▪ I. due, a. and adv.
(djuː)
Also 4–6 dew, dewe, dwe, 5 deu, diewe, dwwe, duewe, 5–6 du, 7 dueue.
[ME. a. OF. deü, later dû, orig. pa. pple. of devoir to owe:— late L. *debūt-um for debitum: cf. It. dovuto, formerly devuto, owed, due.]
A. adj.
1. a. That is owing or payable, as an enforceable obligation or debt.
| c 1340 Cursor M. 68 (Trin.) For þere shal mede wiþouten let Be sett to him for dew [Gött. duel] dett. c 1380 Wyclif Sel. Wks. III. 312 Ȝif tiþes when dewe bi Goddis comaundement. 1413 Pilgr. Sowle (Caxton) v. xiv. (1859) 79 Owre raunson were superhaboundaunt, ouer that was due. 1596 Shakes. Merch. V. iv. i. 411 Three thousand Ducats due vnto the Iew. 1616 Sir F. Kingsmill in Lismore Papers Ser. ii. (1887) II. 18 Bouth confesse the dueue debt but I can gett itt of neyther. 1674 N. Cox Gentl. Recreat. ii. (1677) 160 It must speedily die, and pay the Debt that's due to Nature. 1848 Wharton Law Lex. s.v., A debt is said to be due the instant that it has existence as a debt; it may be payable at a future time. 1874 Green Short Hist. v. §4. 238 The amount of service due from the serf had become limited by custom. 1891 Law Times XC. 409/1 The whole of those sums remained due. |
b. Of a person: That owes. Now dial. or colloq.
| 1413 Pilgr. Sowle (Caxton 1483) iv. vii. 61 They ben due to payen this dette. 1812 Ingram Poems 73 (Jam.) He..strives to pay what he is due Without repeated craving. |
c. Phrases. to fall due or become due: to become immediately payable, as a bill on reaching maturity. to grow due or accrue due: to be in process of maturing for payment.
| 1682 J. Scarlett Exchanges 96 The Time must precisely be..written in every Bill of Exchange, that the Drawer may certainly know when they fall due. 1695 in Picton L'pool Munic. Rec. (1883) I. 263 Now due or accrewing due. 1818 Cruise Digest (ed. 2) IV. 224 Nor for what estate the rent was to be paid, nor when or on what days it was to grow due. 1882 Bithell Counting-ho. Dict. (1893) 89 The bill really becomes due on the third day of grace, and not earlier, unless it fall upon a Sunday, Christmas Day, Good Friday, or a day of public fast or thanksgiving, in which cases the bill becomes due the day before. If on a Bank Holiday, the day after. 1896 Law Times C. 509/1 Income which has become due and has not yet been paid over. |
† 2. Belonging or falling to by right. Obs.
| c 1400 Destr. Troy 61 Dites full dere was dew to the Grekys, A lede of þat lond & logede hom with. 1553 Eden Treat. Newe Ind. (Arb.) 32 Whatsoeuer..vnknowen landes shoulde be discouered in the Easte partes the same to be dewe to the Portugales. 1648 Gage West Ind. ii. 6 In Rome there is an other preferment successively due to Dominicans, from the time of Dominicus de Guzman. 1655 M. Carter Hon. Rediv. (1660) 26 A new Coat..which is due to the descendents onely of his body. |
† 3. Belonging or incumbent as a duty. Obs.
| c 1385 Chaucer L.G.W. 603 Cleopatra, Hym thoute there nas to hym no thyng so dewe As Cleopatras for to love and serve. |
† 4. Pertaining or incumbent as a necessity. Obs.
| c 1386 Chaucer Knt.'s T. 2186 To maken vertu of necessitee, And take it weel, that we may nat eschue, And namely that to vs all is due [i.e. death]. c 1400 Destr. Troy 2673 It was desteynid by dome, & for due holdyn. 1491 Act 7 Hen. VII, c. 12 Preamb., Deth is due to every creature born in this world. |
5. Owing by right of circumstances or condition; that ought to be given or rendered; proper to be conferred, granted, or inflicted. a. with to.
