do¹ / doō/ • v. (does / dəz/ ; past did / did/ ; past part. done / dən/ ) 1. [tr.] perform (an action, the precise nature of which is often unspecified): something must be done about the city's traffic| she knew what she was doing | what can I do for you? | Brian was making eyes at the girl, and had been doing so for most of the hearing. ∎  perform (a particular task): Dad always did the cooking on Sundays. ∎  work on (something) to bring it to completion or to a required state: it takes them longer to do their hair than me | she's the secretary and does the publicity. ∎  make or have available and provide: he's doing bistro food| many hotels don't do single rooms at all | he decided to do her a favor. ∎  solve; work out: Joe was doing sums aloud. ∎  cook (food) to completion or to a specified degree: if a knife inserted into the center comes out clean, then your pie is done. ∎  (often in questions) work at for a living: what does she do? ∎  produce or give a performance of (a particular play, opera, etc.): the Royal Shakespeare Company is doing Macbeth next month. ∎  perform (a particular role, song, etc.) or imitate (a particular person) in order to entertain people: he not only does Schwarzenegger and Groucho, he becomes them. ∎ inf. take (a narcotic drug): he doesn't smoke, drink, or do drugs. ∎  attend to (someone): the barber said he'd do me next. ∎ vulgar slang have sexual intercourse with. ∎  (do it) inf. have sexual intercourse. ∎  (do it) inf. urinate; defecate.2. [tr.] achieve or complete, in particular: ∎  travel (a specified distance): one car I looked at had done 112,000 miles. ∎  travel at (a specified speed): I was speeding, doing seventy-five. ∎  make (a particular journey): last time I did New York–Philadelphia round trip by train it was over 80 bucks. ∎  achieve (a specified sales figure): our best-selling album did about a million worldwide. ∎  [tr.] inf. visit as a tourist, esp. in a superficial or hurried way: the tourists are allotted only a day to “do” Verona. ∎  spend (a specified period of time), typically in prison or in a particular occupation: he did five years for manslaughter. ∎  [intr.] inf. finish: you must sit there and wait till I'm done | we're done arguing. ∎  (be done) be over: the special formula continues to beautify your tan when the day is done. ∎  (be/have done with) give up concern for: have finished with: I would sell the place and have done with it| Steve was not done with her.3. [intr.] act or behave in a specified way: they are free to do as they please you did well to bring her back. ∎  make progress or perform in a specified way; get on: when a team is doing badly, it's not easy for a new player to settle in | Mrs. Walters, how're you doing? ∎  [tr.] have a specified effect on: the walk will do me good. ∎  [tr.] result in: the years of stagnation did a lot of harm to the younger generation.4. [intr.] be suitable or acceptable: if he's anything like you, he'll do | [tr.] a couple of bucks'll do me. 5. [tr.] inf. beat up; kill: he was the guy who did Maranzano. ∎  (usu. be done) ruin: once you falter, you're done. ∎  rob (a place): this would be an easy place to do, and there was plenty of money lying around.• aux. v. 1. used before a verb (except be, can, may, ought, shall, will) in questions and negative statements: do you have any pets?| did he see me?| I don't smoke | it does not matter. ∎  used to make tag questions: you write poetry, don't you?| I never seem to say the right thing, do I? ∎  used in negative commands: don't be silly | do not forget.2. used to refer to a verb already mentioned: he looks better than he did before| you wanted to enjoy yourself, and you did | as the cops get smarter, so do the crooks.3. used to give emphasis to a positive verb: I do want to act on this| he did look tired. ∎  used in positive commands to give polite encouragement: do tell me! | do sit down.4. used with inversion of a subject and verb when an adverbial phrase begins a clause for emphasis: only rarely did they succumb | not only did the play close, the theater closed.• n. (pl. dos or do's) 1. (also 'do) inf. short for hairdo.2. inf., chiefly Brit. a party or other social event: the soccer club Christmas do.PHRASES: be to do with be concerned or connected with: the problems are usually to do with family tension.do a —— inf. behave in a manner characteristic of (a specified person): he did a Garbo after his flop in the play.do battle enter into a conflict.do the honors see honor.do someone/something justice see justice.don't —— me inf. do not use the word —— to me: “Don't morning me. Where the hell've you been all night?”do or die persist, even if death is the result. ∎  used to describe a critical situation where one's actions may result in victory or defeat: the 72nd hole was do or die.dos and don'ts rules of behavior: I have no knowledge of the political dos and don'ts.do well for oneself become successful or wealthy.have (got) —— to do with be connected with (someone or something) to the extent specified: half the country believed rock 'n' roll had something to do with national decline | John's got a lot to do with that bribery scandal. have nothing to do with have no contact or dealings with: Billy and his father have had nothing to do with each other for nearly twenty years. ∎  be no business or concern of: it's my decision—it has nothing to do with you. ∎  be unconnected with: he says his departure has nothing to do with the calls for his resignation.it isn't done Brit. used to express the speaker's opinion that something contravenes custom, opinion, or propriety: in such a society it is not done to admit to taking religion seriously.it won't do used to express the speaker's opinion that someone's behavior is unsatisfactory and cannot be allowed to continue: Don't talk like that—I've told you before, it won't do.no you don't inf. used to indicate that one intends to prevent someone from doing what they were about to do: Sharon went to get in the taxi. “Oh no you don't,” said Steve.that does it! inf. used to indicate that one will not tolerate something any longer: That does it! Let's go!PHRASAL VERBS: do away with inf. put an end to; remove: the desire to do away with racism. ∎  kill: he didn't have the courage to do away with her.do by dated treat or deal with in a specified way: do as you would be done by | she did well by them.do for1. inf. defeat, ruin, or kill: without that contract we're done for.2. suffice for: the old version will do for now.do something (or nothing) for inf. enhance (or detract from) the appearance or quality of: that scarf does nothing for you.do someone in inf. kill someone. ∎  (usu. be done in) inf. tire someone out: after hiking in the hills all day, I was utterly done in.do someone out of inf. deprive someone of (something) in an underhanded or unfair way.do something out chiefly Brit., inf. decorate or furnish a room or building in a particular style, color, or material: the basement is done out in limed oak.do something over1. inf. repeat something: to absorb the lesson, I had to do it over and over.2. inf. decorate or furnish a room or building. do someone up (usu. be done up) dress someone up, esp. in an elaborate or impressive way: Agnes was all done up in a slinky black number.do something up (usu. be done up) arrange one's hair in a particular way, esp. so as to be pulled back from one's face or shoulders: her dark hair was done up in a pony tail. ∎  wrap something up: unwieldy packages all done up with twine. do with would find useful or would like to have or do: I could do with a cup of coffee.do without (usu. can do without) manage without: she could do without cigarettes for a day. ∎ inf. would prefer not to have: I can do without your complaints first thing in the morning.do² / dō/ • n. Mus. (in solmization) the first and eighth note of a major scale. ∎  the note C in the fixed-do system.

