well-to-doadj.n.

Brit.

/ˌwɛltəˈduː/, U.S.

/ˌwɛltəˈdu/

Origin: Formed within English, by compounding. Etymons: well adj., to prep., do v.

Etymology: < well adj. (compare well adj. 8) + to prep. + do v. Compare earlier well to live adj., well to pass adj.

A. adj.

1. Prosperous, well-off, (sufficiently or extremely) wealthy.

(a) In predicative use.

ΘΚΠ

the mind > possession > wealth > [adjective] > well-off

wellc1405

sufficient1436

full?1483

suffisant1484

beina1525

warmc1571

well-breeched1571

meaned1605

well-meaned1605

well-lined1611

substanced?1614

well-circumstanced1643

forehanded1658

uppish1678

easy1701

brownstone1780

forehand1784

solid1788

well-to-do1794

snug1801

strong farmer1802

well-fixed1822

unindigent1830

well off1842

fixed1844

comfortably offc1850

heeled1871

well-heeled1871

well in1888

independent1893

1794 Proc. Old Bailey 16 July 950/1 Ann Low told me that her mother lived in the country, and was very well to do.

1795 Proc. Old Bailey 20 May 693/2 I have been as well to do as some of the first merchants in London.

1840 F. Marryat Poor Jack iii. 14 Her husband had returned well, and well to do.

1874 J. A. Symonds Sketches Italy & Greece (1898) I. vi. 119 For Corsicans they [sc. the Napoleon family] were well-to-do.

1917 A. Cahan Rise of David Levinsky (1993) xiii. ii. 462 He's well-to-do and yet he chums around with people in whom intellectual Gentiles take an interest.

a1982 P. K. Dick Eye of Sybil in Little Black Box (1987) 303 She was always telling me to make more money and to be like her family, which was well-to-do and classy.

2003 G. A. Dariaux Guide to Elegance (new ed.) 154 The customers are hearty eaters, plump, provincial, well-to-do..and not terribly elegant.

(b) More fully well to do in the world. Cf. well in the world at well adj. 8a. Now rare.

ΘΚΠ

the mind > possession > wealth > rich or wealthy [phrase] > well off

well at easec1330

of substance?a1439

at rack and (at) mangera1500

in good case1560

well to live1568

well and warmc1571

well to pass in the worlda1609

inlaid1699

in easy circumstancesa1704

well to do in the world1805

stouth and routh1816

quids in1919

1805 G. Colman John Bull i. i. 10 A very thriving man now, and well to do in the world.

1843 R. S. Surtees Handley Cross I. x. 196 They are very respectable—that's to say.., people well to do in the world.

1861 M. Pattison in Westm. Rev. Apr. 415 The Corporation of the Steelyard were too well to do in the world to be other than..thoroughly Anglican.

1912 in Sale Intoxicating Liquors (Hearing U.S. Senate Subcomm. District Columbia) 179 The people of standing who live in their own houses, or else live in comfortable houses and are fairly well to do in the world.

b. In attributive use.

ΘΚΠ

the mind > possession > wealth > [adjective]

richeOE

eadyOE

richfulc1300

plenteousc1350

wealthyc1380

wealthfula1400

wlouȝa1400

wellc1405

biga1425

goldedc1450

substantious1490

able1516

opulent?1518

substantive1543

strong1581

fat1611

juicy1627

fortuned1632

affluent1652

rhinocerical1688

rough1721

rowthy1792

golden1797

strong-handed1817

well-to-do1831

wealth-encumbered1844

nabobish1857

rhinoceral1860

ingoted1864

tinny1871

pocket-filled1886

oofy1896

nawabi1955

brewstered2001

1831 A. M. Hall Sketches Irish Char. 2nd Ser. 66 Andrew Furlong is, what my mother says, a well-to-do, dacent man.

1839 W. M. Thackeray Stubbs's Cal. Jan. My father was..a well-to-do gentleman of Bungay.

1866 A. Trollope Belton Estate II. ii. 32 The well-to-do squirearchy of England.

1892 S. R. Gardiner Student's Hist. Eng. 489 The Colony of Virginia grew into a tobacco-planting, well-to-do community.

1924 Musical Times 65 64/2 It was rare to find an ancient rattle-trap [sc. piano] such as many a well-to-do English household is content with.

