

These are words that describe what has yet to be decided or what will be carefully considered. By contrast, doable modifies more concrete terms:

task

thing

target

Feasible is used when an element of abstraction, distance, and technical specificity is needed. The more earthy doable is rarely used in formal writing, and is not found in the works of Shakespeare, the King James Bible, or any of the founding documents of the United States.

This abstract use of feasible also accounts for the word that expresses a putative, conceptual, or hypothetical state: feasibility. Indeed, we frequently encounter “feasibility study” but not “doability study” (although doability is a word that is sometimes used, it hasn’t yet been added to most dictionaries). As long as something is just an idea, it’s feasible. When it’s time for action, we need to find out if it’s doable.

Examples of do in a Sentence

Verb We should do something special to celebrate your birthday. This crime was done deliberately. I have to do some chores this afternoon. Tell me what to do and I'll do it. I'm obliged to do my duty. He does his work without complaining. He did a lot for us. What have I done to you to make you so angry? “What are you doing this weekend?” “I'm just relaxing at home.” What is the stock market doing now: rising or falling?
Recent Examples on the Web
Verb
Medical providers have long been reluctant to participate in the government’s health plan for needy residents citing rates that do not cover the cost of doing business. Paul Sisson, San Diego Union-Tribune, 11 Mar. 2024 Over in a prime pocket of the Beverly Hills Post Office neighborhood of Los Angeles, Amanda Leigh and Taylor Hahn of House of Rolison have done it again, hoisting their latest swoon-worthy makeover project onto the market for a smidge under $6 million. Wendy Bowman, Robb Report, 11 Mar. 2024 Not everyone who registered received a code, but enough people did that the show sold out. Journal Sentinel, 11 Mar. 2024 This is about giving customers the ability to brag about what their car can, theoretically, do. Peter Valdes-Dapena, CNN, 11 Mar. 2024 Fans looking to purchase tickets for the upcoming shows can do so beginning on March 15 at 10 a.m. local time. Tomás Mier, Rolling Stone, 11 Mar. 2024 The photo in the post also has nothing to do with Executive Order 14009 or even health insurance. USA TODAY, 29 Feb. 2024 Learn How Customers Use Your Product Use analytics to find out what customers are actually doing with your product. Expert Panel®, Forbes, 28 Feb. 2024 Over the high wall of the Höss garden is the concentration camp at Auschwitz, which Rudolf is actively working to outfit with new crematoria, and which everyone in the Höss clan does their best to ignore. Michael Andor Brodeur, Washington Post, 28 Feb. 2024

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'do.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Verb and Noun (1)

Middle English don, from Old English dōn; akin to Old High German tuon to do, Latin -dere to put, facere to make, do, Greek tithenai to place, set

Noun (2)

Italian

First Known Use

Verb

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1

Noun (1)

1599, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Noun (2)

circa 1754, in the meaning defined above

Abbreviation Or Noun

1897, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of do was before the 12th century

Dictionary Entries Near do

Cite this Entry

“Do.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/do. Accessed 18 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

do

1 of 2 verb
did (ˈ)did How to pronounce do (audio) ; done ˈdən How to pronounce do (audio) ; doing ˈdü-iŋ How to pronounce do (audio) ; does (ˈ)dəz How to pronounce do (audio)
1
a
: to cause (as an act or action) to happen : carry out, perform
do me a favor
b
: act entry 2 sense 3, behave
do as I say
2
a
: to work at
what one does for a living
b
: to take suitable action on
do your homework
do the dishes
c
: set entry 1 sense 11
have my hair done
d
: decorate sense 1
did the bedroom in blue
3
: to make progress
does well in school
4
: to act so as to bring : render
sleep will do you good
5
: to come to the end of : finish
turn out the light when you are done
6
: to put forth : exert
did your best to win
7
a
: to travel a distance of
did 500 miles that day
b
: to travel at a speed of
doing 55 miles per hour on the turnpike
8
: serve entry 1 sense 1d
did five years for armed robbery
9
a
: to serve the purpose
half of that will do
b
: to be fitting or proper
it won't do to be late
10
used as a helping verb (1) before the subject in an interrogative sentence
do you play the piano?
, (2) in a negative statement
I do not know
, (3) for emphasis
you do know
, and (4) as a substitute for a preceding verb
you work harder than I do

do

2 of 2 noun
: the first note of the musical scale
Etymology

Verb

Old English dōn "to cause to happen, perform"

Noun

Italian

Medical Definition

DO

abbreviation or noun
variants or D.O.

Legal Definition

do

verb
did; done; doing; does

transitive verb

1
2
: commit
did this act of cruelty

verbal auxiliary

used with the infinitive without to to form present and past tenses in legal and parliamentary language
do hereby bequeath

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