dot

词源不详。

dot

dot: [OE] The underlying meaning of dot seems to be ‘small lump or raised mark’. In Old English (in which there is only a single record of its use) it meant ‘head of a boil’, and it could well be related to English tit ‘nipple’. The word disappears from written texts between the 11th and the 16th centuries, and resurfaces in the sense ‘small lump’. The modern meaning ‘small roundish mark’ does not appear until the 17th century. Dottle ‘unburnt tobacco in the bottom of a pipe’ [15] is a diminutive form of dot.
=> dottle, tit

dot (n.)

Old English dott "speck, head of a boil," perhaps related to Norwegian dot "lump, small knot," Dutch dot "knot, small bunch, wisp," Old High German tutta "nipple;" ultimate origin unclear.

Known from a single source c. 1000; the word reappeared with modern meaning "mark" c. 1530; not common until 18c. Morse telegraph sense is from 1838. On the dot "punctual" is 1909, in reference to a clock dial face. Dot-matrix first attested 1975.

dot (v.)

1740, from dot (n.). Related: Dotted; dotting.

1. He started for Dot's bedroom and Myrtle held him back.

他正要去多特的卧室，被默特尔拦住了。

2. "For heaven's sake!" Dot expostulated. "They're cheap and they're useful."

“拜托！”多特反驳道，“它们又便宜又管用。”

3. You've wanted to be a barrister since the year dot.

很久以前你就一直想成为一名辩护律师了。

4. They appeared on the dot of 9.50 pm as always.

他们和往常一样在晚上9点50分准时出现。

5. In 1999, dot-coms spent more than $1 billion on TV spots.

1999年，网络公司在电视广告上投入了超过10亿美元。