doom

1 of 2

noun

ˈdüm 

1

: a law or ordinance especially in Anglo-Saxon England

2

a

: judgment, decision

especially : a judicial condemnation or sentence

b(1)

: judgment sense 5a

(2)

: judgment day sense 1

3

a

: destiny

especially : unhappy destiny

b

: death, ruin

doom

2 of 2

verb

doomed; dooming; dooms

transitive verb

1

: to give judgment against : condemn

2

a

: to fix the fate of : destine

felt he was doomed to a life of loneliness

b

: to make certain the failure or destruction of

the scandal doomed her chances for election

Synonyms

Noun

• finding
• holding
• judgment
• judgement
• ruling
• sentence

Verb

• destine
• fate
• foredoom
• foreordain
• ordain
• predestine
• predetermine
• preordain

Choose the Right Synonym for doom

fate, destiny, lot, portion, doom mean a predetermined state or end.

fate implies an inevitable and usually an adverse outcome.

the fate of the submarine is unknown

destiny implies something foreordained and often suggests a great or noble course or end.

the country's destiny to be a model of liberty to the world

lot and portion imply a distribution by fate or destiny, lot suggesting blind chance

it was her lot to die childless

, portion implying the apportioning of good and evil.

remorse was his daily portion

doom distinctly implies a grim or calamitous fate.

if the rebellion fails, his doom is certain

Examples of doom in a Sentence

Noun

The papers are filled with stories of gloom and doom.

the story of a mysterious creature who lures travelers to their doom

Verb

A criminal record will doom your chances of becoming a politician.

the actor felt that he was doomed to be forever remembered for that one terrible performance

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

War is bad, but what else? Civil War feels eager to warn Americans of incoming doom, but doesn’t want to name the evils. —David Rooney, The Hollywood Reporter, 23 Apr. 2024

The death knell for the commute and the doom loop gives rise to something else: the Nike swoosh. —Julia Hobsbawm, Fortune, 22 Apr. 2024

So far, the big apps’ efforts to avoid this doom loop have involved the same basic feature that has been around since the beginning: swiping. —Lora Kelley, The Atlantic, 10 Apr. 2024

San Francisco fell into what a lot of people called an urban doom loop, and to put it simply, the city’s downtown changed in the post-pandemic world. —Byalena Botros, Fortune, 10 Apr. 2024

An acute sense of instability will inform much of the content bought and sold on the MipTV floor, though the symptoms might manifest themselves beyond doom and gloom. —Ben Croll, Variety, 5 Apr. 2024

Mookie Betts, Shohei Ohtani, Freddie Freeman. Dread, doom, destruction. —Bill Plaschke, Los Angeles Times, 29 Mar. 2024

Holding onto them means nothing can happen to Clementine—which in turn means that discarding them could invite doom. —Ruthie Ackerman, Vogue, 13 Mar. 2024

Despite their dire retirement prospects, the picture isn’t just one of doom and gloom. —Chloe Berger, Fortune, 27 Feb. 2024

Verb

And the rise of concentrated animal feeding operations (CAFOs) has doomed millions of pigs, cattle and chickens to lives spent cheek to jowl in the stench of their own waste — waste that also threatens the health of nearby communities and ecosystems. —Bill Wasik and Monica Murphy Gabra Zackman Emma Kehlbeck Lance Neal, New York Times, 23 Apr. 2024

Unfortunately, a series of mishaps doomed the Belle from the start. —Steve Wiser, The Courier-Journal, 20 Apr. 2024

At one point, Trump’s opposition essentially doomed the bipartisan Senate proposal on border security. —Stephen Groves, Fortune, 20 Apr. 2024

And it was doomed when the 100 senators were sworn in as jurors on Wednesday in the first impeachment trial of a cabinet member since 1876. —Daniel Desrochers, Kansas City Star, 17 Apr. 2024

And it was doomed when 100 senators were sworn in as jurors on Wednesday in the first impeachment trial of a cabinet member since 1876. —Daniel Desrochers, Miami Herald, 17 Apr. 2024

Facets of girlboss culture (something that, with its infantilizing name did seem doomed) continue to come under scrutiny and the widespread hustle harder mentality, questioned. —Fiorella Valdesolo, Vogue, 16 Apr. 2024

Strategists on both sides of the aisle have forecast that Trump's current legal limbo -- charged but not yet on trial, repeatedly denying the evidence and accusations laid out against him by prosecutors -- won't, on its own, doom his chances of winning back the White House. —Tal Axelrod, ABC News, 15 Apr. 2024

My most desperate moments of loneliness have been in conversation: on a Hinge date, doomed but persisting as a form of protocol. —Peter Rubin, Longreads, 11 Apr. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Noun

Middle English, from Old English dōm; akin to Old High German tuom condition, state, Old English dōn to do

First Known Use

Noun

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

Verb

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing doom

• doom merchant
• gloom and doom
• meet one's doom
• prophet of doom
• prophets of doom
• spell doom

Kids Definition

doom

1 of 2 noun

ˈdüm 

1

: a decision made by a court : sentence

2

a

: a usually unhappy end

b

: death sense 1, ruin

doom

2 of 2 verb

1

: condemn sense 2

2

: to set on a fixed course to an unhappy end

the plan was doomed to failure