dup

Dup is a verb found primarily in Caribbean English, most characteristically in Jamaican usage, meaning to dip or plunge something briefly into liquid, or to douse a person or thing with water. It belongs to everyday domestic and colloquial speech: cooks might dup vegetables in hot water before preparing them, and children playing might dup one another at a standpipe or river. Because the word is essentially confined to West Indian varieties of English, speakers elsewhere are unlikely to encounter it naturally, and it should be used with that audience in mind. It carries no strong connotations beyond its informal register, and its brevity and punchy sound give it a vividness suited to spoken language. For readers interested in world Englishes, dup is a good example of how regional vocabularies preserve distinctive words for ordinary actions that standard English expresses with more generic terms such as dip, dunk, or douse.

To plunge or dip something briefly into liquid, especially to douse or splash a person with water.

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Etymology of dup

Dup is recorded in Caribbean English, particularly in Jamaican speech, where it has long been used for dipping and splashing actions. Its ultimate source is generally traced to a West African origin brought through contact during the colonial era, though precise details of its earliest attestation are not firmly established. It stands apart cognate-wise from similar-looking English words such as "dupe," which has an entirely separate French origin.

How dup is actually used

This is an informal, regionally restricted word used almost exclusively in Caribbean English, especially Jamaica; outside that speech community it may be unfamiliar or mistaken for a typo of "dupe."

Easily confused with dup

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Words and phrases paired with dup

Rhymes with dup