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doll

noun · verb

Simple meaning

A small figure resembling a human being that is used as a toy.

Pronunciation

Say it like this:

dahl
US device voice
IPA pronunciation (US)

ˈdɑl

This word is pronounced essentially the same in American and British English, so one transcription covers both.

IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) is a standard way of writing speech sounds.

Word Review

Definition

Everyday modern meanings first, grouped by part of speech.

noun

  1. A small figure resembling a human being that is used as a toy.

  2. LGBTQ slang

    A transgender woman or transfeminine person, especially one that has a highly sexual and feminine personal style.

  3. slang

    An attractive young woman.

  4. A temporary barrier used in horse racing.

  5. The smallest or pet pig in a litter.

  6. A diminutive of the female given name Dorothy.

verb

  1. uktransitive

    To place a barrier in front of (a section of the course that is to be omitted from a horse race).

Word at a Glance

Difficulty
A2 · Elementary (estimated)
Frequency
Common
Typical Use
General English

Word Aura™

How this word commonly comes across.

Aura for this meaning

This meaning: A small figure resembling a human being that is used as a toy.

Used this way, doll is a reasonably familiar word that usually carries little praise or criticism of its own. It stays understated rather than dramatic. It usually sounds natural in a wide range of settings.

Emotional tone
Neutral
Formality
Neutral
Intensity
Mild
How common
Moderately common
Connotation
Matter-of-fact
Usage feel
Neutral and straightforward

Word Aura describes common impressions, not a measurement. Tone changes with sentence, speaker, relationship and situation.

More ways to use doll

  • “The little girl played with her favorite toy doll.”

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Common Patterns and Combinations

How this word naturally appears with others.

Small

rag doll

Attractive / informal

baby doll

Short

paper doll

Other combinations

doll housedoll playnew dollwax dollbeautiful doll

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Word Family

Related forms, grouped by how they connect.

Word family

Words built from the same root.

  • dollynounDerived noun · specialist

    Conveyance consisting of a wheeled support on which a camera can be mounted.

Compound terms

Established multiword terms.

  • doll upverbCompound term

    Use special care in dressing, making-up, etc.

  • glove dollnounCompound term

    A puppet with a cloth body and hollow head.

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Dictionary data from Wiktionary via the Free Dictionary API. Simple meanings, combinations and word intelligence are built from verified reference data, no AI is used to load this page.