| 1393 Gower Conf. II. 18 To pursue Thing, which that is to love due. 1393 Ibid. I. 19 There is a helle, Whiche unto mannes sinne is due. a 1450 Knt. de la Tour (1868) 14 For to grete [people] ye make curtesie of right, the whiche is dew to hem. a 1533 Ld. Berners Huon lxiii. 219 Honoure is dew to them that dyserueth it. 1648 Gage West Ind. iii. 8 Absolved..from all sinne, and from their Purgatory and Hell due unto it. 1651 Hobbes Leviath. i. xiv. 68 He that winneth Meriteth, and may claime the Prize as Due. 1711 Steele Spect. No. 262 ¶9 The first Place among our English Poets is due to Milton. 1712 Ibid. No. 426 ¶1 The Care of Parents due to their Children. 1838 Lytton Alice 7 So much is due to the wishes of your late husband. |
b. simply. Merited, appropriate: proper, right.
| 13.. E.E. Allit. P. C. 49 Ȝif me be dyȝt a destyne due to haue, What dowes me þe dedayn, oþer dispit make? 1489 Caxton Faytes of A. i. i. 3 Warres and bataylles shold be acursed thyng and not due. 1500–20 Dunbar Poems xlviii. 77 Full law inclynnand with all due reuerens. 1591 Spenser M. Hubberd 1237 Hell, his dewest meed. 1611 Bible Luke xxiii. 41 We receiue the due reward of our deeds, but this man hath done nothing amisse. 1633 Bp. Hall Hard Texts 321 The Lord..shall execute due vengeance upon Satan. 1635 R. Brathwait Arcad. Pr. Ded., Your Honours in duest observance Ri: Brathwait. 1657 J. Smith Myst. Rhet. 67 He useth a decent and due Epithet, thus, Honourable Judge, Honoured Sir. 1807 Crabbe Par. Reg. ii. 154 Silent, nor wanting due respect, the crowd. |
6. a. Such as ought to be, to be observed, or to be done; fitting; proper; rightful.
| c 1325 Poem temp. Edw. II (Percy) i, Knygts shuld were clothes Ischape in dewe manere. c 1400 Apol. Loll. 15 [It] procediþ in dewe ordre. c 1440 York Myst. xxx. 61, I do but þat diewe is. 1562 Winȝet Cert. Tractates i. Wks. 1888 I. 4 The passage and dew course is partlie tyll vs knawin. 1651 Hobbes Leviath. ii. xxix. 173 At last reduceth the people to their due temper. 1688 R. Holme Armoury iii. 146/1 In the working of Landskips..observe a due distance of things. 1728 T. Sheridan Persius ii. (1739) 29 You may offer these Prayers in due Form. 1762 Kames Elem. Crit. xviii. (1833) 315 A beauty that results from a due mixture of uniformity [etc.]. 1806 A. Knox Rem. I. 35 It will produce its due effects. 1841 Myers Cath. Th. iii. xxxviii. 136 The due use of some human gift. 1885 Act 48 & 49 Vict. c. 54. §4 Such certificate shall be conclusive evidence of the due election of the person therein mentioned. |
b. Of time.
| c 1385 Chaucer L.G.W. Prol. 364 (MS. Gg. 4. 27) To heryn here excusacyons..In duewe tyme whan they schal it profre. c 1400 Destr. Troy 6584 Troilus was takyn..And don out of daunger for the due tyme. 1535 Coverdale Prov. xv. 23 O how pleasaunt is a worde spoken in due season? 1551 T. Wilson Logike (1580) 45 b, Thynges, that in due tyme followe the causes that went before. 1611 Bible Gal. vi. 9 In due season we shall reape, if we faint not. 1667 Milton P.L. xii. 152 This Patriarch blest, Whom faithful Abraham due time shall call. 1711 Budgell Spect. No. 77 ¶1, I left him to be convinced of his Mistake in due time. 1876 Black Madcap V. vii. 69 In due course of time they got into the hot air of London. |
