duty B1 Topic:Law & Government Also spelled dooties US /ˈdjuː.ti/ See IPA manual Freq #1200 Meanings 1 noun Something you have to do because it is right or because the law or your job requires it. It is your duty to report a crime if you witness one. 2 noun The state of being at work and responsible for a task. The nurse is on duty from six in the evening until six in the morning. 3 noun A tax that you pay on goods, especially those brought into a country. You may have to pay duty on items bought abroad. Thesaurus Synonyms 1 noun · something you have to do... obligationresponsibility 3 noun · a tax that you pay on... excise duty ↔ Opposites duty-freeright Word family Forms duties Derived forms chimney-dutyduteousdutiabledutieddutifuldutilessduty-boundduty-freeduty-mandutybounddutylessdutyman Related forms due Common collocations bounden duty Adjective + noun jury duty Noun + noun sentry duty Noun + noun tonnage duty Noun + noun export duty Noun + noun Etymology AI details From Middle English duete, from Middle English dewe + Middle English -te. Equivalent to due + -ty. duete Middle English dewe Middle English -te Middle English View etymology graph -> Topics Law & Government External links Cambridge Dictionary Wiktionary Google Images # duty **Type:** Word **Level:** B1 **Part of speech:** noun **IPA (US):** /ˈdjuː.ti/ **Frequency rank:** 1200 ## Meanings 1. Something you have to do because it is right or because the law or your job requires it. 2. The state of being at work and responsible for a task. 3. A tax that you pay on goods, especially those brought into a country. ## Examples - It is your duty to report a crime if you witness one. - The nurse is on duty from six in the evening until six in the morning. - You may have to pay duty on items bought abroad. ## Antonyms - duty-free - right ## Derived Forms - chimney-duty - duteous - dutiable - dutied - dutiful - dutiless - duty-bound - duty-free - duty-man - dutybound - dutyless - dutyman ## Related Forms - due ## Roots and Affixes - Root: duete - Root: dewe - Root: -te ## Etymology From Middle English duete, from Middle English dewe + Middle English -te. Equivalent to due + -ty. ## AI Etymology Duty comes from Middle English duete, from Middle English dewe + Middle English -te. Equivalent to due + -ty. In current use, the main senses are “Something you have to do because it is right or because the law or your job requires it” and “The state of being at work and responsible for a task”. ## Topics - Law & Government markdown