variants or less commonly donut
1
: a small usually ring-shaped piece of sweet fried dough
2
: something (such as a mathematical torus) that has a round shape like a doughnut
3
: a controlled skid that sends an automobile into a tight circle of at least 360 degrees
usually used in the phrase do doughnuts
Doing doughnuts? You haven't heard about this? This is what they steal the cars for. Top speed, they slam on the brakes, yank the emergency brake, twist the steering wheel, and the car starts spinning. Wheeling the car in circles at tremendous speeds.Philip Roth

Examples of doughnut in a Sentence

drawing doughnuts in the sand
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
The Mexico native, now 45, sold churros and doughnuts in the streets of South Los Angeles to keep a roof over her two youngest children. Itzel Luna, Los Angeles Times, 30 Aug. 2026 There’s a reason the Bacon Maple Bar has been one of our top-selling doughnuts for more than 20 years. Aly Walansky, Forbes.com, 29 Aug. 2026 That glib self-confidence is present in McNamara, who licks the doughnut glaze off his fingers before offering his hand to the female detective questioning the one living Jason. Scott Tobias, Vulture, 28 Aug. 2026 But the surge in doughnut sales wasn't the only memorable outcome of Vance's visit. Haadiza Ogwude, Cincinnati Enquirer, 28 Aug. 2026 See All Example Sentences for doughnut

Word History

Etymology

dough + nut entry 1 (in sense "rounded cake or biscuit," as in ginger nut, spice nut)

First Known Use

1782, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of doughnut was in 1782

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Doughnut.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/doughnut. Accessed 1 Sep. 2026.

Kids Definition

doughnut

noun
dough·​nut
variants also donut
-(ˌ)nət
1
: a small ring of sweet dough fried in fat
2
: something resembling a doughnut especially in shape
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