Jump To:

• 'd
  'd

  contraction of had:
• D
  D

  noun

  the fourth letter of the English alphabet, a consonant.
• D-
  D-

  (of a molecule) having a configuration resembling the dextrorotatory isomer of glyceraldehyde: always printed as a small capital, roman character.
• d'
  d'

  preposition

  de (used in French names as an elided form ofde ).
• d-
  d-

  dextrorotatory; dextro- (distinguished from l-).
• d.
  d.

  abbreviation

  (in prescriptions) give.
• D.
  D.

  abbreviation

  day.
• d
  d

  noun

  the fourth letter and third consonant of the modern English alphabet

'd

¹ American  

1. contraction of had:

   I was glad they'd gone.

2. contraction of did:

   Where'd they go?

3. contraction of should or would:

   He'd like to go. I'd like to remind you of your promise.

4. contraction of -ed:

   She OK'd the plan.

---

D ² American  

[dee] / di /

Or d

noun

• D's,
  plural
• Ds,
  plural
• d's,
  plural
• ds
  plural

1. the fourth letter of the English alphabet, a consonant.

2. any spoken sound represented by the letter D or d, as in dog, ladder, ladle, or pulled.

3. something having the shape of a D .

4. a written or printed representation of the letter D or d.

5. a device, as a printer's type, for reproducing the letter D or d.

---

D ³ American  

abbreviation

1. Electricity. debye; debyes.

2. deep.

3. depth.

4. Optics. diopter.

5. divorced.

6. Dutch.

---

D ⁴ American  

Symbol.

1. the fourth in order or in a series.

2. (sometimes lowercase) (in some grading systems) a grade or mark, as in school or college, indicating the quality of a student's work as poor or barely passing.

3. (sometimes lowercase) a classification, rating, or the like, indicating poor quality.

4. Music.

   1. the second tone in the scale of C major, or the fourth tone in the relative minor scale, A minor.

   2. a string, key, or pipe tuned to this tone.

   3. a written or printed note representing this tone.

   4. (in the fixed system of solmization) the second tone of the scale of C major, called re.

   5. the tonality having D as the tonic note.

5. (sometimes lowercase) the Roman numeral for 500.

6. Chemistry. deuterium. Also 2H

7. Electricity.

   1. electric displacement.

   2. a battery size for 1.5 volt dry cells: diameter, 1.3 inches (3.3 centimeters); length, 2.4 inches (6 centimeters).

8. Biochemistry. aspartic acid.

9. a symbol for a shoe width size narrower than E and wider than C.

10. a proportional brassiere cup size larger than C.

---

D- ⁵ American  

1. Symbol, Biochemistry. (of a molecule) having a configuration resembling the dextrorotatory isomer of glyceraldehyde: always printed as a small capital, roman character.

---

d' ⁶ American  

preposition

1. de (used in French names as an elided form ofde ).

   Charles Louis d'Albert.

2. di (used in Italian names as an elided form ofdi ).

   Gabriele d'Annunzio.

---

d' ⁷ American  

1. Informal. contraction of do or did before you:

   How d'you like your eggs cooked? D'you go to the movies last night?

---

d- ⁸ American  

Symbol, Chemistry, Biochemistry.

1. dextrorotatory; dextro- (distinguished from l-).

---

d. ⁹ American  

abbreviation

1. (in prescriptions) give.

---

d. ¹⁰ American  

abbreviation

1. British. pence.

---

d. ¹¹ American  

abbreviation

1. date.

2. daughter.

3. day.

4. deceased.

5. deep.

6. degree.

7. delete.

8. Physics. density.

9. depth.

10. deputy.

11. dialect.

12. dialectal.

13. diameter.

14. died.

15. dime.

16. dividend.

17. dollar; dollars.

18. dose.

19. drachma.

---

D. ¹² American  

abbreviation

1. day.

2. December.

3. Democrat.

4. Democratic.

5. Physics. density.

6. Deus.

7. Deuteronomy.

8. Doctor.

9. dose.

10. Dutch.

---

D ¹ British  

symbol

1. music

   1. a note having a frequency of 293.66 hertz ( D above middle C ) or this value multiplied or divided by any power of 2; the second note of the scale of C major

   2. a key, string, or pipe producing this note

   3. the major or minor key having this note as its tonic

2. chem deuterium

3. maths the first derivative of a function, as in D( x ³ + x ²) = 3 x ² + 2 x

4. physics

   1. dispersion

   2. electric displacement

5. aeronautics drag

6. 1. a semiskilled or unskilled manual worker, or a trainee or apprentice to a skilled worker

   2. ( as modifier ) See also occupation groupings

      D worker

7. 500 See Roman numerals

---

abbreviation

1. Germany (international car registration)

2. 1. informal defence

      I'm playing D in the match this afternoon

   2. informal defensive play

d ² British  

/ diː /

noun

1. the fourth letter and third consonant of the modern English alphabet

2. a speech sound represented by this letter, usually a voiced alveolar stop, as in dagger

3. the semicircle on a billiards table having a radius of 11 1/ 2 inches and its straight edge in the middle of the baulk line

