deed

See also: dee'd and 'deed

English

A deed of displacement (4).

Etymology

From Middle English dede, from Old English dēd, dǣd (“deed, act”), from Proto-Germanic *dēdiz (“deed”), from Proto-Indo-European *dʰéh₁tis (“deed, action”). Analyzable through Proto-Germanic as do +‎ -th. Cognate with West Frisian died, Dutch daad (“deed, act”), German Low German Daad, German Tat (“deed, action”), Swedish, Norwegian and Danish dåd (“act, action”). The Proto-Indo-European root is also the source of Ancient Greek θέσις (thésis, “setting, arrangement”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /diːd/

• Audio (US)

  (file)

• Rhymes: -iːd

Noun

deed (plural deeds)

1. An action or act; something that is done.
   • Bible, Genesis xliv. 15

     And Joseph said to them, What deed is this which ye have done?

2. A brave or noteworthy action; a feat or exploit.
   • Spenser

     knightly deeds

   • Dryden

     whose deeds some nobler poem shall adorn

3. Action or fact, as opposed to rhetoric or deliberation.

   I have fulfilled my promise in word and in deed.

4. (law) A legal contract showing bond in form of a document.

   I inherited the deed to the house.

Synonyms

• (action): act, action
• (law): document, certificate, instrument

Derived terms

• indeed
• misdeed

Translations

action

• Arabic: عَمَل‎‎ (ar) m (ʿamal), فِعْل‎‎ (ar) m (fiʿl)
• Armenian: արարք (hy) (ararkʿ)
• Bashkir: ғәмәл (ğämäl)
• Bulgarian: действие (bg) n (dejstvie), постъпка (bg) f (postǎpka)
• Catalan: fet (ca) m, acte (ca) m
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 行為 (zh), 行为 (zh) (xíngwéi)

• Czech: skutek (cs) m, čin (cs) m
• Danish: gerning c, handling (da) c
• Dutch: daad (nl) f
• Esperanto: faro (eo), ago
• Ewe: dɔwɔwɔ
• Finnish: teko (fi), toimi (fi)
• French: acte (fr) m, action (fr) f, œuvre (fr) f (theology)
• German: Tat (de) f, Akt (de) m, Werk (de) n
• Greek: πράξη (el) f (práxi)
• Hebrew: מעשה‎‎ m (ma'ase)
• Hungarian: tett (hu)
• Icelandic: dáð (is) f

• Italian: fatto (it) m, gesto (it), gesta (it)
• Japanese: 行為 (ja) (こうい, kōi)
• Korean: 행위 (ko) (haeng-wi)
• Kurdish:

  Sorani: کار‎‎, کرده‌وه‌‎‎

• Luxembourgish: Dot f
• Macedonian: дело n (delo), постапка f (postapka), подвиг m (podvig)
• Norwegian: dåd (no), gjerning
• Persian: کردار‎‎ (fa) (kerdâr), کار‎‎ (fa) (kâr), اعمال‎‎ (fa) pl (a'mâl)
• Portuguese: ação (pt) f, feito (pt) m
• Romanian: faptă (ro)
• Russian: посту́пок (ru) m (postúpok)
• Scottish Gaelic: gnìomh m
• Spanish: hecho (es) m, acto (es) m, acción (es) f, obra (es) f
• Swahili: tendo (sw) class 5/6, jambo (sw) class 5/6
• Swedish: gärning (sv), dåd (sv)
• Telugu: చర్య (te) (carya)
• Turkish: iş (tr), hareket (tr)
• West Frisian: died n

brave or noteworthy action, feat or exploit

• Chinese:

  Mandarin: please add this translation if you can

• Danish: dåd c, bedrift c
• Finnish: saavutus (fi)

• French: exploit (fr) m, haut fait (fr) m
• Maori: rāwekeweke
• Russian: дея́ние (ru) n (dejánije)
• Spanish: hazaña (es) f

legal contract

• Arabic: وَثِيقَة‎‎ f (waṯīqa)
• Bulgarian: акт (bg) m (akt), документ (bg) m (dokument)
• Catalan: escriptura (ca) f, acta (ca) f
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: please add this translation if you can

• Danish: skøde n
• Dutch: oorkonde (nl) c, akte (nl) f
• Finnish: asiakirja (fi)
• French: acte notarié (fr) m
• German: Urkunde (de) f
• Greek: συμβόλαιο (el) n (symvólaio), συμβολαιογραφική πράξη f (symvolaiografikí práxi)
• Hebrew: מסמך‎‎ m (mismákh), חוזה‎‎ (he) m (khozé)

• Hungarian: oklevél (hu)
• Italian: atto notarile, contratto (it) m
• Macedonian: поседовен лист m (posedoven list), тапија f (tapija), договор m (dogovor)
• Malay: geran
• Maori: tīti
• Portuguese: ato (pt) m, contrato (pt) m
• Russian: акт (ru) m (akt), докуме́нт (ru) m (dokumént)
• Spanish: acta (es) f, escritura (es) f, título (es) m
• Tagalog: kasulatan
• Telugu: ఒప్పందం (te) (oppandaṃ)
• Turkish: vesika (tr), senet (tr)

Verb

deed (third-person singular simple present deeds, present participle deeding, simple past and past participle deeded)

1. (informal) To transfer real property by deed.

   He deeded over the mineral rights to some fellas from Denver.

Derived terms

• undeeded

Translations

to transfer real property by deed

• Chinese:

  Mandarin: please add this translation if you can

• Danish: tilskøde

• Finnish: luovuttaa sopimuksella
• Russian: please add this translation if you can

---

Dutch

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /deːt/

• Audio

  (file)

Verb

deed

1. singular past indicative of doen

Anagrams

• dede

---

Middle English

Alternative forms

• ded

Etymology

From Old English dēad.

Adjective

deed

1. dead (no longer alive)

Descendants

• English: dead

---

Scots

Verb

deed

1. past participle of dee
2. (South Scots) past participle of dei

Adverb

deed

1. indeed