dose

[ dohs ]

noun

1. a quantity of medicine prescribed to be taken at one time.
2. a substance, situation, or quantity of anything analogous to medicine, especially of something disagreeable:

   Failing the exam was a hard dose to swallow.

3. an amount of sugar added in the production of champagne.
4. Physics.
   1. Also called absorbed dose. the quantity of ionizing radiation absorbed by a unit mass of matter, especially living tissue, measured in grays: although increasingly disfavored, in the U.S. an absorbed dose may still be measured in rads.
   2. exposure dose.
5. Slang. a case of gonorrhea or syphilis.

verb (used with object)

, dosed, dos·ing.

1. to administer in or apportion for doses.
2. to give a dose of medicine to.
3. to add sugar to (champagne) during production.

verb (used without object)

, dosed, dos·ing.

1. to take a dose of medicine.

dose

/ dəʊs /

noun

1. med a specific quantity of a therapeutic drug or agent taken at any one time or at specified intervals
2. informal.
   something unpleasant to experience

   a dose of influenza

3. Also calleddosage the total energy of ionizing radiation absorbed by unit mass of material, esp of living tissue; usually measured in grays (SI unit) or rads
4. Also calleddosage a small amount of syrup added to wine, esp sparkling wine, when the sediment is removed and the bottle is corked
5. slang.
   a venereal infection, esp gonorrhoea
6. like a dose of salts
   like a dose of salts very quickly indeed

verb

1. to administer a dose or doses to (someone)
2. med to give (a therapeutic drug or agent) in appropriate quantities
3. often foll by up to give (someone, esp oneself) drugs, medicine, etc, esp in large quantities
4. to add syrup to (wine) during bottling

Derived Forms

• ˈdoser, noun

Other Words From

• dos·er noun
• su·per·dose noun
• un·der·dose noun
• un·der·dose verb (used with object) underdosed underdosing
• well-dosed adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of dose¹

First recorded in 1590–1600; French , from Late Latin dosis, from Greek dósis “a giving, gift,” derivative of didónai “to give”

Word History and Origins

Origin of dose¹

C15: from French, from Late Latin dosis, from Greek: a giving, from didonai to give

Example Sentences

States and counties receive a certain number of doses to try to meet the needs of their populations, and visitors and nonresidents may edge out others who qualify.

From Vox

Leaders in the District and Maryland on Thursday continued to confront enormous demand for vaccine doses from residents and from the pharmacies, clinics and health departments administering the shots.

From Washington Post

Moderna has said that it will run its studies of children under 12 testing lower doses first.

From ProPublica

While perhaps not producing a ton of snow, the weather pattern will remain very active through the weekend, when another winter weather event may deliver a dose of snow, sleet and freezing rain Saturday and Saturday night.

From Washington Post

Montgomery Health Officer Travis Gayles said Wednesday that another challenge in distributing vaccine doses is not having adequate notice from the state health department on how many doses the county government will receive.

From Washington Post

If laughter is the best medicine, The Comeback made you feel enough pain to need a dose—and then it delivered in spades.

From The Daily Beast

Stop Making Sense is the only current movie that's a dose of happiness from beginning to end.

From The Daily Beast

The “gold standard” dose is 30 minutes of 10,000 lux light, one hour of 5,000 lux light or two hours of 2,500 lux light.

From The Daily Beast

On Wednesday, anchor Shepard Smith gave Fox News viewers a dose of rationality.

From The Daily Beast

The story gets out that Obama skipped his usual afternoon dose of caffeine heading toward the U.N. meeting.

From The Daily Beast

But I couldn't get rid of the notion that he would hand me out the same dose he had given MacRae if only he had the power.

From Project Gutenberg

He's getting a little stiff in the joints of his good nature, but a good dose of flattery'll limber him up considerable.

From Project Gutenberg

Nor could they forget the Sunday mornings when his reverence took his dose of egg-flip before church, in order to clear his voice.

From Project Gutenberg

Great caution is necessary in the use of these powerful medicines to avoid an over-dose.

From Project Gutenberg

Ill kill half Dunellen and all Mayfield with overdoses before another night, and then take a big dose myself.

From Project Gutenberg

Related Words

• application
• dosage
• lot
• measure
• measurement
• prescription
• quantity
• shot