7. Such as is necessary or requisite for the purpose; adequate, sufficient.
| c 1400 Destr. Troy 12867 Þat þe pepull..shuld send ffor Dyamed the dughty, with his du helpe. c 1400 Lanfranc's Cirurg. 112 [Veins] bryngen lijf and dewe norischinge and cordialle spiritis. 1464 Paston Lett. No. 483 II. 147 Ye havynge dooe swerte [surety] both in obligacions and pleggs. 1563 W. Fulke Meteors (1640) 65 b, They have not the due quantity of brimstone. 1664 Evelyn Kal. Hort. (1729) 197 To bring them to a due stature, and perfect their seed. 1747 Wesley Prim. Physic (1762) p. xx, A due Degree of Exercise. 1844 Ld. Brougham Brit. Const. ix. §1. (1862) 115 Upon due consideration. |
† 8. Of a person: Proper, right; genuine, real, true.
| 1399 Langl. Rich. Redeles iii. 60 But þan þe dewe dame..ffostrith hem fforthe. c 1450 Holland Howlat 575 The forest of Ettrik, and vthair ynewe With dynt of his derf swerd, the Dowglass so dewe Wan wichtly of weir. |
9. To be ascribed or attributed: a. as a quality or attribute to its possessor (arch. or obs.); b. as a thing to its author or introducer; c. as an effect or result to its cause or origin; owing to, caused by, in consequence of. rare bef. 19th c.; according to Johnson ‘proper, but not usual’.
| 1661 Boyle Hist. Fluidity i. xxiv. Wks. 1772 I. 395 The motion of the oily drops may be in part due to some partial solution made of them by the vinous spirit. 1669 Earl of Orrery Tryphon v, That Guilt is to Aretus due. 1706 E. Ward Hud. Rediv. ii. viii, All the Ills that happen in it, Are due to them that did begin it. 1847 Tennyson Princ. iv. 293 Jonah's gourd, Up in one night, and due to sudden sun. 1861 M. Pattison Ess. (1889) I. 38 His delay in setting out was due to pure procrastination and dilatoriness. 1870 Tyndall Notes Lect. Electr. 5 This beautiful experiment is due to Grove. 1875 Jowett Plato (ed. 2) IV. 136 The..difficulty in the Philebus, is really due to our ignorance of the philosophy of the age. 1886 Lancet 15 May 947/2 The albuminuria was due to a bacterial nephritis. |
d. due to, as prepositional phr. = owing to (owing ppl. a. 3 b).
Described as ‘erroneous’ by W. A. Craigie in the Dict. of Amer. Eng., and said by H. W. Fowler in Mod. Eng. Usage (1926) to be ‘often used by the illiterate as though it had passed, like owing to, into a mere compound preposition’, this use is now widely current though still firmly rejected by many grammarians.
| 1897 S. T. Clover Paul Travers' Adv. 190 [The Koturah] was taxed to her capacity, due to the fact that..she was advertised to go first to Adelaide. 1926 in Fowler Mod. Eng. Usage 123/2 The old trade union movement is a dead horse, largely due to the incompetency of the leaders. 1953 Sat. Even. Post 5 Dec. 173 So far, due to engineering controls, more precise than any known to industry, this has never happened. 1955 Times 25 July, Largely due to the defence efforts of the Western Powers, Europe was in a state of stalemate. 1957 Elizabeth II in Times 15 Oct. 10/6 Due to inability to market their grain, prairie farmers have for some time been faced with a serious shortage of funds to meet their immediate needs. |
10. Under engagement or contract to be ready, be present, or arrive (at a defined time); reckoned upon as arriving; as the train is already due = ought, according to the time-tables, to be already here (or at such a place).
| 1833 Moore Mem. (1854) VI. 336 Bills coming in at Christmas, and my History due at the same time. 1865 Dickens Mut. Fr. i. vi, Williams, Bob Glamour, and Jonathan, you are all due. a 1872 B. Harte Lost Galleon i, Due she was, and over due—Galleon, merchandise, and crew. 1896 Times 13 Jan. 7/1 She is due at Ascension on February 11, and is to leave for England again on February 21..being due at Sheerness on March 19. Mod. The train is due in London at 5 a.m. He is due at his office next Monday. I must go; I am due at Mr. B.'s at seven o'clock. |
11. Phrases and Comb., as due-bill (U.S.) (see quot. 1864); due date, the date on which a bill falls due and is payable; so † due day, the day on which any payment falls due.
