doughy /doʊ i/ ADJ If you describe something as doughy , you mean that it has a fairly soft texture like dough. □ Add water and mix with a knife to a doughy consistency.
dour /dʊə r , daʊə r / ADJ If you describe someone as dour , you mean that they are very serious and unfriendly. □ …a dour, taciturn man. ● dour|ly ADV [usu ADV with v, oft ADV adj] [DISAPPROVAL ] □ The old man stared dourly at them.
douse /daʊ s/ (douses , dousing , doused ) also dowse
1 VERB If you douse a fire, you stop it burning by pouring a lot of water over it. □ [V n] The pumps were started and the crew began to douse the fire.
2 VERB If you douse someone or something with a liquid, you throw a lot of that liquid over them. □ [V n + with/in ] They hurled abuse at their victim as they doused him with petrol.
dove (doves ) Pronounced /dʌ v/ for meanings 1 to 3 , and /doʊ v/ for meaning 4 . 1 N‑COUNT A dove is a bird that looks like a pigeon but is smaller and lighter in colour. Doves are often used as a symbol of peace.
2 N‑COUNT In politics, you can refer to people who support the use of peaceful methods to solve difficult situations as doves . Compare hawk .
3 In American English, dove is sometimes used as the past tense of dive .
dove|cote /dʌ vkɒt, -koʊt/ (dovecotes ) also dovecot N‑COUNT A dovecote is a small building or a container for pigeons or doves to live in.
dove|tail /dʌ vte I l/ (dovetails , dovetailing , dovetailed ) VERB If two things dovetail or if one thing dovetails with another, the two things fit together neatly or have some common characteristics. □ [V ] I'm following up a few things that might dovetail. □ [V + with ] …an attempt to look for areas where U.S. interests can dovetail with Japanese concerns. □ [V n] It is important that we dovetail our respective interests.
dov|ish /dʌ v I ʃ/ also doveish ADJ Journalists use dovish to describe politicians or governments who are in favour of using peaceful and diplomatic methods to achieve something, rather than using force and violence.
dowa|ger /daʊ ədʒə r / (dowagers )
1 ADJ [ADJ n, n ADJ ] You use dowager to refer to the wife of a dead duke, emperor, or other man of high rank. □ The Dowager Queen fainted with shock. □ Nobody was allowed to eat in the Empress Dowager's presence. ● N‑COUNT Dowager is also a noun.
2 N‑COUNT If you describe a woman as a dowager , you mean that she is old and rich or looks important. [LITERARY ] □ …like stately dowagers on a cruise.
dow|dy /daʊ di/ (dowdier , dowdiest ) ADJ If you describe someone or their clothes as dowdy , you mean their clothes are dull and unfashionable. [DISAPPROVAL ] □ Her clothes were clean but dowdy.
dow|el /daʊ əl/ (dowels ) N‑COUNT A dowel is a short thin piece of wood or metal which is used for joining larger pieces of wood or metal together.
down
➊ PREPOSITION AND ADVERB USES
➋ ADJECTIVE USES
➌ VERB USES
➍ NOUN USES
➊ down ◆◆◆ /daʊ n/ Down is often used with verbs of movement, such as 'fall' and 'pull', and also in phrasal verbs such as 'bring down' and 'calm down'. → Please look at categories 19 to 21 to see if the expression you are looking for is shown under another headword.
1 PREP To go down something such as a slope or a pipe means to go towards the ground or to a lower level. □ We're going down a mountain. □ A man came down the stairs to meet them. □ The tears began flooding down her cheeks. ● ADV [ADV after v] Down is also an adverb. □ She went down to the kitchen again. □ She sat on the window seat until they climbed down from the roof.
2 PREP If you are a particular distance down something, you are that distance below the top or surface of it. □ He managed to cling on to a ledge 40ft down the rock face. ● ADV Down is also an adverb. □ For the last 18 months miners have cut a face to develop a new shaft 400 metres down.
3 ADV [ADV after v] You use down to say that you are looking or facing in a direction that is towards the ground or towards a lower level. □ She was still looking down at her papers. □ She put her head down, her hands over her face.
4 ADV [ADV after v] If you put something down , you put it onto a surface. □ Danny put down his glass.
5 PREP If you go or look down something such as a road or river, you go or look along it. If you are down a road or river, you are somewhere along it. □ They set off at a jog up one street and down another. □ …sailing down the river on a barge.
6 ADV [ADV after v] If you are travelling to a particular place, you can say that you are going down to that place, especially if you are going towards the south or to a lower level of land. [SPOKEN ] □ I went down to L.A. all the way from Seattle.
7 ADV [ADV after v, be ADV ] If an amount of something goes down , it decreases. If an amount of something is down , it has decreased and is at a lower level than it was. □ Interest rates came down today. □ Inflation will be down to three percent. □ The Dow Jones industrial average is down 5 points at 2,913.
8 PHRASE If you say that there are a number of things down and a number to go , you are saying how many of the things have already been dealt with and how many remain to be dealt with. □ Thirteen months down, twenty-four years to go.