# dong

Pronunciation: US say "DAWNG" /dɔŋ/; UK/AUS say "DONG" /dɒŋ/

## Noun

1. A crude slang term for the penis. *(slang)*
   - Simple: A rude slang word for a man's penis.
   - _The comedian's whole routine seemed to revolve around jokes about his dong._
   - _He took a hard knock to the dong and limped off the field._
2. A low-pitched, metallic ringing sound.
   - Simple: A deep, ringing sound made by metal, like a large bell.
   - _A slow dong from the buoy marked the edge of the harbor._
   - _The temple's heavy gong gave off a series of deep dongs that lingered in the air._
4. A slang term for a foolish or stupid person. *(slang)*
   - Simple: A slang word for a silly or foolish person.
   - _Don't be such a dong. Read the instructions before you start._
   - _He felt like a complete dong after locking his keys in the car._
5. A dildo, specifically one made as a realistic synthetic replica of the penis. *(slang)*
   - Simple: A sex toy shaped to look like a real penis.
   - _The catalog featured a silicone dong molded for lifelike detail._
   - _Reviewers praised the firmness and texture of the new dong._
6. The currency of Vietnam, divided into 100 xu, written with the symbol ₫.
   - Simple: The money used in Vietnam.
   - _The hotel quoted its room rate in dong rather than dollars._
   - _Travelers often struggle with the many zeros on a dong banknote._
7. In North or South Korea, a local administrative division within a city, ranking below the municipal level.
   - Simple: A small district that is part of a city in Korea.
   - _Their new apartment sits in a busy dong on the edge of Seoul._
   - _Each dong runs its own community center and local office._
8. The former currency of South Vietnam, divided into 100 xu, written with the symbol Đ.
   - Simple: The money once used in South Vietnam.
   - _Merchants in Saigon priced their goods in dong before reunification._
   - _He saved a few faded dong notes from his years in the south._

## Verb

3. To ring out with a low metallic tone, as a church bell or an old clock striking the hour does.
   - Simple: To make a deep, ringing sound, like a large bell.
   - _The bell began to dong as the procession passed the square._
   - _The old clock donged twelve times at midnight._

## Origin

**Meanings 6, 8** — Borrowed from Vietnamese đồng, from Middle Chinese 銅 ("copper"), from Old Chinese, and cognate with Mandarin 銅/铜 (tóng, "copper").
**Meanings 1, 4–5** — The origin is unknown. It was perhaps suggested by "dingus" and other names for unnamable objects, perhaps by the sound of striking something (perhaps a bell's clapper; compare "ding-dong"), and perhaps there is an element of "donkey" in it. First attested in the 1890s.
**Meanings 2–3** — Onomatopoeic, imitating a sound.
**Meaning 7** — From Korean 동(洞) (dong, "neighborhood").

Source: DictionaryAI, https://dictionaryai.com/define/dong (written from Wiktionary data, CC BY-SA 4.0: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/).