| a 1617 Hieron Wks. (1620) II. 457 There is a due day put in vpon the lease to be payd to him that is thy lord. Darest thou deale..with him in that duty, as thou dealest with God in His due-day? 1843 [Due date is remembered in ordinary business use]. a 1864 Burrill in Webster, Due-bill, a brief written acknowledgment of a debt not made payable to order, and not transferable by indorsement, like a promissory note. 1877 Banker's Mag. 53 In case the bill is not taken up by the acceptor on the due date. 1887 J. E. Wordsworth (title) Tables for calculating the Due-Dates of Bills of Exchange. |
B. adv.
1. = duly, in various senses. arch.
| 1597 Shakes. 2 Hen. IV, iii. ii. 330 Euery third word a Lye, duer pay'd to the hearer, then the Turkes Tribute. 1606 Sylvester Du Bartas ii. iv. ii. Magnificence 1342 Of this great Frame, the parts so due-devis'd. 1667 Milton P.L. v. 303 And Eve within, due at her hour prepar'd For dinner savourie fruits. 1800–24 Campbell Caroline ii. To Even. Star ii, So due thy plighted love returns, To chambers brighter than the rose. |
2. With reference to the points of the compass: Properly; right, straight; directly. (Orig. Naut. Allied to 6.)
| 1601 Shakes. Twel. N. iii. i. 145 There lies your way, due West. 1604 ― Oth. iii. iii. 455 The Ponticke Sea, Whose Icie Current.. Neu'r keepes retyring ebbe, but keeps due on To the Proponticke. 1634 Sir T. Herbert Trav. 45 Tis from Ormus Ile forty leagues due South. 1720 De Foe Capt. Singleton vi. (1840) 103 We went due east. 1810 Scott Lady of L. i. xxvi, Due westward, fronting to the green, A rural portico was seen. 1878 Huxley Physiogr. xx. 345 This..does not take the shape of a due north wind. |
3. Comb., as due-distant, at due distance; † due-timely, in due season, duly (obs.).
| 1605 Sylvester Du Bartas ii. iii. Abraham 1002 Their extreme thirst due-timely to refresh. 1725 Pope Odyss. xix. 120 A seat..prepare, Due-distant for us both to speak and hear. 1742 Young Nt. Th. vi. 595 By some due-distant eye..seen at once. |
▸ due diligence n. chiefly Law appropriate, sufficient, or proper care and attention, esp. as exercised to avoid committing an offence; (Business, orig. U.S.) a comprehensive appraisal of a business undertaken by or on behalf of a prospective buyer, esp. in order to establish the exact scope of current assets and liabilities, and to evaluate future commercial potential.
| 1598 R. Carew Herrings Tayle sig. C2v, That as the mindes like Monarchs, with *due diligence Had their directions in euery part obeyd. 1666 M. Wigglesworth Day of Doom 89 Then will I draw all sorts of men to me, Oh, wait upon him with due diligence. 1789 Pennsylvania Gaz. (Electronic text) 2 Feb. If any Sheriff or Sheriffs, to whom any such writ or writs of capias shall be directed and delivered, shall refuse or neglect to use due diligence to execute the same, he and they shall severally forfeit and pay to the Mayor, Aldermen and citizens aforesaid, the sum of [etc.]. 1820 Ohio Laws 18 xxiv. 164 [The endorsee] may..institute and maintain, an action on such bond, note or bill, for the recovery of the money due thereon..having first used due diligence to obtain the money of the drawer, maker or obligor. 1964 U.S. Customs Court Rep. 51 406 There is proof that, after due diligence on the part of the importer to ascertain the profit added by competing manufacturers to merchandise such as or similar to the imported merchandise or of the same class or kind, he was unable to obtain this information. 2002 Shares 3 Oct. 63/1 Logistics company Simon continues in its takeover talks that have been going on since January, and confirmed that one company is conducting due diligence on Simon. |
▪ II. due, n.
(djuː)
Also 5–6 dew(e.
[subst. use of due a.: cf. F. dû n., in 14th c. deü, from dû pa. pple.]
