dole out

verb

doled out; doling out; doles out

transitive verb

1

: to give or deliver in small portions

2

: dish out

Synonyms of dole out

• distribute
• dispense
• provide
• deal (out)
• hand out
• allocate
• divide

Choose the Right Synonym for dole out

distribute, dispense, divide, deal, dole out mean to give out, usually in shares, to each member of a group.

distribute implies an apportioning by separation of something into parts, units, or amounts.

distributed food to the needy

dispense suggests the giving of a carefully weighed or measured portion to each of a group according to due or need.

dispensed wisdom to the students

divide stresses the separation of a whole into parts and implies that the parts are equal.

three charitable groups divided the proceeds

deal emphasizes the allotment of something piece by piece.

deal out equipment and supplies

dole out implies a carefully measured portion of something that is often in short supply.

doled out what little food there was

Examples of dole out in a Sentence

she doles out office supplies as if she were paying for them out of her own pocket

Recent Examples on the Web

From there, Ohio would then dole out $600 million for the Cleveland Browns' new domed stadium project. —Jessie Balmert, Cincinnati Enquirer, 9 Dec. 2025

The Christkind is depicted as a blond angelic figure in a white gown and is accompanied by a helper who doles out punishment to naughty children. —Angelika Ytuarte, jsonline.com, 5 Dec. 2025

These credits are trickier to use because they're doled out in such small increments, and paying delivery fees can jack up the cost of your end-of-the-year Band-Aid haul. —Jason Stauffer, CNBC, 4 Dec. 2025

The stars, who gathered to celebrate 2025 feature films (10 awards will be doled out, among them, Best Feature, Best Director and Breakthrough Performance), also brought their style A-game to the red carpet in sculptural dresses, colorful suits and more. —Jackie Fields, PEOPLE, 2 Dec. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1749, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for dole out

• roundabout
• runabout
• sauerkraut
• thereabout
• turnabout
• about
• bailout
• blackout
• blowout
• breakout
• burnout
• buyout