doff

English

Etymology

From Middle English doffen (“take off”), contraction of Old English dōn of. Equivalent to a blend of do +‎ off. Compare don, dup, dout, gauf.

Pronunciation

• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /dɒf/
• (General American) IPA^(key): /dɔf/
• (US, cot–caught merger) IPA^(key): /dɑf/
• Rhymes: -ɒf

• Audio (Southern England)

  (file)

Verb

doff (third-person singular simple present doffs, present participle doffing, simple past and past participle doffed)

1. (clothing) To remove or take off (something such as clothing).

   Synonym: take off

   Antonyms: don, put on

   • c. 1597 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The First Part of Henry the Fourth, […]”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act V, scene i]:

     And made us doff our easy robes of peace.

   • 1867, Ralph Waldo Emerson, “The Adirondacs. A Journal. Dedicated to My Fellow-travellers in August, 1858.”, in May-Day and Other Pieces, Boston, Mass.: Ticknor and Fields, →OCLC, page 47:

     [A]t night, or in the rain, / He dons a surcoat which he doffs at morn: […]

   • 1960, P[elham] G[renville] Wodehouse, chapter VII, in Jeeves in the Offing, London: Herbert Jenkins, →OCLC:

     She had doffed the shirt and Bermuda-shorts which she had been wearing and was now dressed for her journey home.

2. To remove or tip a hat, as in greeting, salutation or as a mark of respect.

   The rustics doffed their hats at the clergy.

   • 2010, Mr.B The Gentleman Rhymer (lyrics and music), “Hail the Chap”, in I Say!, performed by Mr.B The Gentleman Rhymer:

     Were there really seventy-three ways to doff one's hat?
     There were! I'd rather suspected that

3. To get rid of, to throw off.

   Doff that stupid idea: it would never work.

   • 1778, Charles Dibdin, “The Perfect Sailor”, in (Please provide the book title or journal name):

     Thus Death, who kings and tars despatches, / In vain Tom's life has doffed, / For, though his body's under hatches / His soul has gone aloft.

4. (reflexive) To strip; to divest; to undress.
   • 1646, Richard Crashaw, Steps to the Temple:

     Heaven's King, who doffs himself weak flesh to wear.

Derived terms

• doffer
• doff one's hat to

Translations

to remove or take off (something such as clothing)

• Bulgarian: свалям (bg) (svaljam)
• Catalan: treure (ca)
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: please add this translation if you can

• Czech: sundat (cs) pf, sundat si (cs) pf
• Dutch: uitdoen (nl), ontdoen (nl)
• Esperanto: please add this translation if you can
• Finnish: riisua (fi)
• French: oster (fr), enlever (fr)
• Italian: togliere (it)
• Latin: exuō
• Maori: unu (mi)
• Portuguese: tirar (pt)
• Russian: снима́ть (ru) (snimátʹ)
• Spanish: quitarse (es)
• Tibetan: ཕུད (phud)
• Vietnamese: cởi (vi)

to remove or tip a hat, as in greeting, salutation or as a mark of respect

• Bulgarian: снемам (bg) (snemam)
• Czech: smeknout pf
• Finnish: nostaa hattua
• Russian: снима́ть (ru) (snimátʹ)
• Vietnamese: bỏ (vi)

to get rid of, to throw off

• Bulgarian: отказвам се от (otkazvam se ot)
• Dutch: verwerpen (nl)
• Finnish: hylätä (fi), heittää pois (fi)
• Russian: выбра́сывать (ru) (vybrásyvatʹ)

Yola

Alternative forms

• daff, daf

Etymology

From Middle English doffen.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /dɔɸ/, /daɸ/

Verb

doff (simple past doft or daffed, past participle ee-daff)

1. to strip

References

• Jacob Poole (d. 1827) (before 1828) William Barnes, editor, A Glossary, With some Pieces of Verse, of the old Dialect of the English Colony in the Baronies of Forth and Bargy, County of Wexford, Ireland, London: J. Russell Smith, published 1867, page 35