1
: a law or ordinance especially in Anglo-Saxon England
2
b(1)
(2)
doomed; dooming; dooms
Synonyms
Examples of doom in a Sentence
Noun
The papers are filled with stories of gloom and doom.
the story of a mysterious creature who lures travelers to their doom
Verb
A criminal record will doom your chances of becoming a politician.
the actor felt that he was doomed to be forever remembered for that one terrible performance
Recent Examples on the Web
Lora Kelley, The Atlantic, 10 Apr. 2024
San Francisco fell into what a lot of people called an urban doom loop, and to put it simply, the city’s downtown changed in the post-pandemic world.
—Byalena Botros, Fortune, 10 Apr. 2024
An acute sense of instability will inform much of the content bought and sold on the MipTV floor, though the symptoms might manifest themselves beyond doom and gloom.
—Ben Croll, Variety, 5 Apr. 2024
Mookie Betts, Shohei Ohtani, Freddie Freeman. Dread, doom, destruction.
—Bill Plaschke, Los Angeles Times, 29 Mar. 2024
Holding onto them means nothing can happen to Clementine—which in turn means that discarding them could invite doom.
—Ruthie Ackerman, Vogue, 13 Mar. 2024
Despite their dire retirement prospects, the picture isn’t just one of doom and gloom.
—Chloe Berger, Fortune, 27 Feb. 2024
Some version of this doom loop has played out in Hong Kong’s nightlife scene ever since the pandemic, when many music venues closed never to reopen.
—Chris Lau, CNN, 24 Feb. 2024
Just as pervasive is a dismal resignation, a feeling of helplessness against a certain doom.
—Elizabeth Barber, Harper's Magazine, 2 Feb. 2024
Wendy Lee, Los Angeles Times, 12 Apr. 2024
And then there were the earthquakes, the Allied bombing raids of the city during World War II and urbanization that doomed other towers.
—Elisabetta Povoledo, New York Times, 4 Apr. 2024
The Francis Scott Key Bridge stood little chance: When the loaded container ship Dali destroyed one of the bridge's main support columns, the entire structure was doomed to fail.
—Trevor Hughes, USA TODAY, 26 Mar. 2024
But environmental changes like drought may have later doomed P. yacuruna and driven it to extinction, opening the freshwater habitat to the ancestors of extant pink river dolphins.
—Mindy Weisberger, CNN, 26 Mar. 2024
And while genuflecting before the Reagan myth, Trump could not have been more different—an angry, pessimistic figure who warned that America was doomed and promised a return to a mythic past.
—CBS News, 23 Mar. 2024
But as her notoriety grows, so does the danger that her Jewish blood will doom her to the Inquisition’s wrath.
—Sarah Yang, Sunset Magazine, 19 Mar. 2024
While those are good reasons to speed up a launch, the look of this app may have doomed it from the start.
—Jody Serrano / Gizmodo, Quartz, 28 Mar. 2024
But a combined aid package for both Ukraine and Israel like the one that passed the Senate last month could be doomed by a coalition of right-wing Republicans opposing the money for Kyiv and left-wing Democrats opposing aid for Israel.
—Catie Edmondson, New York Times, 25 Mar. 2024
Noun
So far, the big apps’ efforts to avoid this doom loop have involved the same basic feature that has been around since the beginning: swiping.
—Lora Kelley, The Atlantic, 10 Apr. 2024
San Francisco fell into what a lot of people called an urban doom loop, and to put it simply, the city’s downtown changed in the post-pandemic world.
—Byalena Botros, Fortune, 10 Apr. 2024
An acute sense of instability will inform much of the content bought and sold on the MipTV floor, though the symptoms might manifest themselves beyond doom and gloom.
—Ben Croll, Variety, 5 Apr. 2024
Mookie Betts, Shohei Ohtani, Freddie Freeman. Dread, doom, destruction.
—Bill Plaschke, Los Angeles Times, 29 Mar. 2024
Holding onto them means nothing can happen to Clementine—which in turn means that discarding them could invite doom.
—Ruthie Ackerman, Vogue, 13 Mar. 2024
Despite their dire retirement prospects, the picture isn’t just one of doom and gloom.
—Chloe Berger, Fortune, 27 Feb. 2024
Some version of this doom loop has played out in Hong Kong’s nightlife scene ever since the pandemic, when many music venues closed never to reopen.
—Chris Lau, CNN, 24 Feb. 2024
Just as pervasive is a dismal resignation, a feeling of helplessness against a certain doom.
—Elizabeth Barber, Harper's Magazine, 2 Feb. 2024
Verb
Are these kids already doomed? March 22, 2024 The idea behind angelbaby came from Hume co-founders David Beiner and Jay Stolar.
—Wendy Lee, Los Angeles Times, 12 Apr. 2024
And then there were the earthquakes, the Allied bombing raids of the city during World War II and urbanization that doomed other towers.
—Elisabetta Povoledo, New York Times, 4 Apr. 2024
The Francis Scott Key Bridge stood little chance: When the loaded container ship Dali destroyed one of the bridge's main support columns, the entire structure was doomed to fail.
—Trevor Hughes, USA TODAY, 26 Mar. 2024
But environmental changes like drought may have later doomed P. yacuruna and driven it to extinction, opening the freshwater habitat to the ancestors of extant pink river dolphins.
—Mindy Weisberger, CNN, 26 Mar. 2024
And while genuflecting before the Reagan myth, Trump could not have been more different—an angry, pessimistic figure who warned that America was doomed and promised a return to a mythic past.
—CBS News, 23 Mar. 2024
But as her notoriety grows, so does the danger that her Jewish blood will doom her to the Inquisition’s wrath.
—Sarah Yang, Sunset Magazine, 19 Mar. 2024
While those are good reasons to speed up a launch, the look of this app may have doomed it from the start.
—Jody Serrano / Gizmodo, Quartz, 28 Mar. 2024
But a combined aid package for both Ukraine and Israel like the one that passed the Senate last month could be doomed by a coalition of right-wing Republicans opposing the money for Kyiv and left-wing Democrats opposing aid for Israel.
—Catie Edmondson, New York Times, 25 Mar. 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'doom.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Word History
Etymology
Noun
Middle English, from Old English dōm; akin to Old High German tuom condition, state, Old English dōn to do
First Known Use
Noun
before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1
Verb
15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1
Time Traveler
The first known use of doom was
before the 12th century
Phrases Containing doom
Articles Related to doom
Dictionary Entries Near doom
Cite this Entry
“Doom.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/doom. Accessed 18 Apr. 2024.
Copy Citation
Kids Definition
doom
1 of 2 noun1
: a decision made by a court : sentence
2
a
: a usually unhappy end
b
doom
2 of 2 verb1
2
: to set on a fixed course to an unhappy end
the plan was doomed to failure
More from Merriam-Webster on doom
Nglish: Translation of doom for Spanish Speakers
Britannica English: Translation of doom for Arabic Speakers
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