- douse, dowse
- The first means to drench; the second means to search for water.
Dictionary of troublesome word. Bill Bryson. 2013.
douse, dowse
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douse, dowse — The first means to drench; the second means to search for water … Dictionary of troublesome word
dowse — douse, dowse Three verbs are involved here: (1) douse, pronounced like the noun house, meaning ‘to doff (a hat etc.)’, (2) douse, pronounced like the first one and possibly related to it, meaning ‘to plunge into water’, and (3) dowse, pronounced… … Modern English usage
douse — douse, dowse Three verbs are involved here: (1) douse, pronounced like the noun house, meaning ‘to doff (a hat etc.)’, (2) douse, pronounced like the first one and possibly related to it, meaning ‘to plunge into water’, and (3) dowse, pronounced… … Modern English usage
douse — dowse [daus] v [T] [Date: 1600 1700; Origin: Probably from douse to hit (16 18 centuries)] 1.) to stop a fire from burning by pouring water on it 2.) [+ with/in] to cover something in water or other liquid … Dictionary of contemporary English
Douse — (dous), v. t. [imp. & p. p. {Doused} (doust); p. pr. & vb. n. {Dousing}.] [Cf. {Dowse}, and OD. donsen to strike with the fist on the back, Sw. dunsa to fall down violently and noisily; perh. akin to E. din.] 1. To plunge suddenly into water; to… … The Collaborative International Dictionary of English
Dowse — Dowse, v. t. [Cf. 1st {Douse}.] 1. To plunge, or duck into water; to immerse; to douse. [1913 Webster] 2. [Cf. OD. doesen to strike, Norw. dusa to break.] To beat or thrash. [Prov. Eng.] Halliwell. [1913 Webster] … The Collaborative International Dictionary of English
douse — (also dowse) ► VERB 1) drench with liquid. 2) extinguish (a fire or light). ORIGIN perhaps imitative, influenced by SOUSE(Cf. ↑souse), or perhaps from dialect douse strike, beat … English terms dictionary
dowse — [ dauz ] verb intransitive 1. ) to search for water underground using a special stick that moves when you are near the right place 2. ) another spelling of douse ╾ dows|er noun count … Usage of the words and phrases in modern English
douse — , dowse The first means to drench; the second means to search for water … Bryson’s dictionary for writers and editors
Douse — This is an interesting and unusual name of medieval origin and is a dialectal variant of the name Daw, itself a name that can be either English or Welsh, with totally different origins. The Welsh form is from the pet name Daw for David, which is… … Surnames reference
