Dorothy

D2O1R1O1T1H4Y4
UK/ˈdɒɹ.ə.θi/US/ˈdɔɹ.ə.θi/US/ˈdɔɹ.θi/New York City/ˈdɑɹ.ə.θi/

proper noun

A female given name from Ancient Greek.

OriginAncient Greek Δωροθέα (Dōrothéa) ← Proto-Hellenic *dṓron ← Proto-Indo-European *déh₃rom →
CommonScrabble 14
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Meanings

proper noun
  1. A female given name from Ancient Greek.

    "My name is Dorothy," said the girl, "and I am going to the Emerald City, to ask the great Oz to send me back to Kansas."

    1900 May 17, L[yman] Frank Baum, “How Dorothy saved the Scarecrow”, in The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, Chicago, Ill.; New York, N.Y.: Geo[rge] M[elvin] Hill Co., →OCLC, page 38
    2 more examples

    Piſt[ol]. Then, to you miſtris Dorothy, I will charge you. / Doro[thy]. Charge me? I ſcorne you, ſcuruy companion: […]

    c. 1596–1599 (date written), William Shakespeare, The Second Part of Henrie the Fourth, […], quarto edition, London: […] V[alentine] S[immes] for Andrew Wise, and William Aspley, published 1600, →OCLC, [Act II, scene iv], signature [D4], recto

    Don't you think the world has gone steadily downhill ever since parents stopped naming their children Lucy and Dorothy and started naming them Samantha?

    1990, Russell Baker, There's a Country in My Cellar, Morrow, →ISBN, page 418

Origin

  1. Proto-Indo-European*deh₃-
  2. Proto-Indo-European*dóh₃r̥
  3. Proto-Indo-European*déh₃rom
  4. Proto-Hellenic*dṓron
  5. Ancient Greekδῶρον (dôron)
  6. Ancient Greekθεά (theá)
  7. Ancient GreekΔωροθέα (Dōrothéa)
  8. EnglishDorothy

Learned borrowing from Ancient Greek Δωροθέα (Dōrothéa).

More words from Ancient Greek

Full word history & related roots →

Translations

Bulgarian Доротея, Дороти
  • Доротея (Doroteja)female given name
  • Дороти (Doroti)female given name
Catalan Dorotea
  • Doroteafemale given name
Chinese Mandarin 多蘿西 /多萝西
  • 多蘿西 /多萝西 (Duōluóxī)female given name
Czech Dorota
  • Dorotafemale given name
Danish Dorthea, Dorte
  • Dortheafemale given name
  • Dortefemale given name
  • Dorthefemale given name
Esperanto Doroteo
  • Doroteofemale given name
Estonian Tiiu
  • Tiiufemale given name
Finnish Tea, Teija
  • Teafemale given name
  • Teijafemale given name
French Dorothée
  • Dorothéefemale given name
German Dorothea
  • Dorotheafemale given name
Greek Δωροθέα
  • Δωροθέα (Dorothéa)female given name
Hungarian Dorottya
  • Dorottyafemale given name
Italian Dorotea
  • Doroteafemale given name
Japanese ドロテア, ドロシー
  • ドロテア (Dorotea)female given name
  • ドロシー (Doroshī)female given name
Latin Dorothea
  • Dorotheafemale given name
Latvian Doroteja
  • Dorotejafemale given name
Lithuanian Dorotėja
  • Dorotėjafemale given name
Polish Dorota
  • Dorotafemale given name
Portuguese Doroteia
  • Doroteiafemale given name
Russian Дороте́я, До́роти
  • Дороте́я (Dorotéja)female given name
  • До́роти (Dóroti)female given name
Spanish Dorotea
  • Doroteafemale given name
Swedish Dorotea
  • Doroteafemale given name
Cite this entry
APA

Dorothy. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Dorothy

MLA

“Dorothy.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Dorothy. Accessed November 2, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “Dorothy,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Dorothy.

Source: Dorothy on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.