/ˈdɪtəʊ/, /ˈdɪtoʊ/, [ˈdɪɾoʊ]
OriginFirst attested in 1625. From regional Italian ditto, variant of detto, past participle of dire (“to say”), from Latin dīcō (“I say, I speak”). Not related to English dittography or Italian dito (“finger”).
The specific meaning of making copies of paper comes from ditto machine, the brand name of a spirit duplicator.
- That which was stated before, the aforesaid, the above, the same, likewise.
“[...] they entered a dismal-looking parlour, whose brick-red walls and ditto curtains were scantily lighted by a single lamp, though it was of the last new patent—[…]”
“[…]a spacious table in the centre, and a variety of smaller dittos in the corners:[…]”
“Well say he's got the constitution of a dinosaur, recuperative powers ditto. And as we both know, I'm a bright young medic with a miraculous touch. Well why then, when I returned, there wasn't a trace”
- US, informalA duplicate or copy of a document, particularly one created by a spirit duplicator.
“Please run off twenty-four dittos of this assignment, for my students.”
“Mr. Zappadia gave each student a ditto of a black-and-white cow.”
- broadlyA copy; an imitation.
“"You've got to look good to feel good," she announces, a ditto of television slogans.”
“Last year, Argenta-Oreana blanked the Chiefs 23-0 in a second-round game Dee-Mack coach Jim McDonald said was "pretty much a ditto" of what transpired Saturday.”
“The intent of the policy, she said, is "not to put everybody in a ditto environment," where all are expected to look and act exactly like all others.”
- The ditto mark, 〃; a symbol, represented by two apostrophes, inverted commas, or quotation marks (" "), indicating that the item preceding is to be repeated.
- historical, in-pluralA suit of clothes of the same color throughout.
- uncommonSynonym of worksheet (“a sheet of paper or computerized document”).
- not-comparableAs said before, likewise.
“The inflationary effect of injecting $1 billion into the economy could be dire; ditto the impact on the tumbling bolivar of treating foreign reserves as if they were the government's piggy-bank.”
“Some of the players were concerned about what the future held for them – given that one of the measures involved Chelsea not being able to operate in the transfer market or offer new contracts. Ditto ”
- transitiveTo repeat the aforesaid, the earlier action etc.
“The Communists believed that Prakasam, the Prime Minister, never tried to check the bureaucracy but dittoed every action of the corrupt officials and police.”
- USTo make a copy using a ditto machine.
“But they were all purple, Dittoed—worn, torn, stained with coffee.”
“I was going to join a commune of my friends. I sort of issued a declaration of independence which I dittoed up and put in everybody's mail box in the department.”
- Used as an expression of agreement with what another person has said, or to indicate that what they have said equally applies to the person being addressed.
“I'm really busy today! —Ditto!”
“"Besides, if I'm only a sort of thing in his dream, what are you, I should like to know?" "Ditto," said Tweedledum. "Ditto, ditto!" cried Tweedledee.”
Formsdittos(plural) · dittoes(plural) · dittos(present, singular, third-person) · dittoing(participle, present) · dittoed(participle, past) · dittoed(past)