View synonyms for ado

ado

[ uh-doo ]

Phonetic (Standard)IPA

noun

busy activity or bustle; fuss; bother:
Much more ado has been made over this allegation than the facts warrant.
Synonyms: uproar, turmoil, noise, hubbub, excitement, confusion, commotion, to-do, flurry
Antonyms: tranquility, peace, calm

ado

/ əˈduː /

noun

bustling activity; fuss; bother; delay (esp in the phrases without more ado, with much ado )

ADO

abbreviation for

accumulated day off

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Word History and Origins

Origin of ado¹

First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English (north) at do, a phrase equivalent to at “to” (from Old Norse, which used at with the infinitive) + do do ¹

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Word History and Origins

Origin of ado¹

C14: from the phrase at do a to-do, from Old Norse at to (marking the infinitive) + do ¹

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Idioms and Phrases

Idioms

without further ado, without additional preamble, preliminaries, or other delay:
Well, without further ado, let's get down to the details of our master plan.

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Synonym Study

Ado, to-do, commotion, stir, tumult suggest a great deal of fuss and noise. Ado implies a confused bustle of activity, a considerable emotional upset, and a great deal of talking: Much Ado About Nothing. To-do, now more commonly used, may mean merely excitement and noise and may be pleasant or unpleasant: a great to-do over a movie star. Commotion suggests a noisy confusion and babble: commotion at the scene of an accident. Stir suggests excitement and noise, with a hint of emotional cause: The report was followed by a tremendous stir in the city. Tumult suggests disorder with noise and violence: a tumult as the mob stormed the Bastille.

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

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