What does doused mean?
Doused is the past tense and past participle of the verb douse, meaning to pour liquid over something or to plunge it into liquid, typically in order to soak it, cool it, or put out fire. It appears constantly in news writing — flames are doused by firefighters, and celebratory athletes are doused with sports drinks. The verb also carries productive figurative uses: enthusiasm, hopes, and rumors can all be doused when they are abruptly dampened or suppressed. The tone of the word is vivid but neutral, equally at home in casual conversation ('she doused the fries in vinegar') and formal reporting. Its near-homophone dowse refers instead to searching for underground water with a rod or pendulum, a distinction worth keeping in mind. For writers seeking a punchy alternative to soaked or extinguished, doused conveys sudden, thorough saturation with memorable force.
verb (past tense and past participle of douse)Doused is the past tense and past participle of the verb douse, meaning to plunge something into water or other liquid, or to pour liquid over it in order to soak, extinguish, or cool it.
- To have poured liquid over something or plunged it into liquid in order to soak, cool, or extinguish it.
"The firefighters doused the smoldering roof before dawn broke."
"She doused the campfire with a bucket of water before turning in."
"Protesters doused themselves with paint during the demonstration."
Douse and dowse were once so tangled together that even early dictionaries couldn't keep them straight — one word for putting fires out, another for hunting water underground.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Etymology of doused
Douse first appears in English in the early seventeenth century, originally as a nautical term meaning to lower or plunge into water. Its origin is uncertain, though it may be an alteration of an earlier dialectal verb such as 'douse' meaning to strike or fall. It later became associated with extinguishing fires and soaking things thoroughly. The spelling variant dowse came to be associated especially with water-divining, though the two words have long overlapped in form.
Related word forms
How doused is actually used
Register-neutral and common in both everyday speech and journalism; frequently used figuratively, as in 'doused his enthusiasm' or 'doused hopes of a settlement.'
Easily confused with doused
Dowse means to search for underground water using a divining rod, whereas douse means to soak or extinguish with liquid; the two are etymologically related but distinct verbs.