don
noun · verb
Simple meaning
A mafia boss, primarily for Italian or Italian American bosses.
Pronunciation
Say it like this:
dahnIPA pronunciation (US)
ˈdɑn
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.
Definition
Everyday modern meanings first, grouped by part of speech.
noun
A mafia boss, primarily for Italian or Italian American bosses.
uk
A university professor, particularly one at Oxford or Cambridge.
canada
An employee of a university residence who lives among the student residents.
A (usually Spanish or Italian) title of respect to a man, especially a lord or nobleman.
A European river in southwestern Russia; flows into the Sea of Azov
A minor river in Tyne and Wear, England, United Kingdom, which joins the Tyne at Jarrow.
verb
Put clothing on one's body
transitive
To put on clothing; to dress (oneself) in an article of personal attire.
Word at a Glance
- Difficulty
- A2 · Elementary
- Frequency
- Common
- Typical Use
- Everyday English
Word Aura™
How this word commonly comes across.
Aura for this meaning
This meaning: A university professor, particularly one at Oxford or Cambridge.
Used this way, don is a reasonably familiar word that usually carries little praise or criticism of its own. It usually sounds natural in a wide range of settings.
- Emotional tone
- Neutral
- Formality
- Neutral
- Intensity
- Not strongly marked
- 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.
Share your sentence
Common Patterns and Combinations
How this word naturally appears with others.
Tap the highlighted word to open its own entry.
Ask Vocabaura
Understand the word your way.
What Does It Mean Here?
Words can change meaning depending on context.
Use it yourself
Keep learning “don” by choosing the kind of practice you need next.
- Practice sentence writingWrite sentences with vocabulary and get instant feedback.
- Practice in contextAnswer short vocabulary questions drawn from real situations.
- Review vocabularyTest your recall and strengthen words over time.
- Practice typingType vocabulary in short rounds that draw from words you've learned and saved.
Want to type words like this one without looking at the keyboard? Each typing round draws from words you've learned, saved or need to review. Follow the free Learn to Type lessons and type your own vocabulary with confidence.
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.