---

D. ³ British  

abbreviation

1. politics Democrat(ic)

2. government Department

3. dinar(s)

4. Don (a Spanish title)

5. Duchess

6. Duke

7. (in the US and Canada) Doctor

---

'd ⁴ British  

contraction

1. would or had

   I'd

   you'd

---

d ⁵ British  

symbol

1. physics density or relative density

2. maths a small increment in a given variable or function: used to indicate a derivative of one variable with respect to another, as in d y /d x

3. chess See algebraic notation

---

D ⁶ British  

abbreviation

1. Deutsch: indicating the serial number in the catalogue (1951) of the musical compositions of Schubert made by Otto Deutsch (1883–1967)

---

d. ⁷ British  

abbreviation

1. (in animal pedigrees) dam

2. daughter

3. currency penny or pennies

4. diameter

5. died

6. dinar(s)

7. dollar(s)

8. drachma(s)

---

d Scientific  

1. Abbreviation of diameter

---

Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• D's
  plural
• Ds
  plural
• d's
  plural
• ds
  plural

Etymology

Origin of d.⁹

From the Latin word dā

Origin of d.¹⁰

From the Latin word denāriī

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

'd D D- d' d- d. D. d D's Ds d's ds

“If they had said, ‘We’re going to do this for another 20 years,’ I ‘d have been on board in a heartbeat.”

From Los Angeles Times ● May 27, 2026

But still, one by one, we ’d all burned out.

From Salon ● May 7, 2024

We ’d be fixing the economy, ad- dressing national security issues, and improving education.

From MSNBC ● Sep. 9, 2014

“Well, you ‘d have to know my mom.

From Scientific American ● Jun. 9, 2012

Suddenly a face is in front of mine and coffee breath goes up my nostrils and a voice says, I have someone I bet you ’d life to meet.

From "Mockingbird" by Kathryn Erskine

During that time, older adults can switch from traditional Medicare to a private Medicare Advantage plan, change from one Medicare Advantage plan to another, and join or change their Medicare Part D prescription-drug plan.

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 11, 2026

Participants consuming more dairy, however, showed improvements in blood pressure and consumed more calcium, protein, and vitamin D.

From Science Daily ● Aug. 9, 2026

When a nurse called to relay his results, she also suggested that he add a vitamin D supplement, though with much less urgency, Gawat recalled.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 6, 2026

One tool, she said, grades CVs from A to D, encouraging recruiters to prioritise higher-ranked candidates.

From BBC ● Aug. 5, 2026

“You have a D in spelling,” Dad told me before the door was even closed.

From Absolutely Almost by Lisa Graff

In their most recent assessment, for example, transit scored a D- and hazardous waste a D+.

From National Geographic ● Jul. 17, 2023

Rep. Kim Schrier, D- Sammamish, 8th Congressional District, which was stretched further into more conservative territory on the east slopes of the Cascade Mountains.

From Seattle Times ● Jun. 17, 2022

Louisiana’s drinking water infrastructure limps in with a D-.

From Washington Post ● Jun. 16, 2021

Ms. E.K. announced that she would be holding before-school tutoring sessions, which Sarah, who finished the fall semester with a D-, never would have attended during remote learning.

From New York Times ● May 13, 2021

One shall be Duke of D-, though he has not a foot of land in Dorsetshire; and another is Earl of a village, though he scarce knows where it is situated. 

From Letters on England by Voltaire

In the A.I. age, Maggie Hennessy asserts, sparring with a grouchy maître d’ over the phone is part of what makes dining out great.

From Slate ● Jul. 24, 2026

He got into it with the maître d’: “You don’t trust that my date is not going to take pictures?”

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 11, 2025

Girmay topped his Gent-Wevelgem victory with another history-making stage win at Giro d' Italia, which after the Tour de France is cycling's second biggest Grand Tour race.

From BBC ● Jul. 19, 2024

“A lot of times, you won’t even see the dog” until you seat the owners, said Ally Gallegos, a former maître d’ at an upscale neighborhood restaurant in the West Village.

From New York Times ● May 16, 2024

With a flourish, the maître d’ held back an armful of foliage so that Penelope could enter the leafy, secluded room.

From "The Hidden Gallery" by Maryrose Wood

Ke5, Muzychuk can’t hold back both the d- and g-pawns indefinitely and resigned.

From Washington Times ● Dec. 27, 2022

Both the d- and f-block elements react with nonmetals to form binary compounds; heating is often required.

From Textbooks ● Feb. 14, 2019

They're called d- and l-isomers—d for dextro, l for levo; right and left, you see.

From A Feast of Demons by Joseph Samachson

New Designs University Park, 16-25, 25-22, 25-21, 22-25, 15-13 Jordan d. 25-23, 25-19, 25-10 Westchester d.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 31, 2024

But just as bell hooks, the feminist writer, and k. d. lang, the singer-songwriter, often see their names appear with unwanted capital letters, lowercase compositions are often capitalized on their way to publication.

