dope

1 of 3

noun

ˈdōp 

1

informal : a stupid person

I think fast drivers are dopes.

—Randy Wayne White

… people are promised windfall profits from can't-miss investments—to be paid, when they are paid at all, only out of money collected from subsequent dopes and dupes.

—David Margolick

2

informal

a

: an illicit drug (such as heroin or cocaine) used for its intoxicating or euphoric effects

especially : marijuana

smoking dope

b

: a preparation (such as an anabolic steroid, diuretic, or tranquilizer) given to a racehorse to help or hinder its performance

3

informal : information especially from a reliable source

the inside dope on a celebrity's new romance

4

a

: a thick liquid or pasty preparation

Apply a small amount of pipe dope or Teflon tape to the threads of the adapter …

—Michael J. McGroarty

b

: a preparation for giving a desired quality to a substance or surface

She … would also glue the canvas over the frames of the planes and then use "dope," a special type of lacquer to harden the body of the plane.

—The Washington (Indiana) Times-Herald

c

: absorbent or adsorbent material used in various manufacturing processes (such as the making of dynamite)

A dynamite's strength and its water resistance are determined by the dopes—the particular dry ingredients that are combined with the nitroglycerin.

—Bryan Di Salvatore

5

chiefly Southern US : a cola drink

dope

2 of 3

verb

doped; doping

transitive verb

1

informal

a

: to give a narcotic or intoxicating drug to

It was only when doped with scopolamine that he got any rest.

—Robert McAlmon and Kay Boyle

b

: to surreptitiously put a sedating drug into

What does the murder have to do with the phone-date service he was investigating when someone doped his drink?

—Marilyn Stasio

c

: to administer a drug to (a horse) to help or hinder performance in a race

Francis rode a doped horse once. The animal … ran right through the first hurdle, throwing Francis, and veered off into the woods nearby, where it was finally captured hours later.

—Bill Barich

2

informal : figure out

—usually used with out

The following day I returned and spent some time trying to dope out the trails the deer was using.

—John Weiss

It's hard to dope out what, exactly, flavors the lemony, faintly soyish marinade that powers the excellent barbecued chicken …

—Sam Sifton

3

: to treat with dope or a dopant

The airfoil leading edge and ribs are fiberglass moldings, and the skin, as on early airplanes, is fabric doped to drum-tightness.

—David Scott

We developed a method to dope semiconductor nanocrystals with metal impurities, enabling control of the band gap …

—David Mocatta et al.

intransitive verb

1

informal : to take an intoxicating drug

2

informal : to use a performance-enhancing substance typically banned for use in sports

A week after that surreal scene, Danish hero Bjarne Riis admitted that he'd doped to win the 1996 Tour France Riis …

—Austin Murphy

dope

3 of 3

adjective

slang

: excellent

—used as a generalized term of approval

Synonyms

Noun

• book
• 411 [slang]
• inside
• lowdown
• poop [slang]
• scoop
• skinny [slang]
• tip

Verb

• answer
• break
• crack
• figure out
• puzzle (out)
• resolve
• riddle (out)
• solve
• unravel
• unriddle
• work
• work out

Adjective

• A-OK
• A1
• awesome
• bang-up
• banner
• beautiful
• blue-chip
• blue-ribbon
• boffo
• bonny [chiefly British]
• bonnie
• boss [slang]
• brag
• brave
• bully
• bumper
• capital
• choice
• classic
• cool [slang]
• corking
• crackerjack
• cracking
• dandy
• divine
• down [slang]
• dynamite
• excellent
• fab
• fabulous
• famous
• fantabulous [slang]
• fantastic
• fine
• first-class
• first-rate
• first-string
• five-star
• four-star
• frontline
• gangbusters
• gangbuster
• gilt-edged
• gilt-edge
• gone [slang]
• grand
• great
• groovy
• heavenly
• high-class
• hot
• hype [slang]
• immense
• jim-dandy
• keen
• lovely
• marvelous
• marvellous
• mean
• neat
• nifty
• noble
• number one
• No. 1
• numero uno
• out-of-sight [slang]
• par excellence
• peachy
• peachy keen
• phat [slang]
• prime
• primo [slang]
• prize
• prizewinning
• quality
• radical [slang]
• righteous [slang]
• sensational
• slick
• splendid
• stellar
• sterling
• superb
• superior
• superlative
• supernal
• swell
• terrific
• tip-top
• top
• top-notch
• top-of-the-line
• top-shelf
• topflight
• topping [chiefly British]
• unsurpassed
• wizard [chiefly British]
• wonderful

Examples of dope in a Sentence

Noun

They were caught smoking dope.

What a dope he is.

Verb

They tried to dope him.

Adjective

That movie was so dope.

Check out this dope new song.

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

The chicken Hei Hei remains an panicky, adorable dope of a bird indeed, treated like a demigod by the coconut tribe. —Michael Phillips, Chicago Tribune, 26 Nov. 2024

When Helen shows up with a fiancé who happens to be a plastic surgeon (Christopher Sieber, one of our finest onstage dopes), Madeline inevitably grabs him too. —Jackson McHenry, Vulture, 21 Nov. 2024

Verb

Now that Tennis: 2024 is over, the Djokovic-Murray partnership is on the podium alongside Iga Swiatek and Jannik Sinner’s positive doping tests in the gasp of the year awards. —Tim Ellis, Forbes, 28 Nov. 2024

Jannik Sinner, men’s world No. 1, plays for the first time since the ruling in his doping case was announced, and Carlos Alcaraz, who has won two of this year’s three previous Grand Slams, also gets underway. —Lukas Weese, The Athletic, 26 Aug. 2024

Adjective

But yeah, the purple is dope, with the three pieces…. —Matt Webb Mitovich, TVLine, 20 Nov. 2024

All my friends are pretty dope musicians and always willing to add an idea. —Steve Appleford, SPIN, 6 Nov. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Noun

Dutch doop sauce, from dopen to dip; akin to Old English dyppan to dip

First Known Use

Noun

1786, in the meaning defined at sense 4a

Verb

1889, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 3

Adjective

1981, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing dope

• dope out
• dope up
• fly dope
• the dope
• the inside dope
• the straight dope

Kids Definition

dope

1 of 2 noun

ˈdōp 

1

: a thick sticky material (as one used to make pipe joints tight)

2

informal : an illegal, habit-forming, or narcotic drug

especially : marijuana

3

informal : a stupid person

4

informal : information especially from a reliable source

dope

2 of 2 verb

doped; doping

informal

1

: to treat or affect with dope

especially : to give a narcotic to

2

: find out

—usually used with out

Medical Definition

dope

1 of 2 noun

ˈdōp 

1

a

: a preparation of an illicit, habit-forming, or narcotic drug (as opium, heroin, or marijuana)

b

: a preparation given to a racehorse to help or hinder its performance

2

: a narcotic addict

dope

2 of 2 verb

doped; doping

transitive verb

: to give a narcotic to

intransitive verb

: to take dope