dozen

noun

doz·​en ˈdə-zᵊn 

plural dozens or dozen

1

: a group of 12

roses sold by the dozen

2

: an indefinitely large number

dozens of times

Dozens of people were at the park.

3

the dozens plural in form but singular in construction, African American English : a ritualized African American word game that consists of exchanging insults usually about the members of an opponent's family

… He also likes to crack jokes. On this side of the diaspora, we would call that playing the dozens. That's also a big part of hip-hop culture.

—Tressie McMillan Cottom

In African American culture there is a verbal game of teasing known as "playing the dozens" consisting of two people, typically males, trading insults about each other and their family members.

—Leon Williams

compare capping entry 2, joning

dozen adjective

dozenth

ˈdə-zᵊn(t)th 

adjective

I'm telling you for the dozenth time.

see also:

a dime a dozen

Synonyms of dozen

• ton
• loads
• plenty
• slew
• bunch
• hundred
• lot
• deal
• pile
• chunk
• quantity
• raft

Examples of dozen in a Sentence

dozens of new songs were auditioned and rejected

Recent Examples on the Web

In addition to artwork of all kinds, there will be three stages of live music, more than a dozen restaurant booths and children’s activities. — Dan Kelly, Kansas City Star, 22 Sep. 2026

Attendees can enjoy photo opportunities, knitting marathons, a book club, Easter egg hunt, dancing, trivia and more, with dozens of local businesses to join in. — Jenna Prestininzi, Freep.com, 22 Sep. 2026

According to a July 23 report by the Government Accountability Office (GAO), NASA lost a fifth of its civil servant workforce in the past year, with impacts to more than two dozen major projects. — Eric Niiler, Scientific American, 22 Sep. 2026

One operator controls swarms The company’s Strike Deck ground control software is designed to coordinate dozens of aircraft from a single operator. — Neetika Walter, Interesting Engineering, 22 Sep. 2026

Word History

Etymology

Middle English dozeine, from Anglo-French duzeine, dozeyne, from duze twelve, from Latin duodecim, from duo two + decem ten — more at two, ten

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing dozen

• a dime a dozen
• baker's dozen
• daily dozen
• half a dozen
• half dozen
• it's six of one and half a dozen of the other
• it's six of one, half (a) dozen of the other
• several dozen
• talk nineteen to the dozen

Kids Definition

dozen

noun

doz·​en ˈdəz-ᵊn 

plural dozens or dozen

: a group of twelve

dozen adjective

dozenth

-ᵊn(t)th 

adjective

Etymology

Middle English dozeine "dozen," from early French dozeyne (same meaning), derived from Latin duodecim "twelve," from duo "two" and decem "ten" — related to decimal, dime, dual