Definitions
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.
- noun A figure having the likeness of a human, especially one used as a child's toy.
- noun A person considered to be physically attractive.
- noun A woman.
- noun A helpful or obliging person.
- noun Used as a term of endearment.
from The Century Dictionary.
- noun A sweetheart; a mistress; a paramour; a doxy. Also
dolly . - noun A puppet representing a child, usually a little girl (but also sometimes a boy or a man, as a soldier, etc.), used as a toy by children, especially by girls.
- noun Dung, especially of pigeons.
- noun A large cake of sawdust mixed with dung, used for fuel.
- noun A large lump.
- noun A simple contrivance on a Jacquard loom which indicates to the weaver that something is wrong with the action of the pattern-card cylinder. Also called
detector and blockhead-board.
from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.
- noun a small, usually flexible figure representing a human being, especially a toy baby for a little girl; a child's puppet.
- noun slang an attractive woman or girl.
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.
- noun A
toy in the form of a human. - noun informal Used to refer to or address a woman.
- noun Australia A term of endearment (ie.
darling ). - verb intransitive To cause to be more beautiful of attractive. See also
doll up .
from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.
- noun a small replica of a person; used as a toy
- noun informal terms for a (young) woman
Etymologies
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License
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Examples
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I adore the paper doll one... *wonders if Little Owl would allow me to draw him as a paper owl doll*
Swap Goodness...oh me, oh my!!! Katy 2008
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Attention is called to the difficulty of drawing the line between a doll and an idol among primitive peoples, the connection of dolls with religion, psychological evidence of which lingers with us to-day in the persistent folk-etymology which connects _doll_ with _idol_.
The Child and Childhood in Folk-Thought Studies of the Activities and Influences of the Child Among Primitive Peoples, Their Analogues and Survivals in the Civilization of To-Day Alexander F. Chamberlain
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Several boys began to sing along in a mocking tone, dragging out the word doll until it became two syllables: “William wants a do-oll, William wants a do-oll.”
Failing at FAIRNESS Myra David Sadker 2003
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Several boys began to sing along in a mocking tone, dragging out the word doll until it became two syllables: “William wants a do-oll, William wants a do-oll.”
Failing at FAIRNESS Myra David Sadker 2003
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Several boys began to sing along in a mocking tone, dragging out the word doll until it became two syllables: “William wants a do-oll, William wants a do-oll.”
Failing at FAIRNESS Myra David Sadker 2003
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Not attractive, neither he nor the doll is attractive
'Twilight': Taylor Lautner is a doll, literally | EW.com 2009
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The name kouklitas comes from the Greek word for doll, koukla —which can also be used in the sense of "pretty girl" or "girlfriend," much like the English word "doll."
Week in Words Erin McKean 2011
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The Bella doll is the only doll I have ever seen that is prettier than the actual person.
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Your doll is amazing with all the beads you've used.
Tuesday night quilt group, even here! katelnorth 2007
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She undressed the not-so-jolly green giant only to discover that the doll is anatomically correct.
qroqqa commented on the word doll
What we need is a historical reverse dictionary of meanings. 'Doll' was only used in the modern sense from about 1700 (and was cant at first); 'poppet' was used in this sense from about the fifteenth century; so what did English children play with before?
August 22, 2008