do for
Britishverb
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(tr) to convict of a crime or offence
they did him for manslaughter
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(intr) to cause the ruin, death, or defeat of
the last punch did for him
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(intr) to do housework for
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to thrive or succeed
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Bring about the death, defeat, or ruin of, as in He swore he'd do for him . This usage is often put in the passive voice (see done for ). [First half of 1700s]
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Care or provide for, take care of, as in They decided to hire a housekeeper to do for Grandmother . This usage today is more common in Britain than in America. [Early 1500s]
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.
What did being in the army do for you?
From BBC
"I don't think I understood what I was saying then but I always knew this was something I was going to do for Georgia."
From BBC
The best it can do for jokes is endless animal wordplay—a road sign reading “Gnu Jersey,” a bacchanal dubbed “Burning Mammal.”
Yet as the recent stress tests showed, there is still work to do for the plan and reality to line up.
They’re amping up the laughs, incorporating sci-fi, horror and even a Freaky Friday act where Jinkx and DeLa find themselves body-swapped, something Jinkx has begged to do for years.
From Los Angeles Times
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.