1965 Student Voice 26 Mar. 3/1 The audience was made up of middle class business people, professionals and well to do farmers.

2009 D. O'Briain Tickling Eng. vii. 96 Well-to-do young people, the scions of middle-class Gloucestershire, tumbled out of boutique vodka bars.

2. Indicative or suggestive of prosperity; of, belonging to, or characteristic of wealthy people.

ΘΚΠ

the mind > possession > wealth > [adjective] > well-off > indicative of being

well-to-do1842

1842 Graham's Mag. Aug. 61/1 You..have a well-to-do air, a sort of tell-tale good-dinner aspect, that don't accord well with the sentimental.

1866 ‘G. Eliot’ Felix Holt I. iii. 83 Formerly it [sc. Trebian Dissent] had been of a quiescent, well-to-do kind, represented architecturally by a small, venerable, dark-pewed chapel, built by Presbyterians.

1912 A. J. B. Wavell Mod. Pilgrim in Mecca viii. 152 In contrast with most Eastern places, everything has a clean and well-to-do appearance.

1951 N. Pevsner Middlesex (Buildings of Eng.) 151 The continuous Georgian or pre-Georgian row of well-to-do houses as on the river front of Chiswick, Twickenham, or Hampton.

1995 A. Warner Morvern Callar (1996) 10 A woman with a well-to-do south voice told me to wash my soily hands.

2011 W. E. Powell From There to Here vi. 49 The well-to-do cars sported a radio.

3. Of an animal or plant: in good condition; healthy, thriving. Now rare.

ΘΚΠ

the world > plants > by growth or development > defined by good growth > [adjective] > strong, vigorous, or plump

strongOE

thriftyc1440

well-brawneda1450

valiant1542

pubble1566

stout1573

corroborate1581

bunting1584

lusty1600

plump1600

vegetous1610

blought1611

boisterous1622

stocky1622

robust1627

steera1642

vegete1655

jollya1661

vigorous1706

well-to-do1852

the world > action or operation > manner of action > vigour or energy > [adjective] > robust or healthy

heart-wholea1470

robust1490

roaring1848

well-to-do1852

red-blooded1876

1852 Midland Florist Mar. iii. 159 It would require weeks to get them into the condition of well-to-do plants.

1875 F. I. Scudamore Day Dreams 16 The cattle in the forestalls were sleek and well-to-do.

1908 R. Bagot Anthony Cuthbert iii. 25 Fat and well-to-do rabbits.

B. n.

With the and plural agreement. Well-to-do people as a class.

ΘΚΠ

the mind > possession > wealth > [noun] > rich or wealthy person > well-off person or people

subsidy man1591

subsidy citizen1607

well-to-passer1654

well to pass1695

havea1739

have-something1755

best off1824

well off1828

well-to-do1829

better-to-do1860

kulak1877

better off1895

have-got1897

1829 Spectator 7 Feb. 88/1 There were met the noble, the wealthy, the well-to-do, from far and near.

1891 M. Oliphant Jerusalem iv. ii. 441 The well-to-do of every village gathered conspicuous on the road.

1929 P. Gibbs Hidden City xi. 50 Four acres of garden in which some neat nursemaids were perambulating the pink-cheeked babies of the well-to-do.

1961 A. H. Gardiner Egypt of Pharaohs iii. 32 The tombs of the well-to-do often yield hundreds of small statuettes.

2010 New Yorker 15 Mar. 57/3 The proponents of ski-drœt..derided this approach as ‘hotel-sport’, a frivolous pastime for the well-to-do.

Phrases

† to be well to do with oneself: to be pleased or satisfied with oneself. Cf. well adj. 4d. Obsolete. rare.

ΚΠ

1843 R. S. Surtees Handley Cross I. vii. 130 He went on 'Change with..a strut that plainly told how well he was to do with himself.

Derivatives

ˌwell-to-ˈdo-ism n. now rare = well-to-do-ness n.

