Dan

¹

[dan]

noun

1. 1. (in the Bible) a son of Jacob and Bilhah.

   2. one of the 12 tribes of ancient Israel, traditionally descended from him.

2. the northernmost city of ancient Palestine.

3. a male given name, form of Daniel.

Dan

²

[dan]

noun

Archaic.

1. a title of honor equivalent to master or sir:

   Dan Chaucer.

dan

³

[dahn, dan]

noun

Martial Arts.

1. a degree of expertise in karate, judo, tae kwon do, etc., usually signified by the wearing of a cloth belt of a particular color; level.

   a sixth-degree dan.

Dan.

⁴

abbreviation

1. Bible.,  Daniel.

2. Danish. Also Dan

Dan

¹

/ dæn /

noun

1. 1. the fourth son of Jacob (Genesis 30:1–6)

   2. the tribe descended from him

2. a city in the northern territory of Canaan

Dan.

²

abbreviation

1. Bible Daniel

2. Danish

dan

³

/ dæn /

noun

1. any one of the 10 black-belt grades of proficiency

2. a competitor entitled to dan grading

Dan

⁴

/ dæn /

noun

1. an archaic title of honour, equivalent to Master or Sir

   Dan Chaucer

dan

⁵

/ dæn /

noun

1. Also called: dan buoy. a small buoy used as a marker at sea

Word History and Origins

Origin of Dan¹

1275–1325; Middle English < Old French danz < Medieval Latin domnus, contraction of Latin dominus “lord, master”

Origin of Dan²

First recorded in 1940–45; from Japanese, from Middle Chinese, equivalent to Chinese duàn “step, grade”

Word History and Origins

Origin of Dan¹

Japanese

Origin of Dan²

C17: of unknown origin

Idioms and Phrases

Idioms

1. from Dan to Beersheba, from one outermost extreme or limit to the other.

Example Sentences

Meanwhile, Ukraine's top presidential aide Andriy Yermak said that US Army Secretary Dan Driscoll is due to visit Kyiv later in the week.

Read more on BBC

Separately, Boohoo said it plans to replace its long-term incentive schemes so that Chief Executive Dan Finley and Chief Financial Officer Phil Ellis, who are key to its transformation, can join.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

Dan Bubb, an aviation historian and professor at University of Nevada Las Vegas, told the BBC that, despite the rise in incivility cases, statistically that number wasn't very significant.

Read more on BBC

Hegseth has briefed the president on battlefield updates alongside Gen. Dan Caine, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs, and he takes part in the president’s intelligence briefings, Leavitt said.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

But in fact, Secretary of the Army Dan Driscoll was dispatched to speak with Ukrainians, and, according to a report in the Financial Times, Driscoll spent his meeting in Kyiv presenting the 28-point plan as an ultimatum.

Read more on Slate