don't

American

[dohnt] / doʊnt /

verb

contraction of do not.
Nonstandard except in some dialects. contraction of does not.

noun

don'ts, customs, rules, or regulations that forbid something.

The boss has a long list of don'ts that you had better observe if you want a promotion.

don't British

/ dəʊnt /

contraction

do not

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of don't

First recorded in 1600–10

Compare meaning

How does dont compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:

don't vs. doesn't

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.

This doesn’t mean we don’t love a luck dragon.

From Salon • Jun. 24, 2026

"I certainly don't think that challenge is going to be easier. It's going to be harder."

From BBC • Jun. 24, 2026

“But for now, we remain very cautious about picking a top in this dollar move; we still don’t think this is the start of a new bullish cycle, but near-term momentum remains solid.”

From Barron's • Jun. 24, 2026

“It’s a big issue. We’re very close to this threshold, and most people don’t even know that threshold exists.”

From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 24, 2026

I have a limited amount of time to make my mark in the world, and I don’t want to spend it trying to fix small-town racism.

From "Split the Sky" by Marie Arnold

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023