doughnut

American  

[doh-nuht, -nuht] / ˈdoʊ nət, -ˌnʌt /

Or donut

noun

• doughnuts
  plural

1. a small cake of sweetened or, sometimes, unsweetened dough fried in deep fat, typically shaped like a ring or, when prepared with a filling, a ball.

2. anything shaped like a thick ring; an annular object; toroid.

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doughnut British  

/ ˈdəʊnʌt /

noun

1. a small cake of sweetened dough, often ring-shaped or spherical with a jam or cream filling, cooked in hot fat

2. anything shaped like a ring, such as the reaction vessel of a thermonuclear reactor

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verb

1. informal (tr) (of Members of Parliament) to surround (a speaker) during the televising of Parliament to give the impression that the chamber is crowded or the speaker is well supported

Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• doughnuts
  plural

Etymology

Origin of doughnut

First recorded in 1795–1805; dough + nut

Explanation

A doughnut is a delicious, deep-fried breakfast treat. Most doughnuts are round and have a hole in the center. Some have frosting and sprinkles, too. You can also call a doughnut a donut, a slightly more common way to spell it in North America. There are different types of doughnuts, but they're all made of sweet dough that's usually fried (but sometimes baked). Many bakeries that specialize in doughnuts also sell doughnut holes, small enough to pop in your mouth. The very earliest doughnuts were probably the olykoek, or "oil cakes" brought to New York by 19th century Dutch settlers.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

doughnut doughnuts

Inside the machine, which looked like a large blender with a metal doughnut inside, blue and orange lights vibrated within glass tubes, while feathery electricity danced out the top.

From Slate ● Sep. 22, 2026

Customers queued in long lines for a special-edition Harry Potter doughnut collection last year, for example.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 6, 2026

Customers of the doughnut brand Krispy Kreme may be eligible for a $3,500 payout following a 2024 cyberattack that exposed Social Security numbers and bank account details.

From Los Angeles Times ● May 27, 2026

After being taken private in 2020, coffee and doughnut chain Dunkin’ is set to return to the public market — and it’s bringing a few friends.

From MarketWatch ● May 8, 2026

He then pulled out the napkin-wrapped doughnut from his pocket.

From "The Red Umbrella" by Christina Gonzalez

Saunders also noted that a Dunkin’ promo this year offering a free tote bag with the purchase of a half-dozen doughnuts went over well with customers.

From MarketWatch ● Sep. 19, 2026

Apparently, this was evidenced by the fact that people in the office once got doughnuts during a meeting, while the remote employees didn’t get anything special.

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 18, 2026

For dessert, Proust's beloved madeleines and mirabelles jostled for attention with distinctly American-accented glazed doughnuts.

From Barron's ● Jul. 31, 2026

They serve coffee, doughnuts, croissants and avocado toast.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 10, 2026

Jordan had bought doughnuts and milk, along with fresh fruit and a dozen eggs.

From "Forged by Fire" by Sharon M. Draper

Related Words

• bun
• pastry