From New York Times ● Mar. 17, 2017

Use your answers to parts a. and d. to determine which of the three options is best.

From Textbooks ● Mar. 30, 2016

From part d. we see that receiving $1 million dollars per year indefinitely is worth $20 million dollars in today’s dollars.

From Textbooks ● Mar. 30, 2016

Louisa, only dau. of her father, Edward Byam, d. unm. at Kensington, in 1835.

From Antigua and the Antiguans, Volume II (of 2) A full account of the colony and its inhabitants from the time of the Caribs to the present day by Anonymous

One of the suspects charged in Poland, a Ukrainian called Vladyslav D., described in detail to investigators how he made multiple long car trips in July 2024 following instructions from someone he knew as "Warrior".

From BBC ● Aug. 7, 2026

During the Great Depression, President Franklin D. Roosevelt proposed social insurance as a new approach to economic security.

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 3, 2026

Emily D. Engelschall, associate vice chancellor for enrollment services at UC Riverside, pointed out that the campus admitted 13% more community college transfers.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 29, 2026

Gen. Dwight D. Eisenhower’s North African headquarters put forward an audacious plan: Construct war-zone Coca-Cola bottling plants near the soldiers.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 19, 2026

“It could have been Big Ma, Ma Charles, or Uncle D. How’d you know it was me?”

From "Gone Crazy in Alabama" by Rita Williams-Garcia

KKR’s fee-related earnings jumped 37% from a year ago, and the firm raise d more than $34 billion.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 30, 2026

Of the three known planets in the system, Beta Pictoris d has the widest orbit, although it still lies inside the inner boundary of the debris disk.

From Science Daily ● Jul. 23, 2026

Researchers estimate that Beta Pictoris d has at least twice the mass of Jupiter.

From Science Daily ● Jul. 23, 2026

Newport Harbor, 25-16, 25-17, 25-22 Redondo Union d.

From Los Angeles Times ● May 5, 2026

It was like when I did the class presentation, f d been sure I was going to faint then too.

From "The Lions of Little Rock" by Kristin Levine

What drives customers to storage, Dietz says are the four D’s: downsizing, decluttering, divorce and death.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 15, 2026

And what makes Mickey D’s breakfast interesting, suggested CNBC’s Carl Quintanilla, is that it could be considered a “proxy for employment. You’re more likely to visit if you have somewhere to go in the morning.”

From Slate ● Aug. 8, 2025

In fact, studies show that 66% of students who earn all A's play organized sports compared to just 24% of students with mostly D's and F's.

From Salon ● Jan. 1, 2025

When he first heard Public Enemy in sixth or seventh-grade, Chuck D’s voice sounded invincible, like he could take on the world alone.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 9, 2024

“Yeah, it was rough. But I got an A. Let’s go to Mickey D’s and get something to eat before the game.”

From "Forged by Fire" by Sharon M. Draper

Only eight banks got Bs, while the majority got Cs; 36 got Ds.

From MarketWatch ● Feb. 27, 2026

The words are thought to reference the "three Ds of insurance" - tactics used by companies to reject payment claims from customers.

From BBC ● Feb. 6, 2026

The same four Ds applied: death, divorce, dislocation, and disaster/downsizing.

From Slate ● Aug. 5, 2024

"She says you haven't shown enough yet for why we need to seal the list—eg can you maybe redact—or why you need me to make Ds 'acknowledge' it," he wrote.

From Salon ● Jun. 27, 2023

He had been getting Cs and Ds, and college never felt like home, anyway.

From "Class Matters" by The New York Times

The researchers intend to continue examining Webb's observations to refine their estimates of Beta Pictoris d's temperature, atmospheric composition, and orbit.

From Science Daily ● Jul. 23, 2026

A small illustration of the eponymous rat hangs in the restaurant, signed by director Brad Bird, who spent days sketching the dining room, capturing the lamps, cheese trolley and maitre d's outfit.

From BBC ● Jan. 29, 2024

Dinner maitre d’s are gently professional, warm and welcoming.

From Washington Times ● Jul. 17, 2018

I know the NYT has other food writers covering the cheaper places while Pete Wells reviews the fancier places more likely to have a maître d's, sommeliers, and pastry chefs.

From New York Times ● Jan. 23, 2018

He pronounced the words lazily, blunting the t’s to d’s so that it sounded like “siddle lister.”

From "Educated" by Tara Westover

The Cyclones closed the third quarter with a pair of 3-pointers, the second by Ryan in the closing secon ds, that put ISU on top 49-47.

From Seattle Times ● Jan. 18, 2023

Senior forward Oscar ds Silva has played well all season and was named the Pac-12 player of the week after averaging 19.8 points and 11 rebounds in three games last week.

From Washington Times ● Jan. 13, 2021

The number of ds that were added to a1 is one less than the number of the term.

From Textbooks ● May 6, 2020

If f is a continuous function on a smooth curve C, then ∫C f ds always exists.

From Textbooks ● Mar. 30, 2016

Hence ds is a homogeneous function of the first degree of the increments dx.

From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 11, Slice 6 "Geodesy" to "Geometry" by Various