do 1 pt. did, pp. done trans. †
A. put, place (cf. DOFF, DON 1);

B. perform, execute;

C. cause;

D. as auxiliary of tense. OE. intr. A. act (in a specified way) OE.; B. fare, get on XIII; C. (in perf. tenses) make an end XIV; D. be (well or ill) XV;

E. serve the purpose, suffice XVI. OE. dōn, pt. dyde, pp. ġedōn, of which the pt. dyde is isolated amongst the Gmc. langs., the others having forms corr. to OE. pl. dǣdon, Angl. dēdon (a type which survived only into ME.), e.g. OS. dōan, deda, dēdun, gidōn (Du. doen, deed, deden, gedaan), OHG. tuon, teta, tātum, gitān (G. tun, tat, getan).

This common WGmc. vb., the history of which remains in some points obscure, is based on a widespread IE. *dhō, *dhē- *dhə-, repr. by Skr. dádhāti put, lay, Gr. títhēmi place. L. facere make, do, -dō, -dere in addere ADD, etc. (overlapping with the root (IE. *dō-) of dare give), Lith. déti, OSl. dĕti put, lay. Cf. DEED, DOOM.

Dō (Jap., michi or ‘way’; Chin., tao). Used in Japan to identify some particular practice or discipline as religious; as a spiritual path. The term was borrowed out of similar usage in China (tao) and came to be associated not only with all the religions of Japan (e.g. Shinto as shin-dō or kami-no-michi, the ‘way of the kami’; Buddhism as butsudō, or the ‘way of buddha’), but also the fine and the martial arts (e.g. gadō/kadō, or the ‘way of flowers’ (ikebana); chadō, of tea; and kendō, of the sword). In general, an external skill is attained which helps the realization of an internal spiritual refinement. The room or hall where these are practised is known as dōjō.

do do as I say, not as I do often used to imply hypocrisy. The saying is recorded from the 11th century, and the idea is echoed in Matthew 23:3, ‘Do not ye after their works: for they say, and do not.’
do as you would be done by a pithier form of do unto others as you would they should do unto you, recorded from the late 16th century. In Charles Kingsley's The Water-Babies (1863), Mrs Doasyouwouldbedoneby is the motherly and benevolent figure who is contrasted with her stern sister, Mrs Bedonebyasyoudid.
do right and fear no man advice setting out the reward of moral behaviour, recorded from the mid 15th century.
do unto others as you would they should do unto you traditional recommendation for setting standards of behaviour, recorded from the early 10th century, and often with biblical allusion to Luke 6:31, ‘As ye would that men should do to you, do ye also to them likewise.’ Compare do as you would be done by.

do. The name for ut or C in the Romance languages, introduced by G. M. Bononcini, 1673. See doh.