dot

1 of 4

noun (1)

1
: a small spot : speck
2
: a small round mark: such as
a(1)
: a small point made with a pointed instrument
a dot on the chart marked the ship's position
(2)
: a small round mark used in orthography or punctuation
put a dot over the i
b
: a centered point used as a multiplication sign (as in 6 · 5 = 30)
c(1)
: a point after a note or rest in music indicating augmentation of the time value by one half
(2)
: a point over or under a note indicating that it is to be played staccato
3
: a precise point especially in time
arrived at six on the dot
4
: a short click or buzz forming a letter or part of a letter (as in the Morse code)
5
: a point used to separate components of an address on the Internet

dot

2 of 4

verb

dotted; dotting

transitive verb

1
: to mark with a dot
2
: to intersperse with dots or objects scattered at random
boats dotting the lake

intransitive verb

: to make a dot
dotter noun

dot

3 of 4

noun (2)

DOT

4 of 4

abbreviation

Department of Transportation

Example Sentences

Verb Don't forget to dot the i. Quaint cottages dot the countryside. The fields were dotted with wildflowers. Dot the cream all over your face.
Recent Examples on the Web
Noun
Unlike Ovie, whose favorite spot to hammer is high in or above the left circle, Pasta’s chosen delivery spot is around the left circle’s dot. Kevin Paul Dupont, BostonGlobe.com, 7 Mar. 2023 And given the lofty MSRPs of the Lightning’s upper trim levels, the top Ram EV’s will no dot mirror those as well. Eric Stafford, Car and Driver, 6 Jan. 2023 Each dot represents one of the 3,336 satellites in the SpaceX constellation. Daniel Wolfe, Washington Post, 6 Jan. 2023 Each dot marks the spot where a tiny bit of blood has been deposited under the skin. Lisa Sanders, M.d., New York Times, 29 Dec. 2022 Wear it with anything and everything, from Proenza Schouler’s spring 2023 polka-dot blouse to jeans and a T-shirt. Madeline Fass, Vogue, 16 Feb. 2023 This three-piece set includes a green plaid shirt, navy suspenders, and the world's cutest polka-dot bowtie. Woman's Day, 14 Feb. 2023 My kind of website would be genealogy-dot-com-dot-who-cares? Jay Nordlinger, National Review, 7 Feb. 2023 Their polka-dot leaves vary in white, hot pink and pale pink shades. Mariah Thomas, Good Housekeeping, 31 Jan. 2023
Verb
Unimagined tribological challenges dot the horizon. Adrienne Bernhard, Popular Mechanics, 20 Mar. 2023 High-rise hotels, nightlife, and casinos dot the Condado district. Lindsay Cohn, Travel + Leisure, 12 Mar. 2023 Museums, galleries and archaeological exhibits dot the island 40 miles to the south. Joe Sills, Forbes, 8 Mar. 2023 Today, growing numbers of encampments filled with Americans without permanent homes dot the banks of the river. Patrik Jonsson, The Christian Science Monitor, 6 Mar. 2023 Longjing is a sea of shrubs where tea ladies in pink raincoats, baskets lashed around their waists, dot the mountain. Maggie Hiufu Wong, CNN, 5 Mar. 2023 Where will the snow accumulate? A mix of rain and snow will dot most of the Marin Headlands on Thursday and Friday, while snow chances will be highest on Thursday morning. Gerry Díaz, San Francisco Chronicle, 21 Feb. 2023 Along the way to Willcox, dairy farms and orchards dot the countryside, and cars can be seen zooming past pecan and pistachio trees. Sarah Lapidus, The Arizona Republic, 10 Feb. 2023 Today, twelve platforms dot the forest, connected by a gravel road. Manuela Andreoni Erin Schaff, New York Times, 10 Jan. 2023 See More

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'dot.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Word History

Etymology

Noun (1)

Middle English *dot, from Old English dott head of a boil; akin to Old High German tutta nipple

Noun (2)

French, from Latin dot-, dos dowry

First Known Use

Noun (1)

1596, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Verb

circa 1740, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1

Noun (2)

1822, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of dot was in 1596

Dictionary Entries Near dot

Cite this Entry

“Dot.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/dot. Accessed 28 Mar. 2023.

Kids Definition

dot

1 of 2 noun
1
: a small spot : speck
2
: a small round mark made with or as if with a pen: as
a
: a point after a note or rest in music indicating increase of the time value by one half
b
: a centered dot · used as a sign of multiplication
3
: an exact point in time or space
arrived at six on the dot
4
: a short click or buzz forming a letter or part of a letter (as in the Morse code)

dot

2 of 2 verb
dotted; dotting
1
: to mark with a dot
dot an "i"
2
: to cover with or as if with dots
green buds dotted the branches
dotter noun

Medical Definition

dot

noun
: a small spot or speck see maurer's dots, schuffner's dots

Legal Definition

DOT

abbreviation

More from Merriam-Webster on dot

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