ΘΚΠ

the mind > possession > wealth > [noun] > state of being well-off

warmness1399

competency1600

competence1738

well-to-do-ness1842

well-to-do-ism1848

well-offness1866

warmth1888

easy street1901

1848 A. H. Clough Corr. 19 May (1957) I. 174 Well-to-do-ism shakes her Egyptian scourge to the tune of Ye are idle, ye are idle.

1905 H. H. Peerless Diary 8 Mar. in Brief Jolly Change (2003) 90 The number of enormous marble buildings here, the statuary and the general air of well-to-do-ism strikes us pleasingly.

1982 M. J. Ardizzi Made in Italy (1999) viii. 187 Repelled by the air of 'well-to-do-ism' that protects the street like a blanket.

ˌwell-to-ˈdo-ness n. prosperity.

ΘΚΠ

the mind > possession > wealth > [noun] > state of being well-off

warmness1399

competency1600

competence1738

well-to-do-ness1842

well-to-do-ism1848

well-offness1866

warmth1888

easy street1901

1842 E. B. Lee Life J. P. Richter II. iii. vii. 102 A certain well-to-do-ness rules, without luxury.

1925 J. Bone London Perambulator 127 All the nice well-flavoured old things that suggested Kensington ‘well-to-do-ness’.

2006 W. H. Gass Temple of Texts 285 The competition between the fellow's fever and his well-to-do-ness help keep the farmer at a distance.

This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, December 2014; most recently modified version published online June 2022).

