Definition of "doom"
doom1
noun
countable and uncountable, plural dooms
Quotations
An undesirable fate; an impending severe occurrence or danger that seems inevitable.
Quotations
unlike Vincent, he wasn't quite taken in by the outbreak of hopefulness on all sides. After all, nothing about the tanks or the process had been resolved; an air of doom still hung undisturbed over the project.
2004, Arthur Miller, “The Turpentine Still”, in Southwest Review, volume 89, number 4, page 479
Such paintings are inherently moody, and Elliott likes that-even as he carefully avoids dictating a specific mood. "Yesterday I painted the last light of the day-the trees looked pink, and the mountain's shadow was coming over them. It created a feeling of nostalgia... or impending doom... or still, quiet, peacefulness. It depends on the viewer's feelings about the scene, not just mine."
2007 February, Bob Bahr, “Tapestries in Oil”, in American Artist, volume 71, number 773, page 45
Quotations
"What ye will not that other men should do unto you, that do ye not unto other men." "From this one doom," comments Alfred, "a man may bethink him how he should judge every one rightly: he needs no other doombook."
1915, Beatrice Adelaide Lees, Alfred the Great: the truth teller, maker of England, 848-899, page 211
(countable, obsolete) A judgment or decision.
Quotations
when Alfred in turn set himself to the task of stating and interpreting the law of his kingdom, there were already precedents for him to follow, in the written "dooms" (domas) of his predecessors, — themselves but a small portion of the still unwritten custom
1915, Beatrice Adelaide Lees, Alfred the Great: the truth teller, maker of England, 848-899, page 208
(countable, obsolete) A sentence or penalty for illegal behaviour.
Quotations
The billiard sharp whom anyone catches / His doom’s extremely hard— / He’s made to dwell— / In a dungeon cell / On a spot that’s always barred.
1885, W[illiam] S[chwenck] Gilbert, Arthur Sullivan, composer, “A More Humane Mikado”, in […] The Mikado; or, The Town of Titipu, London: Chappel & Co., […], Act II, page 36
Quotations
verb
third-person singular simple present dooms, present participle dooming, simple past and past participle doomed
(transitive) To pronounce judgment or sentence on; to condemn.
Quotations
There was certainly plenty of badass Arya before and after—more on that soon—but here was Arya the living, breathing human, outnumbered and petrified of making the one slight wrong move that would doom her.
2019 April 28, Alex McLevy, “Game Of Thrones Suffers the Fog of War in the Battle against the Dead (Newbies)”, in The A.V. Club, archived from the original on 31 May 2021
doom2
phrase
(Internet slang) Initialism of didn't organize, only moved; used in compounds designating a miscellaneous collection of items which one has failed to properly organize.
Quotations
One day in April of 2021, Lindsey Bee decided it was time to deal with the laundry "doom piles" that had formed around her house. So she did what many people do when faced with a boring task. She turned to TikTok.
2022 June 1, “’Body doubling,’ an ADHD productivity tool, is flourishing online”, in The Washington Post, Washington, D.C.: The Washington Post Company, archived from the original on 2 June 2023
While digital clutter may not be physical, like the "doom piles" and junk drawers in your home, the anxiety and distress it induces is real, said Kerry Lakey, a lecturer in psychology at Northumbria University in England, who studies behavior around digital data.
2023 February 24, Jancee Dunn, quoting Kerry Lakey, “How to Clear Out Digital Clutter”, in The New York Times, New York, N.Y.: The New York Times Company, archived from the original on 2023-05-10
The doom in 'doom pile' is actually an acronym. It stands for "Didn't Organize, Only Moved" – an experience many people with ADHD can apparently relate to when they try to organize their spaces, whether physical or virtual. Instead of sorting things in their rightful places, they end up stacking them along with other random, unsorted things to be organized later – or never. That's how people end up with doom piles, doom boxes, doom bags, doom folders and drives, doom rooms and closets, and other kinds of doom arrangements.
2023 April 28, Alexandrea Cantwell, “"My Doom Piles Screamed 'Undiagnosed ADHD'"”, in ADDitude, archived from the original on 2023-06-09
DOOM piles are a cleaning tactic and a way of reducing visual clutter. Essentially, it's stashing random items that need to be organized in one place, to be dealt with later. We all have DOOM piles — a junk drawer or a place where we put piles of clutter before guests visit. There can be DOOM piles, DOOM bags, DOOM boxes, or one of my son's favorites, a DOOM desk.
2023 June 20, Kristin Wilcox, “Is Your ADHD Making You a DOOM Piler?”, in Psychology Today, New York, N.Y.: Sussex Publishers, archived from the original on 30 August 2023