noun · verb · 18 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot
Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.
Sound
Pronunciation
Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.
Received-Pronunciation:/ˈdəʊ̯s/
Received-Pronunciation:/ˈdɵ̞ʊ̯s/
Canada, General-American:/ˈdoʊ̯s/
Canada, General-American:/ˈdɔʊ̯s/
California:/ˈdoʊ̯s/
California:[ˈdeʊ̯s]California Vowel Shift
California:/ˈdɔʊ̯s/
California:[ˈdɛʊ̯s]California Vowel Shift
California, Southern:Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
Australian:/ˈdəʉ̯s/
Australian:/ˈdɐʉ̯s/some speakers
New-Zealand:/ˈdɐʉ̯s/
rhymes with -əʊs
CMU ARPABET:D OW1 S
Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.
1
noun
Meaning 1
A measured portion of medicine taken at any one time.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Examples
Why did he give you only a single 500 mg dose? The correct dosage of this antibiotic is one 500 mg tablet twice a day for 10 days.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
2
noun
Meaning 2
The quantity of an agent (not always active), substance, or radiation administered or experienced at any one time.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
3
noun
Meaning 3
Anything disagreeable that must be taken.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: dated, figuratively
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: fill
Antonyms: none provided
4
noun
Meaning 4
A good measure or lengthy experience of something.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: figuratively
Examples
a healthy dose of skepticism.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
5
noun
Meaning 5
A venereal infection.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: dated
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
6
noun
Meaning 6
A cold; a common, viral illness of the nasal passage, sometimes with fever.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: Ireland, colloquial
Examples
There's a dose going round.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
7
noun
Meaning 7
Archaic form of doze.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: alt-of, archaic
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
8
verb
Meaning 8
To administer a dose (of medicine) to.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: transitive
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
9
verb
Meaning 9
To prescribe a dose.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
10
verb
Meaning 10
To surreptitiously administer a dose of an incapacitating drug (to an unwilling subject); to roofie.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: transitive
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
11
verb
Meaning 11
To transmit a venereal disease to.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: dated, transitive
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
12
verb
Meaning 12
Archaic form of doze.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: alt-of, archaic
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
13
noun
Meaning 13
street name for lysergic acid diethylamide
Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: acid, back breaker, battery-acid, dot, Elvis, loony toons, Lucy in the sky with diamonds, pane, superman, window pane, Zen
Antonyms: none provided
Broader terms: lysergic acid diethylamide, LSD
14
noun
Meaning 14
a measured portion of medicine taken at any one time
Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: dosage
Antonyms: none provided
Broader terms: medicine, medication, medicament, medicinal drug
Narrower terms: anesthetize, anaesthetize, anesthetise, anaesthetise, put under, put out, dope, dope up, overdose, o.d., narcotize, narcotise, poison
18
verb
Meaning 18
treat with an agent; add (an agent) to
Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0
Examples
The ray dosed the paint
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
Broader terms: process, treat
History
Etymology
Borrowed from Middle French dose, from Late Latin dosis, from Ancient Greek δόσις (dósis, “a portion prescribed”, literally “a giving”), used by Galen and other Greek physicians to mean an amount of medicine, from δίδωμι (dídōmi, “to give”). Doublet of doos.
Across languages
Translations
99 source translations are retained for this English entry.
