Don Definition & Meaning

American

British

Usage

Etymology

Examples

Related Words

Synonyms don 1 American [don, dawn] / dɒn, dɔn /

noun

1. (initial capital letter) Mr.; Sir: a Spanish title prefixed to a man's given name.

2. (in Spanish-speaking countries) a lord or gentleman.

3. (initial capital letter) an Italian title of address, especially for a priest.

4. a person of great importance.

5. (in the English universities) a head, fellow, or tutor of a college.

6. (in the Mafia) a head of a family or syndicate.

Don 2 American [don, dawn] / dɒn, dɔn /

noun

1. a river flowing generally S from Tula in the Russian Federation in Europe, to the Sea of Azov. About 1,200 miles (1,930 km) long.

2. a river in NE Scotland, flowing E from Aberdeen county to the North Sea. 62 miles (100 km) long.

3. a river in central England, flowing NE from S Yorkshire to the Humber estuary. 60 miles (97 km) long.

4. a male given name, form of Donald.

don 3 American [don] / dɒn /

verb (used with object)

donned, donning

1. to put on, as clothing or equipment.

   He donned his best shirt and tie for the interview.

   Donning goggles and fins, they dived off the raft one by one.

2. to assume or adopt, as a particular attitude, responsibility, etc..

   The actress is all set to don a new role as first-time director of her own film.

Don 4 American [dawn] / dɔn /

noun

Welsh Mythology.

1. a goddess, the mother of Gwydion and Arianrod: corresponds to the Irish Danu.

don 5 American [dohn] / doʊn /

conjunction

1. (in prescriptions) donec.

don 1 British / dɒn /

noun

1. a member of the teaching staff at a university or college, esp at Oxford or Cambridge

2. the head of a student dormitory at certain Canadian universities and colleges

3. a Spanish gentleman or nobleman

4. (in the Mafia) the head of a family

"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 Don 2 British / dɒn /

noun

1. a river rising in W Russia, southeast of Tula and flowing generally south, to the Sea of Azov: linked by canal to the River Volga. Length: 1870 km (1162 miles)

2. a river in NE Scotland, rising in the Cairngorm Mountains and flowing east to the North Sea. Length: 100 km (62 miles)

3. a river in N central England, rising in S Yorkshire and flowing northeast to the Humber. Length: about 96 km (60 miles)

"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 Don 3 British / don, dɒn /

noun

1. a Spanish title equivalent to Mr : placed before a name to indicate respect

"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 don 4 British / dɒn /

verb

1. (tr) to put on (clothing)

"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

Usage

What is a basic definition of don? Don means to put on or dress in clothing. The word Don is a title for men in Spanish and don is a term for the head of a mafia family. Don has a few other senses as a noun.When used as a verb, don means to put on clothing. When you don a fancy hat, you place it on your head. Sometimes don is used to indicate that you’re putting on fancy clothes.

• Real-life examples: People don formal clothes to attend weddings. The media is often obsessed with the designer clothing that celebrities have donned for an awards show. It is a good idea to don a helmet when riding a bike.
• Used in a sentence: I don my long winter coat whenever it snows.

In Spanish, the title Don is used like Mr. in English to show respect to a man. Don is used before a man’s first name.

• Real-life example: The fictional Don Juan was a legendary womanizer. The fictional Don Quixote is remembered for battling with windmills.
• Used in a sentence: While in Spain, I met with my good friends Don Emilio and Don Diego.

The word don is also used to refer to the head of a mafia family or syndicate. This sense of don is also sometimes used as a title.

• Real-life examples: Actor Marlon Brando played Vito Corleone, the don of the fictional Corleone family, in the film The Godfather. Carlo Gambino was the don of New York City’s Gambino crime family.
• Used in a sentence: The police arrested several low-ranking members of the crime family but could never get evidence against the don.

Etymology

Origin of don1

First recorded in 1515–25; from Italian, Spanish, from Latin dominus “lord, master”

Origin of don3

First recorded in 1560–70; contraction of do 1 + on; doff

Origin of don5

By shortening of Latin donec ( 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.

The sports icon, donning a scarf and newsboy hat, disrupts the snowy scene outside of Clara’s home.

From Los Angeles Times

We caught up with four stars of the stage as they donned their costumes and sequins to come up with a list that enables a dame to steal the show.

From BBC

“To be clear: had I not donned my oxygen mask on that July flight, we would have killed every person on that aircraft,” Tellman wrote in a letter to his union detailing the experience.

From The Wall Street Journal

England team analyst Rupert Lewis donned whites to run the drinks and music played from the dressing rooms throughout the three days.

From BBC

When Kane Williamson leaves the Bay Oval field on Monday at the end of the Black Caps' third Test against the West Indies, he may never don New Zealand whites again.

From Barron's

Related Words

• dress
• put on
• wear

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.