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dot 1 (dŏt)
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n.
1.
a. A tiny round mark made by or as if by a pointed instrument; a spot.
b. Such a mark used in orthography, as above an i.
c. The basic unit of composition for an image produced by a device that prints text or graphics on paper: a resolution of 900 dots per inch.
2. A tiny amount.
3. In Morse and similar codes, the short sound or signal used in combination with the dash and silent intervals to represent letters, numbers, or punctuation.
4. Mathematics
a. A decimal point.
b. A symbol (·) indicating multiplication, as in 2 · 4 = 8.
5. Music A mark after a note indicating an increase in time value by half.
6. Computers A period, as used as in URLs and email addresses, to separate strings of words, as in www.hmhco.com.
v. dot·ted, dot·ting, dots
v.tr.
1. To mark with a dot.
2. To form or make with dots.
3. To cover with or as if with dots: "Campfires, like red, peculiar blossoms, dotted the night" (Stephen Crane).
v.intr.
To make a dot.
Idioms:
dot (one's) i's
To be thorough or painstaking in attending to details.
on/at the dot
Exactly at the appointed time; punctual or punctually: arrived at nine o'clock on the dot.
[Middle English *dot, from Old English dott, head of a boil.]
dotter n.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition copyright ©2018 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
 
dot 2 (dŏt, dō)
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n.
A woman's marriage portion; a dowry.
[French, from Latin dōs, dōt-, dowry; see dō- in the Appendix of Indo-European roots.]
dotal (dōtl) adj.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition copyright ©2018 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
 
DOT
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abbr.
Department of Transportation
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition copyright ©2018 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
 

Indo-European & Semitic Roots Appendices

    Thousands of entries in the dictionary include etymologies that trace their origins back to reconstructed proto-languages. You can obtain more information about these forms in our online appendices:

    Indo-European Roots

    Semitic Roots

    The Indo-European appendix covers nearly half of the Indo-European roots that have left their mark on English words. A more complete treatment of Indo-European roots and the English words derived from them is available in our Dictionary of Indo-European Roots.

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