Doric

American  

[dawr-ik, dor-] / ˈdɔr ɪk, ˈdɒr- /

adjective

1. of or relating to Doris, its inhabitants, or their dialect.

2. rustic, as a dialect.

3. Architecture. noting or pertaining to one of the five classical orders, developed in Greece and altered by the Romans. The Greek Doric order consists typically of a channeled column without a base, having as a capital a circular echinus supporting a square abacus, above which come a plain architrave, a frieze of triglyphs and metopes, and a cornice, the corona of which has mutules on its soffit. In the Roman Doric order, the columns usually have bases, the channeling is sometimes altered or omitted, and the capital usually consists of three parts: a thick, bandlike necking, an echinus with an ovolo outline, and a molded abacus.

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noun

1. a dialect of ancient Greek spoken on Rhodes and other islands of the Dodecanese, in Crete, in Syracuse, and in all of the Peloponnesus except Arcadia.

2. rustic English speech.

Doric British  

/ ˈdɒrɪk /

adjective

1. of or relating to the Dorians, esp the Spartans, or their dialect of Ancient Greek

2. of, denoting, or relating to one of the five classical orders of architecture: characterized by a column having no base, a heavy fluted shaft, and a capital consisting of an ovolo moulding beneath a square abacus See also Ionic composite Corinthian Tuscan

3. (sometimes not capital) rustic

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noun

1. one of four chief dialects of Ancient Greek, spoken chiefly in the Peloponnese Compare Aeolic Arcadic Ionic See also Attic

2. any rural dialect, esp that spoken in the northeast of Scotland

Doric Cultural  

1. One of the three main styles of Greek architecture (the others are Corinthian and Ionic). The Doric column is heavy and fluted; its capital is plain.

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Other Word Forms

• pre-Doric adjective

Etymology

Origin of Doric

1555–65; < Latin Dōricus < Greek Dōrikós Dorian

Example Sentences

A portico with muscular Doric columns doubles as a terrace, as if Von Stuck had built himself a temple rather than a mere home.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 30, 2026

The models weaved their way through the 86 Doric columns that hold up a vaulted square in the center of the park that overlooks Barcelona and the Mediterranean Sea in the distance.

From Seattle Times • May 23, 2024

"I grew up speaking Doric," Danielle said, "so it's great to be able to speak it again and also have something so familiar in a novel which has been around for so long."

From BBC • Sep. 5, 2023

She put it to use as Doric, in particular during her transitions into animal form; the stunt team also incorporated animal-like moves into Doric’s fighting style, she said.

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 30, 2023

The old colonial bungalow with its deep verandah and Doric columns, was surrounded by smaller, older, wooden houses—ancestral homes—that the hotel chain had bought from old families and transplanted in the Heart of Darkness.

From "The God of Small Things" by Arundhati Roy

Related Words

• classic
• humanistic