/ dəʊp; NAmE doʊp/ noun , verb
■ noun
1.
[ U ] ( informal ) a drug that is taken illegally for pleasure, especially cannabis or, in the US, heroin
2.
[ U ] a drug that is taken by a person or given to an animal to affect their performance in a race or sport :
The athlete failed a dope test (= a medical test showed that he had taken such drugs) .
3.
[ C ] ( informal ) a stupid person
SYN idiot
4.
[ U ] the ~ (on sb/sth) ( informal ) information on sb/sth, especially details that are not generally known :
Give me the dope on the new boss.
■ verb [ vn ]
1.
to give a drug to a person or an animal in order to affect their performance in a race or sport
2.
to give sb a drug, often in their food or drink, in order to make them unconscious; to put a drug in food, etc. :
Thieves doped a guard dog and stole $10 000 worth of goods.
The wine was doped.
3.
dope sb (up) [ usually passive ] ( informal ) if sb is doped or doped up , they cannot think clearly or act normally because they are under the influence of drugs
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WORD ORIGIN
early 19th cent. (in the sense thick liquid ): from Dutch doop sauce, from doopen to dip, mix.