due
[ doo, dyoo ]
/ du, dyu /
adjective
noun
something that is due, owed, or naturally belongs to someone.
Usually dues.
a regular fee or charge payable at specific intervals, especially to a group or organization: membership dues.
adverb
directly or exactly: a due east course.
Obsolete.
duly.
Idioms for due
Origin of due
1275–1325; Middle English < Anglo-French; Middle French
deu, past participle of
devoir < Latin
dēbēre to owe; see
debt
usage note for due
11.
Due to as a prepositional phrase meaning “because of, owing to” has been in use since the 14th century:
Due to the sudden rainstorm, the picnic was moved indoors. Some object to this use on the grounds that
due is historically an adjective and thus should be used only predicatively in constructions like
The delay was due to electrical failure. Despite such objections,
due to occurs commonly as a compound preposition and is standard in all varieties of speech and writing.
pronunciation note for due
See
new.
OTHER WORDS FROM due
due·ness, nounWords nearby due
dudgeon,
dudish,
dudley,
dudleya,
duds,
due,
due bill,
due diligence,
due process of law,
due to,
duecento
British Dictionary definitions for pay one's dues
due
/ (djuː) /
adjective
noun
something that is owed, required, or due
give a person his due
to give or allow a person what is deserved or right
adverb
directly or exactly; straight
a course due west
See also
dues
Word Origin for due
C13: from Old French
deu, from
devoir to owe, from Latin
debēre; see
debt,
debit
usage for due
The use of
due to as a compound preposition
(the performance has been cancelled due to bad weather) was formerly considered incorrect, but is now acceptable
Idioms and Phrases with pay one's dues (1 of 2)
pay one's dues
Earn something through hard work, long experience, or suffering. For example, She'd paid her dues in small-town shows before she finally got a Broadway part. This expression transfers the cost of being a paid-up member in an organization to that of gaining experience in an endeavor. [Mid-1900s]
Idioms and Phrases with pay one's dues (2 of 2)
due