do-little
Americannoun
Etymology
Origin of do-little
First recorded in 1580–90; do 1 ( def. ) + little ( def. )
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
For many years, postal reform was the poster child of a do-little Congress.
From Washington Post • Jan. 21, 2016
When he ran for reëlection, in 2014, the Los Angeles Times editorial board preceded its endorsement of him by calling the position a “notoriously do-little job.”
From The New Yorker • Feb. 12, 2015
Yet as the do-little conference wound toward an official close last week, delegates from many developing nations considered extending it for some days.
From Time Magazine Archive
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These rules could do much to dismantle the old-boy, do-little director network--in other words, to make directors work for their money.
From Time Magazine Archive
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But Scud the "easy," Scud the do-little, Scud the good-for-naught—Scud, of whom nobody expected anything—comfortable, self-indulgent Scud, rowed on sturdily straight out into that hell.
From A Republic Without a President and Other Stories by Ward, Herbert D. (Herbert Dickinson)
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.