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definitions

doze

1
[dohz]
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SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR doze ON THESAURUS.COM

verb (used without object), dozed, doz·ing.

to sleep lightly or fitfully.
to fall into a light sleep unintentionally (often followed by off): He dozed off during the sermon.
to sleep for a short time; nap.
to be dull or half asleep.

verb (used with object), dozed, doz·ing.

to pass or spend (time) in drowsiness (often followed by away): He dozed away the afternoon.

noun

a light or fitful sleep; nap.

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RELATED WORDS

snooze, slumber, catnap, nap, siesta, drowse, sleep, shut-eye

Origin of doze

1
1640–50; orig. (now obsolete) to stupefy, make drowsy; compare Scots, N England dialect dozened, Middle English (Scots) dosnyt, dosinnit stupefied, dazed; akin to Old Norse dūsa rest, Swedish dialect dusa doze, slumber, Middle Low German dusen to be thoughtless; cf. daze

Synonyms for doze

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR doze ON THESAURUS.COM
6. snooze, siesta, catnap, forty winks.

doze

2
[dohz]

verb (used with or without object), dozed, doz·ing.

Informal. to clear or level with a bulldozer.

Origin of doze

2
First recorded in 1940–45; shortened form of bulldoze
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for doze

Historical Examples of doze

British Dictionary definitions for doze

doze

verb (intr)

to sleep lightly or intermittently
(often foll by off) to fall into a light sleep

noun

a short sleep
Derived Formsdozer, noun

Word Origin for doze

C17: probably from Old Norse dūs lull; related to Danish döse to drowse, Swedish dialect dusa slumber
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
Word Origin and History for doze
v.

1640s, probably from a Scandinavian source (cf. Old Norse dusa "to doze," Danish døse "to make dull," Swedish dialectal dusa "to sleep"); related to Old English dysig "foolish" (see dizzy). May have existed in dialect earlier than attested date. Related: Dozed; dozing. As a noun, from 1731.

Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper