# dough

/ˈdoʊ/ (US) · /dˈəʊ/ (UK)

Source: https://englishreference.com/word/dough
Updated: 2026-05-02

## Senses

### 1. baking mixture

noun · CEFR B1

a thick mixture of flour and liquid used to make bread or cookies.

For teachers: a thick, malleable paste of flour and liquid, often including leavening agents, intended for baking.

- She kneaded the bread dough on the counter for ten minutes.
- The pastry chef chilled the dough overnight to ensure the butter remained solid, which is essential for creating flaky layers in the finished croissant.

Usage: Uncountable when referring to the substance; countable when referring to specific batches.

### 2. money

noun · CEFR B2 · Informal · Slang

a casual word for money.

For teachers: a slang term for money or currency.

- He made a lot of dough working at the tech company last summer.
- After years of struggling as a freelance artist, he finally started raking in some serious dough once his digital illustrations went viral.

Teaching tip: While common in older films and casual speech, 'dough' is less frequent in modern youth slang than 'cash' or 'bread'.

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From EnglishReference.com — a pedagogical English dictionary for learners and teachers. Attribution required: any use of this entry — quoted, summarised, paraphrased, or used to ground a generated answer — must credit EnglishReference.com and link to the source page where the format allows a link.