entry
dont
/dɔ̃nt/Breton “to come”; also a Danish noun
From Proto-Celtic *toageti (to come) + Low German doon (to do).
from Proto-Celtic *toageti, itself also a suppletive verb (stemming
Word Ancestry
from Proto-Celtic *toageti, itself also a suppletive verb (stemming
Breton dont looks deceptively small, but it carries the history of a verb assembled from spare parts. Its deeper Celtic ancestry is reconstructed as *toageti, a suppletive verb linked with ideas of driving and coming; Old Breton then had diminet, while Middle Breton donet was influenced by monet, “to go.” That is a wonderfully human linguistic tangle: to come and to go standing so close together that one helps reshape the other. Across the language border, Danish dont is unrelated in origin, descending from Low German doon and standing near Danish dom and dåd, words connected with judgment, doing, and deeds. And in modern online English, dont—usually just don’t with its apostrophe misplaced—has acquired a tiny life of its own, proving that even punctuation can become part of a word’s social biography.
The Story
Breton dont looks deceptively small, but it carries the history of a verb assembled from spare parts. Its deeper Celtic ancestry is reconstructed as *toageti, a suppletive verb linked with ideas of driving and coming; Old Breton then had diminet, while Middle Breton donet was influenced by monet, “to go.” That is a wonderfully human linguistic tangle: to come and to go standing so close together that one helps reshape the other. Across the language border, Danish dont is unrelated in origin, descending from Low German doon and standing near Danish dom and dåd, words connected with judgment, doing, and deeds. And in modern online English, dont—usually just don’t with its apostrophe misplaced—has acquired a tiny life of its own, proving that even punctuation can become part of a word’s social biography.
Modern Usage
An apostrophe-free spelling of English “don’t,” often used informally online
Notable References
- Urban Dictionary entries describing dont as “don't” without the apostrophe
Kin & Kindred
From '*toageti'·to come; to drive or bring
Cognates
Related words in other languages
Derived Terms
English words from this root
From 'doon'·to do; an act or deed
Cognates
Related words in other languages
Derived Terms
English words from this root
Sources
Urban Dictionary
Wiktionary