dowse

[ dous ]

/ daʊs /

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verb (used with or without object), noun dowsed, dows·ing,

douse.

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Other definitions for dowse (2 of 2)

dowse²

[ douz ]

/ daʊz /

verb (used without object), dowsed, dows·ing.

to search for underground supplies of water, metal, etc., by the use of a divining rod.

verb (used with object), dowsed, dows·ing.

to search for (as water) by or as if by dowsing.

Origin of dowse

First recorded in 1685–95; originally dialect (SW England); origin obscure

WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH dowse

douse, dowse

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use dowse in a sentence

The divining, or "dowsing," rod of Dousterswivel still keeps its place in mining superstition and in the search for wells.
The Antiquary, Complete|Sir Walter Scott
The neighbouring village of Stetchworth (or Stretchworth) also suffered in Dowsing's visitation.
Highways and Byways in Cambridge and Ely|Rev. Edward Conybeare.
It is remarkable that these should have escaped the specially thorough "purification" which Dowsing here describes.
Highways and Byways in Cambridge and Ely|Rev. Edward Conybeare.
No serious inquirer into the mysteries of occultism should neglect to study the peculiar human faculty locally known as Dowsing.
Occultism and Common-Sense|Beckles Willson

Stone on to stone, I skipped across a brook, dowsing one leg to the thigh in its bubbling water.
Memoirs of a Midget|Walter de la Mare

British Dictionary definitions for dowse (1 of 2)

dowse¹

/ (daʊs) /

verb, noun

a variant spelling of douse 1

Derived forms of dowse

dowser, noun

British Dictionary definitions for dowse (2 of 2)

dowse²

/ (daʊz) /

verb

(intr) to search for underground water, minerals, etc, using a divining rod; divine

Derived forms of dowse

dowser, noun

Word Origin for dowse

C17: of unknown origin

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