† 1. That which is due; a debt. Obs. (exc. as in 2–4.)
| 1439 E.E. Wills (1882) 127 And all othir dueez and governances for the performyng of his wyll. c 1460 Towneley Myst. (Surtees) 311 Thow can of cowrte thew, Bot lay downe the dewe. 1607 Shakes. Timon ii. ii. 16 My Lord, heere is a note of certaine dues. 1682 Grew Anat. Plants iv. Ep. Ded., The Performance whereof..is to be looked upon, as a Due to the Authority which Your Judgment hath over me. |
2. a. That which is due or owed to any one; that to which one has a right legal or moral: with possessive of the person to whom owed.
| 1582 N. T. (Rhem.) Rom. xiii. 7 Render therfore to al men their dew [1611 their dues]. 1593 Shakes. Lucr. 1183 Which..shall for him be spent, And as his due writ in my testament. 1612 Rowlands More Knaues Yet? 32 The cursed crew, That will not cheate the hangman of his due. a 1704 T. Brown Two Oxf. Scholars Wks. 1730 I. 9 When I come to demand my dues..I shall find it a hard matter to get them. 1726 Adv. Capt. R. Boyle Ded. A ij, Though Praise is the just Due of Merit. 1770 Langhorne Plutarch (1879) I. 118/2 It was no more than his due. 1838 Thirlwall Greece V. 249 He charges them with having defrauded the masters under whom he studied of their dues. |
b. to give (a man) his due (fig.): to treat him or speak of him with justice, to do justice to any merits he may possess. to give the devil his due: to do justice even to a person of admittedly bad character or repute (or one disliked by the speaker).
| 1589 Pappe w. Hatchet D ij, Giue them their due though they were diuels. 1596 Shakes. 1 Hen. IV, i. ii. 59 Prin. Did I euer call for thee to pay thy part? Fal. No, Ile giue thee thy due, thou hast paid al there. Ibid. 133 He was neuer yet a Breaker of Prouerbs: He will giue the diuell his due. 1642 Prince Rupert's Declarat. 2 The Cavaliers (to give the Divell his due) fought very valiantly. 1698 Fryer Acc. E. India & P. 38 Fryers; who, to give them their due, compass Sea and Land to make Proselytes. 1879 Howells L. Aroostook x, ‘Well’, observed the captain..with the air of giving the devil his due, ‘I've seen some very good people among the Catholics’. |
3. That which is due or owed by any one: with possessive of the person owing.
| 1738 Wesley Hymn, ‘Infinite Power, Eternal Lord’ vi, Shall Creatures of a meaner Frame Pay all their Dues to Thee? 1823 Scott Peveril v, Independent so long as my dues of homage are duly discharged. 1832 H. Martineau Ireland i. 14 There was no chance of paying the rent..even if Sullivan had been answerable for nobody's dues but his own. 1878 B. Taylor Deukalion ii. i. 54 Pay your dues And make them debtors. |
4. spec. a. A payment legally due or obligatory; a legal charge, toll, tribute, fee, or the like. Chiefly in pl. Often with attrib. word, expressing the nature of the charge, as admiral, dock, Easter, harbour, light, market, Sound, tonnage dues, etc.; see these words.
| 1546 Suppl. Poore Comm. (E.E.T.S.) 86 Tyll the poore people..had begged so moch as the pristes call theyr dwe. 1653 Milton Hirelings Wks. 1738 I. 570 To seize their pretended priestly Due by force. 1660 F. Brooke tr. Le Blanc's Trav. 213 Who have not paid the King dues for their harvest of silk. 1709 Steele & Swift Tatler No. 66 ¶1 The Parson of the Parish goes to Law for half his Dues. 1753 Scots Mag. Apr. 204/2 The produce of herring caught last season..was, after deducing 16s. 8d. per boat for admiral dues, 2028l. 9s. 2d. 1809 Bawdwen Domesday Bk. 414 And it still pays all customary dues except gable and toll. 1875 Act 38 & 39 Vict. c. 39. §1 The bar-master or other local officer, if any, employed to collect the dues or royalty. 1879 Farrar St. Paul II. 263 The question as to the payment of civil dues leads St. Paul naturally to speak of the payment of other dues. |
b. pl. The fee for membership or use of a college, club, etc.
