• Doom

    Pronunciation

    • IPA: /duːm/
    • Rhymes: -uːm

    Origin

    From Middle English dome, dom, from Old English dōm ("judgement"), from Proto-Germanic *dōmaz, from Proto-Indo-European *dʰóh₁mos. Compare West Frisian doem, Dutch doem, Danish, Norwegian, and Swedish dom, Icelandic dómur. See also deem.

    Full definition of doom

    Noun

    doom

    (countable and uncountable; plural dooms)
    1. (countable, historical) A law.
      • 1915, Beatrice Adelaide Lees, Alfred the Great: the truth teller, maker of England, 848-899, "What ye will not that other men should do unto you, that do ye not unto other men." "From this one doom," comments Alfred, "a man may bethink him how he should judge every one rightly: he needs no other doombook."
    2. (countable, historical) A judgment or decision.
      • FairfaxAnd there he learned of things and haps to come,
        To give foreknowledge true, and certain doom.
      • 1861, w:Henry James Sumner Maine, w, Kings are spoken of as if they had a store of "Themistes" ready to hand for use; but it must be distinctly understood that they are not laws, but judgments, or, to take the exact Teutonic equivalent, "dooms."
      • 1915, Beatrice Adelaide Lees, Alfred the Great: the truth teller, maker of England, 848-899, when Alfred in turn set himself to the task of stating and interpreting the law of his kingdom, there were already precedents for him to follow, in the written "dooms" (domas) of his predecessors, — themselves but a small portion of the still unwritten custom
    3. (countable, historical) A sentence or penalty for an illegality or type of illegality.
      • J. R. GreenThe first dooms of London provide especially the recovery of cattle belonging to the citizens.
      • 1828, John Erskine, An institute of the law of Scotland, Appeals were by our ancient law styled falsing of dooms. They were to be entered mmediately after doom or sentence was pronounced,
    4. Death.They met an untimely doom when the mineshaft caved in.
      • ShakespeareThis is the day of doom for Bassianus.
      • 2009, Anne Kristin Stuart, Tangled lies, The engines were rumbling, missing every now and then, and Rachel leaned back in her seat, prepared to meet her doom somewhere over the Pacific. At least there was a priest at hand -- maybe she could entice him to hear a final confession.
    5. Destiny, especially terrible.
      • DrydenHomely household task shall be her doom.
      • 2007, Billy Lee Brammer, Fustian Days: Book One: Sonic Goddam Boom, "When should I expect him?" Roy said, resigned to his doom.
      • 2009, December 11, Karen Gormandy, Robin Hood, "After he takes the throne, you will be arrested."
        "You lie like your master, Carfax. Your doom is sealed."
    6. An ill fate; an impending severe occurrence or danger that seems inevitable.
      • 2004, Arthur Miller, The Turpentine Still, unlike Vincent, he wasn't quite taken in by the outbreak of hopefulness on all sides. After all, nothing about the tanks or the process had been resolved; an air of doom still hung undisturbed over the project.
      • 2007, February, Bob Bahr, Tapestries in Oil, Such paintings are inherently moody, and Elliott likes that-even as he carefully avoids dictating a specific mood. "Yesterday I painted the last light of the day-the trees looked pink, and the mountain's shadow was coming over them. It created a feeling of nostalgia... or impending doom... or still, quiet, peacefulness. It depends on the viewer's feelings about the scene, not just mine."
      • 2009, April 27, Nate Davis, After Lions^ gamble, lots of big men tapped, Chung was the first of its four picks in Round 2. His arrival might spell doom for Rodney Harrison.
    7. A feeling of danger, impending danger, darkness or despair.
      • 2006, Sophie Jordan, Once upon a wedding night, She halted her pacing steps as the ugly significance of Nicholas Caulfield's pending arrival washed over her. Ruin. Destitution. Doom settled like a heavy stone in her chest.
      • 2007, Terry Kay, The Year the Lights Came on, Feeling doom, as we learned in the beautiful folk language of blacks who knew the truth of it, began with a single unexpected oddity — a redbird out of season, hail out of cloudless skies, dogs cowering under the house
      • 2008, Beverly Fincham, Real Life Freedom, I'm taking medications every day; never thinking I would be spiraling into nothing but a nightmare that made me feel doom.
      • 2009, March, Deanna Roy, Forget the rules and make the leap, Then the smiling narrator filled me with doom: I was expected to pull my own rip cord. I nearly fainted.
      • 2010‎, July 20, Mark Morford, What to do when it all goes right, perhaps you do that most rare of things when reading the news: You grin, exhale, stop feeling doom in every crevasse and corner of your body.
    8. (sometimes capitalized) The Last Judgment; or, an artistic representation of it.

    Derived terms

    Related terms

    Antonyms

    Verb

    1. To pronounce sentence or judgment on; to condemn.a criminal doomed to death
      • DrydenAbsolves the just, and dooms the guilty souls.
    2. To destine; to fix irrevocably the ill fate of.
      • MacaulayA man of genius ... doomed to struggle with difficulties.
    3. (obsolete) To judge; to estimate or determine as a judge.
    4. (obsolete) To ordain as a penalty; hence, to mulct or fine.
      • ShakespeareHave I tongue to doom my brother's death?
    5. (archaic, US, New England) To assess a tax upon, by estimate or at discretion.

    Anagrams

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