door-to-door

American  

[dawr-tuh-dawr, dohr-tuh-dohr] / ˈdɔr təˈdɔr, ˈdoʊr təˈdoʊr /

adjective

1. calling, selling, canvassing, etc., at each house or apartment in an area, town, or the like.

   a door-to-door poll.

2. sent direct from the point of pickup to the point of delivery, as a shipment or order of merchandise.

3. covering the complete route of a door-to-door shipment, delivery, etc..

   door-to-door carrying charges; door-to-door insurance.

---

adverb

1. in a door-to-door manner.

door to door British  

adjective

1. (of selling, canvassing, etc) from one house to the next

2. (of journeys, deliveries, etc) direct

---

door to door Idioms  

1. Calling at each house, apartment, store, etc. in an area, in order to deliver, sell, or ask for something. For example, We were asked to go door to door to collect enough signatures . [c. 1900]

2. Sent from a place of origin or pickup to a place of delivery. For example, They quoted me a price for door to door, as well as a lower one if I would pick up the goods myself . This usage is nearly always applied to a shipment of merchandise.

---

Etymology

Origin of door-to-door

First recorded in 1900–05

Example Sentences

Before Reed Hastings revolutionized the global entertainment business, he sold Rainbow vacuum cleaners door-to-door during his gap year between high school and Bowdoin College, where he earned his bachelor’s degree in mathematics.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 16, 2026

Jehovah's Witnesses is a Christian-based religious movement, probably best known for its door-to-door evangelism.

From BBC • Mar. 20, 2026

Eralp said she is modeling her campaign, with its focus on door-to-door canvassing, on New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 11, 2026

"But I have never seen Oli so stressed," he said, noting that this time, unusually, he is going door-to-door to woo voters.

From Barron's • Feb. 19, 2026

Maybe a door-to-door missionary gave it to them, or maybe Matilde brought it from the house where she worked.

From "The Queen of Water" by Laura Resau