English

Proper noun

Dao

1. (Chinese philosophy) Alternative form of Tao: the way of nature and/or the ideal way to live one's life.

Vietnamese

Etymology

Sino-Vietnamese word from 瑶

Pronunciation

• (Hà Nội) IPA^(key): [z̻aːw˧˧]
• (Huế) IPA^(key): [jaːw˧˧]
• (Hồ Chí Minh City) IPA^(key): [jaːw˧˥]
• Homophone: dao; giao

Proper noun

Dao

1. Yao, an ethnic group

English

Proper noun

dao

1. (Chinese philosophy) Alternative form of Tao: the way of nature and/or the ideal way to live one's life.

Noun

dao ‎(usually uncountable, plural daos)

1. (historical) Synonym of circuit: various administrative divisions of imperial and early Republican China.

Limburgish

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [dɔː˨]

Adverb

dao

1. there

Synonyms

• der

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [dɔː˦]

Adverb

dao

1. for that reason

Mandarin

Romanization

dao

1. Nonstandard spelling of dāo.
2. Nonstandard spelling of dáo.
3. Nonstandard spelling of dǎo.
4. Nonstandard spelling of dào.

Usage notes

• English transcriptions of Mandarin speech often fail to distinguish between the critical tonal differences employed in the Mandarin language, using words such as this one without the appropriate indication of tone.

Vietnamese

Etymology

Non-Sino-Vietnamese reading of Chinese 刀 (“knife”; SV: đao), from Proto-Vietic *-taːw

Pronunciation

• (Hà Nội) IPA^(key): [z̻aːw˧˧]
• (Huế) IPA^(key): [jaːw˧˧]
• (Hồ Chí Minh City) IPA^(key): [jaːw˧˥]
• Homophone: Dao; giao

Noun

(classifier con) dao ‎(刀, 釖, 鉸)

1. knife

Derived terms

• dao cạo ‎(“razor”)