Meaning & use
dollop
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Meanings
nouncountableinformal
A soft lump of food, usually spooned out and plopped onto a dish.
Grammar: Usually followed by of: a dollop of cream.
Patterns
- a dollop of something
She added a dollop of sour cream to the soup.
He topped the pancakes with a big dollop of jam.
A dollop of mashed potato landed on his plate.
nouncountableinformalfigurative
A small, usually unmeasured amount of something that is not food, often a quality or feeling.
Grammar: Often used figuratively: a dollop of luck.
Patterns
- a dollop of something
The story needs a dollop of humor.
She approached the job with a dollop of confidence.
Success takes talent and a dollop of luck.
Word forms
| plural | dollops |
|---|
Common combinations
- a dollop of cream
- He put a dollop of cream on the pie.
- a generous dollop
- Add a generous dollop of yogurt.
- a dollop of mayonnaise
- She stirred in a dollop of mayonnaise.
- a dollop of luck
- You need a dollop of luck in this business.
- a big dollop
- He gave her a big dollop of ice cream.
Synonyms and how they differ
- blob
- Blob is less appetizing and can be any shapeless lump, not only food.
- spoonful
- Spoonful names a measured amount on a spoon, while dollop suggests a looser, sloppier plop.
- dab
- Dab means a very small touch or amount, smaller than the more generous dollop.
- splodge
- Splodge is British and describes a messy patch of something, such as paint.
Word family
Commonly confused: dollop or dolly?
dollop vs dolly
A dolly is a toy doll or a wheeled platform. It sounds close to dollop but has no connection to food.
Practice
She finished the dessert with a ___ of whipped cream.
Choose one answer.
A dollop is a soft lump spooned onto food. A slice is a cut piece, and a sip is a small drink.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “dollop”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.