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duo

[doo-oh, dyoo-oh]
noun, plural du·os.
  1. Music. duet.
  2. two persons commonly associated with each other; couple.
  3. two animals or objects of the same sort; two things ordinarily placed or found together; a pair: a duo of lovebirds.
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Origin of duo

1580–90; < Italian < Latin: two
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Related Words

pair, couple, brace, dyad, doublet

Examples from the Web for duos

Historical Examples

  • Amongst his compositions he published six Duos concertants (Op.3 and 4) as well as a Potpourri for two violoncellos.

    The Violoncello and Its History

    Wilhelm Joseph von Wasielewski

  • Supra duos istos lacus tertius est, ambobus major, quem superiorem lacum appellant.

  • He died of apoplexy in 1471, alone and suddenly, after supping on two huge watermelons, duos prægrandes pepones.

  • The duos father and son played together were the joy of the neighborhood, ten blocks around.

    Dust of New York

    Konrad Bercovici

  • The whole of his Duos are admirable, as respects both invention and energy: they may be called Concertos in miniature36.

    The Violin

    George Dubourg

British Dictionary definitions for duos

duo

noun plural duos or dui (ˈdjuːiː)
  1. music
    1. a pair of performers
    2. another word for duet
  2. a pair of actors, entertainers, etc
  3. informal a pair of closely connected individuals
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Word Origin

C16: via Italian from Latin: two
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 duos

duo

n.

1580s, "song for two voices," via either Italian or French, from Latin duo "two" (see two). Meaning "two people" (especially as an entertainment team) attested by 1887.

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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper