DIY

FormsDIYs, DIYing, DIYed

1. 1
   noununcountableinitialism

   Initialism of do it yourself.

   Interest in DIY surged when people began spending more time at home.

   DIY can save money, but some jobs are best left to professionals.

   Note

   An initialism, so it is spoken as three letters, D-I-Y, never as a single word. As a noun it is usually uncountable: people take up DIY, not a DIY. It covers two things: home improvements and repairs done without a professional, and the broader habit of making for yourself what you might otherwise buy ready-made. That second, wider sense is what feeds the adjective.

2. 2
   adjective

   Done, made, or built by oneself rather than by a hired professional.

   The band recorded the album in a DIY studio set up in their garage.

   He followed a DIY guide to replace the kitchen faucet himself.

   Similarhomemade

   Oppositeprofessional

   Note

   Usually it sits before a noun, as in a DIY kit, DIY consumers or a DIY guillotine. It can also be graded: more DIY, most DIY. Once graded, it stops saying who did the work and starts describing a spirit or attitude. Michael Croland, writing on Jews and punk in 2016, calls something "more DIY, more punk", setting the two side by side.

3. 3
   verbtransitive

   To carry out a task oneself that would usually be left to a professional or expert.

   Many couples DIY their wedding decorations to keep costs down.

   He DIYed the entire backyard fence over one long weekend.

   Note

   The initialism turned verb, with its endings attached straight to the capitals: DIYs, DIYed, DIYing. The present participle is also written hyphenated as DIY-ing, which keeps the letters visually apart. Bill Chappell, writing in 2022, uses that spelling for Ukrainian civilians DIY-ing hedgehogs from welded beams. It usually takes an object, the job you took on yourself: you DIY a fence, a repair, the decorations.

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