dozer

¹ American  

[doh-zer] / ˈdoʊ zər /

noun

1. a person who dozes.

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dozer ² American  

[doh-zer] / ˈdoʊ zər /

noun

1. bulldozer.

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dozer British  

/ ˈdəʊzə /

noun

1. short for bulldozer

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Usage

What does dozer mean? Dozer is commonly used as a short form of the word bulldozer, a large tractor that has a big, blade-like shovel at the front and moves around using metal tracks over wheels. They’re typically used to move earth and clear debris from an area. Less commonly, bulldozer can also mean a person who intentionally tries to intimidate others. In fact, this was its original use, first recorded in the 1870s. The verb bulldoze comes from around the same time. Today, bulldoze typically means to use a bulldozer, such as to move dirt or clear an area, or, more figuratively, to move forward or advance in an aggressive or forceful way. However, bulldoze originally meant to intimidate, such as with threats of violence. Early records of this use refer to violent attacks, especially whipping, against African Americans by white people in the Southern United States. However, the origin of these words, and how bulldozer came to be a name for a type of tractor, is ultimately unclear. Unrelatedly, dozer is also an informal word for someone who dozes—falls asleep or sleeps for a short time, especially without trying to. This use of the word dozer precedes its use in bulldozer.

Etymology

Origin of dozer¹

First recorded in 1700–10; doze ¹ + -er ¹

Origin of dozer²

By shortening

Example Sentences

Cal Fire confirmed a dozer line was created to help clear vegetation around the fire’s perimeter.

From Los Angeles Times • Jul. 23, 2025

One day a dozer operator broke through the upper crust of snow and fell, machine and all, into the dining room of the original station.

From Salon • May 29, 2023

“The hope is we’re going to try to get the fire to back down to the dozer lines that we have in place,” Burns said.

From Los Angeles Times • Aug. 4, 2022

Griego said they were stopped only by a fuel break, known as a dozer line, just behind Griego’s house, which his cousin had made with a small bulldozer just that day.

From Washington Post • May 17, 2022

Twenty coffee cups, a dozer liqueur glasses, and a solid bank of blue smoke which swirls slowly along the high, gilded ceiling gives a hint of a successful gathering.

From Round the Red Lamp by Doyle, Arthur Conan, Sir