Arabic:
جُرْعَة
(jurʕa)
— measured portion of medicine
Arabic:
جُرْعَة
(jurʕa)
— measured portion of medicine
Assamese:
পালি
(pali)
— measured portion of medicine
Belarusian:
до́за
(dóza)
— measured portion of medicine
Bulgarian:
до́за
(dóza)
— measured portion of medicine
Catalan:
dosi
— measured portion of medicine
Chinese Mandarin:
劑量 /剂量
(jìliàng)
— measured portion of medicine
Chinese Mandarin:
(一)劑 /剂
(jì)
— measured portion of medicine
Chinese Mandarin:
(一)剂
(jì)
— measured portion of medicine
Czech:
dávka
— measured portion of medicine
Danish:
dosis
— measured portion of medicine
Dutch:
dosis
— measured portion of medicine
Esperanto:
dozo
— measured portion of medicine
Estonian:
annus
— measured portion of medicine
Finnish:
annos
— measured portion of medicine
Finnish:
lääkeannos
— measured portion of medicine
French:
dose
— measured portion of medicine
West-Frisian:
doaze
— measured portion of medicine
Galician:
dose
— measured portion of medicine
German:
Dosis
— measured portion of medicine
Greek:
δόση
(dósi)
— measured portion of medicine
Ancient Greek:
δόσις
(dósis)
— measured portion of medicine
Hebrew:
מָנָה
(maná)
— measured portion of medicine
Hungarian:
adag
— measured portion of medicine
Hungarian:
dózis
— measured portion of medicine
Ido:
dozo
— measured portion of medicine
Italian:
dose
— measured portion of medicine
Japanese:
用量
(yōryō)
— measured portion of medicine
Khmer:
កំរិត
— measured portion of medicine
Korean:
복용량
(bogyongnyang)
— measured portion of medicine
Latin:
dosis
— measured portion of medicine
Lithuanian:
dozė
— measured portion of medicine
Malay:
dos
— measured portion of medicine
Nepali:
खुराक
(khurāk)
— measured portion of medicine
Norwegian Bokmål:
dose
— measured portion of medicine
Norwegian Nynorsk:
dose
— measured portion of medicine
Occitan:
dòsi
— measured portion of medicine
Polish:
dawka
— measured portion of medicine
Portuguese:
dose
— measured portion of medicine
Russian:
до́за
(dóza)
— measured portion of medicine
Serbo-Croatian:
доза
— measured portion of medicine
Serbo-Croatian:
doza
— measured portion of medicine
Slovak:
dávka
— measured portion of medicine
Slovene:
doza
— measured portion of medicine
Spanish:
dosis
— measured portion of medicine
Swedish:
dos
— measured portion of medicine
Tagalog:
dosis
— measured portion of medicine
Thai:
ขนาดยา
— measured portion of medicine
Tibetan:
སྨན་ཐུན
(sman thun)
— measured portion of medicine
Turkish:
doz
— measured portion of medicine
Ukrainian:
до́за
(dóza)
— measured portion of medicine
Urdu:
خوراک
(xorāk)
— measured portion of medicine
Vietnamese:
liều
— measured portion of medicine
Bulgarian:
до́за
(dóza)
— quantity of an agent administered at any one time
Catalan:
dosi
— quantity of an agent administered at any one time
Chinese Mandarin:
剂量
(jìliàng)
— quantity of an agent administered at any one time
Danish:
dosis
— quantity of an agent administered at any one time
Danish:
portion
— quantity of an agent administered at any one time
Esperanto:
dozo
— quantity of an agent administered at any one time
Estonian:
annus
— quantity of an agent administered at any one time
Finnish:
annos
— quantity of an agent administered at any one time
German:
Dosis
— quantity of an agent administered at any one time
Greek:
δόση
(dósi)
— quantity of an agent administered at any one time
Italian:
dose
— quantity of an agent administered at any one time
Norwegian Bokmål:
dose
— quantity of an agent administered at any one time
Norwegian Nynorsk:
dose
— quantity of an agent administered at any one time
Polish:
dawka
— quantity of an agent administered at any one time
Polish:
doza
— quantity of an agent administered at any one time
Polish:
porcja
— quantity of an agent administered at any one time
Polish:
miarka
— quantity of an agent administered at any one time
Portuguese:
dose
— quantity of an agent administered at any one time
Russian:
до́за
(dóza)
— quantity of an agent administered at any one time
Russian:
по́рция
(pórcija)
— quantity of an agent administered at any one time
Slovak:
dávka
— quantity of an agent administered at any one time
Spanish:
dosis
— quantity of an agent administered at any one time
Tagalog:
dosis
— quantity of an agent administered at any one time
Catalan:
dosar
— to administer a dose
Danish:
give en dosis
— to administer a dose
Esperanto:
dozi
— to administer a dose
Estonian:
annustama
— to administer a dose
Finnish:
annostella
— to administer a dose
French:
doser
— to administer a dose
German:
dosieren
— to administer a dose
Ido:
dozigar
— to administer a dose
Polish:
dozować
— to administer a dose
Polish:
dawkować
— to administer a dose
Portuguese:
dosar
— to administer a dose
Slovak:
dávkovať
— to administer a dose
Swedish:
dosera
— to administer a dose
Ukrainian:
дозува́ти
(dozuváty)
— to administer a dose
