dot
noun
a small, roundish mark made with or as if with a pen.
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DOT
DOTabbreviationdamage over time: (in a video game) an attack that results in light or moderate damage when it is dealt, but that wounds or weakens the receiving character, who continues to lose health in small increments for a specified period of time, or until healed by a spell, potion, etc.
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Acronyms dictionary results for DOT.
dot
1 American
[dot]
/ dɒt /
noun
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a small, roundish mark made with or as if with a pen.
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a minute or small spot on a surface; speck.
There were dots of soot on the windowsill.
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anything relatively small or specklike.
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a small specimen, section, amount, or portion.
a dot of butter.
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a period, especially as used when pronouncing an internet address.
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Music.
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a point placed after a note or rest, to indicate that the duration of the note or rest is to be increased one half. A double dot further increases the duration by one half the value of the single dot.
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a point placed under or over a note to indicate that it is to be played staccato.
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Telegraphy. a signal of shorter duration than a dash, used in groups along with groups of dashes and spaces to represent letters, as in Morse code.
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Printing. an individual element in a halftone reproduction.
verb (used with object)
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dots,
present (3rd person singular)
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dotted,
past participle, past
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dotting
present participle
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to mark with or as if with a dot or dots.
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to stud or diversify with or as if with dots.
Trees dot the landscape.
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to form or cover with dots.
He dotted a line across the page.
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Cooking. to sprinkle with dabs of butter, margarine, or the like.
Dot the filling with butter.
verb (used without object)
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dots,
present (3rd person singular)
-
dotted,
past participle, past
-
dotting
present participle
idioms
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on the dot, precisely; exactly at the time specified.
The guests arrived at eight o'clock on the dot.
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the year dot, very long ago.
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dot one's i's and cross one's t's, to be meticulous or precise, even to the smallest detail.
dot
2
American
[dot, dawt]
/ dɒt, dɔt /
noun
Civil Law.
Dot
3
American
[dot]
/ dɒt /
noun
DOT
4
American
abbreviation
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damage over time: (in a video game) an attack that results in light or moderate damage when it is dealt, but that wounds or weakens the receiving character, who continues to lose health in small increments for a specified period of time, or until healed by a spell, potion, etc.
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Dictionary of Occupational Titles: reference book formerly published by the Department of Labor with job titles, descriptions, and official classifications, discontinued in 1999 and replaced by the online Occupational Informational Network.
dot
1
British
/ dɒt /
noun
-
a small round mark made with or as with a pen, etc; spot; speck; point
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anything resembling a dot; a small amount
a dot of paint
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the mark (˙) that appears above the main stem of the letters i, j
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music
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the symbol (·) placed after a note or rest to increase its time value by half
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this symbol written above or below a note indicating that it must be played or sung staccato
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maths logic
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the symbol (.) indicating multiplication or logical conjunction
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a decimal point
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the symbol (·) used, in combination with the symbol for dash (–), in the written representation of Morse and other telegraphic codes Compare dit
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informal as long ago as can be remembered
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at exactly the arranged time
verb
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(tr) to mark or form with a dot
to dot a letter
a dotted crotchet
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(tr) to scatter or intersperse (with dots or something resembling dots)
bushes dotting the plain
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(intr) to make a dot or dots
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to pay meticulous attention to detail
dot
2
British
/ dɒt /
noun
dot
Scientific
/ dŏt /
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A symbol (·) indicating multiplication, as in 2 · 4 = 8. It is used to indicate the dot product of vectors, for example A · B.
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A period, as used as in URLs and e-mail addresses, to separate strings of words, as in www.hmco.com.
dot
More Idioms
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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dotsimple
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dotssimple
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have dottedperfect
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has dottedperfect
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am dottingprogressive
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are dottingprogressive
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is dottingprogressive
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have been dottingperfect progressive
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has been dottingperfect progressive
Past
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dottedsimple
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had dottedperfect
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was dottingprogressive
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were dottingprogressive
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had been dottingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of dot1
First recorded before 1000; perhaps to be identified with Old English dott “head of a boil,” though not attested in Middle English; cf. dottle, dit, derivative of Old English dyttan “to stop up” (probably derivative of dott ); cognate with Old High German tutta “nipple”
Origin of dot2
First recorded in 1820–25; from French, from Latin dōtem, accusative of dōs “dowry,” akin to dare “to give”
Explanation
A dot is a round speck or spot. A first grade teacher might remind his students to put dots on their is and js. A period, a little circle or point, is a dot. Another kind is a polka dot, which might decorate your favorite pair of shorts or the curtains in your room. In Morse code, a dot is a short signal, as opposed to the longer "dash." When you recite your website's URL, you might end with "dot com." As a verb, to dot is to mark something with a dot: "You forgot to dot your is!"