| 1670 in Publ. Col. Soc. Mass. (1925) XV. 52 To require the College dues from him forthwith. 1790 Let. to V. Knox 10 The Collegiate and University dues are peculiarly trifling. 1937 Discovery June p. xlix/2 Annual dues, 5 dollars. 1966 Rep. Comm. Inquiry Univ. Oxf. I. v. 168 There are only small variations in those charges, if dues and establishment charges are added to those made for board and lodging. |
c. fig. (pl.). Responsibilities or obligations; esp. in phr. to pay one's dues, to fulfil obligations, undergo hardships, or gain experience. U.S. slang.
| 1943 ‘S. G. Wolsey’ Call House Madam xiv. 403 She was mixed up later in one of the rottenest shooting messes ever staged in Hollywood, but she got away with her end of it and never paid her dues. 1961 N. Hentoff Jazz Life (1962) ii. 29 ‘Paying dues’ is the jazz musician's term for the years of learning and searching for an individual sound and style while the pay is small and irregular. 1968 Crescendo Apr. 12/3, I guess I've, as they say, paid my dues. Looks like I'm still paying 'em. 1969 Down Beat 17 Apr. 19/2 Duke, Thad, Mel and myself, we've paid considerable amounts of dues in trying to get this thing off the ground. |
† 5. That which is due to be done; duty. of due, as a matter of duty. Obs.
| c 1430 Lydg. Chorle & Bird 101 in Min. Poems (Percy Soc) 182 To synge agayne, as was hir due. ― Min. Poems 19 Of dew os thei oughte to doo, On procession withe the kyng to goon. 1548 Gest Pr. Masse 71 To the full discharge of my bonden dew herin. 1549–62 Sternhold & H. Ps. lxxxii. 3 Whereas of due you should defend The fatherlesse and weake. 1615 Chapman Odyss. i. 658 Euryclea, that well knew All the observance of a handmaid's due. 1697 Dryden æneid xii. 318 All dues perform'd which holy Rites require. |
† 6. A right; of (by) due, by right, by just title.
| 1594 Carew Huarte's Exam. Wits x. (1616) 143 Whereas of due, a good wit and sufficiencie should rather encline a man to vertue and godlinesse. 1605 Bacon Adv. Learn. i. iv. §12. (1873) 37 Let great authors have their due, as time..the author of authors, be not deprived of his due, which is.. further to discover truth. 1667 Milton P.L. ii. 850 The key of this infernal Pit by due..I keep. 1669 W. Simpson Hydrol. Chym. 122 That which should of due have been separated. |
† 7. Due quality or character, propriety. Obs.
| 1594 Carew Huarte's Exam. Wits (1616) 90 If the same grow hot or cold beyond due. 1600 Trial Sir C. Blunt in Cobbett State Trials (1809) I. 1422 For the honour of the Indictment and manifesting the due of their proceedings. |
8. Naut. What is duly or thoroughly done: in phrase for a full due = thoroughly, for good and all; so that it will not need to be done again.
| 1830 Marryat King's Own xiii, Desire the carpenter to nail up the hatchway-screens..We'll keep them up for a full due. c 1860 H. Stuart Seaman's Catech. 32 How will you turn in the lower rigging when it is marked off for a full due? 1867 Smyth Sailor's Word-bk., Full due, for good; for ever; complete; belay. 1884 S. B. Luce Seamanship 116 (Cent.) The stays and then the shrouds are set up for a full due. |
▪ III. † due, v.1 Obs.
[variant of dow v.2: cf. endue = endow.]
trans. To endow, invest, endue.
| c 1394 P. Pl. Crede 776 Fraunces founded hem nouȝt to faren on þat wise, Ne Domynik dued hem neuer swiche drynkers to worþe. 1591 Shakes. 1 Hen. VI, iv. ii. 34 This is the latest Glorie of thy praise, That I thy enemy, dew thee withall. |
▪ IV. † due, v.2 Obs. rare.
[f. due a.]
impers. To be due, to fall due; to be proper or fit.
| 1603 Drayton Odes vi. 16 Which when it him deweth, His Fethers he meweth. |
▪ V. due
obs. form of dew.