Etymology Map
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Dope

2 stages from Dutch to English.

Today it means drugs; information; a stupid person

Where does the word "dope" come from? It comes from Dutch doop, adopted directly into English (1800s).

1
Stage 1 of 2
doop
Dutch · 1600s
"sauce"
a dipping sauce, from 'doopen', to dip
2
Stage 2 of 2
dope
American English · 1800s
"sauce; drug; information"
first a thick sauce, then the thick opium paste smoked in the 1880s, then 'inside information' by 1900
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Read the full story

Dope’s story begins in Dutch: doop meant “sauce.” A dipping sauce, from 'doopen', to dip. It reached English by 1800s as dope. First a thick sauce, then the thick opium paste smoked in the 1880s, then 'inside information' by 1900. Today, dope means drugs; information; a stupid person.