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
A fresh approach to the dot plot and the Fed’s broader communication tools is overdue, and the timing is good as the central bank grapples with new and evolving challenges.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 16, 2026
Actors dot the lobby, doing vocal warm-ups between mini panic attacks and greeting old friends from past shows.
From Salon ● Oct. 12, 2026
Now, there are still some t’s to cross and i’s to dot.
From Slate ● Oct. 3, 2026
He was also vicious on the pull, hit classically through the covers and, when Ben Duckett was bowled in the second over and Root faced 13 dot balls in a row, did not panic.
From BBC ● Sep. 27, 2026
Mosley rang Michael’s doorbell at noon on the dot.
From "The First State of Being" by Erin Entrada Kelly
“If you designed your Muse avatar or if you designed your Dot in the likeness of your pet, perhaps you would feel a little bit more forgiving if your pet coughs up a hairball, right?”
From Slate ● Oct. 14, 2026
For example, developers can use a Dot to run tasks in Codex.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 30, 2026
Users can only have one Dot agent, although the company plans to allow access to teams of agents in the future.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 29, 2026
Her feature film debut came in 1998, when she voiced Princess Dot in “A Bug’s Life.”
From Salon ● Aug. 19, 2026
Aunt Dot sat on one side, Uncle Dan on the other.
From "Maniac Magee" by Jerry Spinelli
But if you opt for a refund, it can be sent in the form of a flight credit or a cash refund, according to DOT rules.
From MarketWatch ● Jun. 23, 2026
But Ben Brake, director general of DOT Europe, whose members include Amazon and Apple, said "retaliating against US corporations in response to trade disputes will neither drive innovation nor strengthen Europe's competitiveness".
From Barron's ● May 30, 2026
The Federal Aviation Administration, a DOT unit, has been scrutinizing Boeing after a string of earlier safety and quality lapses, and is weighing whether to approve the company’s new aircraft designs.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 14, 2026
The DOT fined United in 2019 for providing inaccurate information to passengers about how much they are owed in delayed, lost or damaged baggage.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 14, 2026
Mr. Hastings, of whom you bought that boat, is going to enter his new CARLOPA, and Dick has entered the DOT, in the baby class of course.
From Tom Swift and His Motor-Boat, or, the Rivals of Lake Carlopa by Victor [pseud.] Appleton
By the latter part of the year, like now, markets give the dots unusual weight.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 16, 2026
Watt: Do you remember seeing a Flying V guitar with polka dots?
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 13, 2026
“So it re-prices the entire workforce,” Hammack said, connecting the dots.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 11, 2026
However, integrating the new dots onto a device "seems like a very reasonable thing to assume we may do someday," Altman said.
From Barron's ● Sep. 30, 2026
Given any set of facts, there are countless theories that can account for them, just as there are countless lines that can be drawn through any set of dots to join them together.
From "The Invention of Science" by David Wootton
Their shirts and pants are dotted with holes.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 16, 2026
He dotted the upper rail with his fastball, threw his curveball for both swing-and-miss and called strikes, and mixed in his changeup to right-handed batters.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 15, 2026
Pope mania is in evidence throughout Chiclayo, which is dotted with murals of the Augustinian friar.
From Barron's ● Oct. 14, 2026
Geological evidence and plant fossils show that the Triassic landscape of Kariba was dry and dotted with stands of large conifer trees, with green corridors of vegetation following permanent watercourses.
From Science Daily ● Oct. 13, 2026
Piles of uncollected garbage, along with abandoned vehicles, dotted the banks.
From "Mountains Beyond Mountains" by Tracy Kidder and Michael French
Lee insisted on including the American flags dotting lawns, the general sense of unease and, in a somber touch, a credits sequence featuring the Tribute in Light.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 11, 2026
“No matter what the federal government was doing, they knew that if they weren’t dotting their i’s and crossing their t’s, they were going to get called to account,” Hilton said.
From Salon ● Jul. 15, 2026
From the airport lounge to roundabouts dotting Benin's economic capital Cotonou, images of his smiling face framed by his round glasses have been prominent for weeks.
From Barron's ● Apr. 14, 2026
Should boomtowns dotting the new market be expected to shrink back into villages—or less?
From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 6, 2026
She admires the sea, a calm, brilliant turquoise to her left, and the familiar pattern of royal palms dotting the landscape.
From "Dreaming in Cuban" by Cristina García
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Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