单词	well-to-do
释义	well-to-doadj.n. Brit. /ˌwɛltəˈduː/, U.S. /ˌwɛltəˈdu/ Origin: Formed within English, by compounding. Etymons: well adj., to prep., do v. Etymology: < well adj. (compare well adj. 8) + to prep. + do v. Compare earlier well to live adj., well to pass adj. A. adj. 1. Prosperous, well-off, (sufficiently or extremely) wealthy. a. (a) In predicative use. ΘΚΠ the mind > possession > wealth > [adjective] > well-off wellc1405 sufficient1436 full?1483 suffisant1484 beina1525 warmc1571 well-breeched1571 meaned1605 well-meaned1605 well-lined1611 substanced?1614 well-circumstanced1643 forehanded1658 uppish1678 easy1701 brownstone1780 forehand1784 solid1788 well-to-do1794 snug1801 strong farmer1802 well-fixed1822 unindigent1830 well off1842 fixed1844 comfortably offc1850 heeled1871 well-heeled1871 well in1888 independent1893 1794 Proc. Old Bailey 16 July 950/1 Ann Low told me that her mother lived in the country, and was very well to do. 1795 Proc. Old Bailey 20 May 693/2 I have been as well to do as some of the first merchants in London. 1840 F. Marryat Poor Jack iii. 14 Her husband had returned well, and well to do. 1874 J. A. Symonds Sketches Italy & Greece (1898) I. vi. 119 For Corsicans they [sc. the Napoleon family] were well-to-do. 1917 A. Cahan Rise of David Levinsky (1993) xiii. ii. 462 He's well-to-do and yet he chums around with people in whom intellectual Gentiles take an interest. a1982 P. K. Dick Eye of Sybil in Little Black Box (1987) 303 She was always telling me to make more money and to be like her family, which was well-to-do and classy. 2003 G. A. Dariaux Guide to Elegance (new ed.) 154 The customers are hearty eaters, plump, provincial, well-to-do..and not terribly elegant. (b) More fully well to do in the world. Cf. well in the world at well adj. 8a. Now rare. ΘΚΠ the mind > possession > wealth > rich or wealthy [phrase] > well off well at easec1330 of substance?a1439 at rack and (at) mangera1500 in good case1560 well to live1568 well and warmc1571 well to pass in the worlda1609 inlaid1699 in easy circumstancesa1704 well to do in the world1805 stouth and routh1816 quids in1919 1805 G. Colman John Bull i. i. 10 A very thriving man now, and well to do in the world. 1843 R. S. Surtees Handley Cross I. x. 196 They are very respectable—that's to say.., people well to do in the world. 1861 M. Pattison in Westm. Rev. Apr. 415 The Corporation of the Steelyard were too well to do in the world to be other than..thoroughly Anglican. 1912 in Sale Intoxicating Liquors (Hearing U.S. Senate Subcomm. District Columbia) 179 The people of standing who live in their own houses, or else live in comfortable houses and are fairly well to do in the world. b. In attributive use. ΘΚΠ the mind > possession > wealth > [adjective] richeOE eadyOE richfulc1300 plenteousc1350 wealthyc1380 wealthfula1400 wlouȝa1400 wellc1405 biga1425 goldedc1450 substantious1490 able1516 opulent?1518 substantive1543 strong1581 fat1611 juicy1627 fortuned1632 affluent1652 rhinocerical1688 rough1721 rowthy1792 golden1797 strong-handed1817 well-to-do1831 wealth-encumbered1844 nabobish1857 rhinoceral1860 ingoted1864 tinny1871 pocket-filled1886 oofy1896 nawabi1955 brewstered2001 1831 A. M. Hall Sketches Irish Char. 2nd Ser. 66 Andrew Furlong is, what my mother says, a well-to-do, dacent man. 1839 W. M. Thackeray Stubbs's Cal. Jan. My father was..a well-to-do gentleman of Bungay. 1866 A. Trollope Belton Estate II. ii. 32 The well-to-do squirearchy of England. 1892 S. R. Gardiner Student's Hist. Eng. 489 The Colony of Virginia grew into a tobacco-planting, well-to-do community. 1924 Musical Times 65 64/2 It was rare to find an ancient rattle-trap [sc. piano] such as many a well-to-do English household is content with. 1965 Student Voice 26 Mar. 3/1 The audience was made up of middle class business people, professionals and well to do farmers. 2009 D. O'Briain Tickling Eng. vii. 96 Well-to-do young people, the scions of middle-class Gloucestershire, tumbled out of boutique vodka bars. 2. Indicative or suggestive of prosperity; of, belonging to, or characteristic of wealthy people. ΘΚΠ the mind > possession > wealth > [adjective] > well-off > indicative of being well-to-do1842 1842 Graham's Mag. Aug. 61/1 You..have a well-to-do air, a sort of tell-tale good-dinner aspect, that don't accord well with the sentimental. 1866 ‘G. Eliot’ Felix Holt I. iii. 83 Formerly it [sc. Trebian Dissent] had been of a quiescent, well-to-do kind, represented architecturally by a small, venerable, dark-pewed chapel, built by Presbyterians. 1912 A. J. B. Wavell Mod. Pilgrim in Mecca viii. 152 In contrast with most Eastern places, everything has a clean and well-to-do appearance. 1951 N. Pevsner Middlesex (Buildings of Eng.) 151 The continuous Georgian or pre-Georgian row of well-to-do houses as on the river front of Chiswick, Twickenham, or Hampton. 1995 A. Warner Morvern Callar (1996) 10 A woman with a well-to-do south voice told me to wash my soily hands. 2011 W. E. Powell From There to Here vi. 49 The well-to-do cars sported a radio. 3. Of an animal or plant: in good condition; healthy, thriving. Now rare. ΘΚΠ the world > plants > by growth or development > defined by good growth > [adjective] > strong, vigorous, or plump strongOE thriftyc1440 well-brawneda1450 valiant1542 pubble1566 stout1573 corroborate1581 bunting1584 lusty1600 plump1600 vegetous1610 blought1611 boisterous1622 stocky1622 robust1627 steera1642 vegete1655 jollya1661 vigorous1706 well-to-do1852 the world > action or operation > manner of action > vigour or energy > [adjective] > robust or healthy heart-wholea1470 robust1490 roaring1848 well-to-do1852 red-blooded1876 1852 Midland Florist Mar. iii. 159 It would require weeks to get them into the condition of well-to-do plants. 1875 F. I. Scudamore Day Dreams 16 The cattle in the forestalls were sleek and well-to-do. 1908 R. Bagot Anthony Cuthbert iii. 25 Fat and well-to-do rabbits. B. n. With the and plural agreement. Well-to-do people as a class. ΘΚΠ the mind > possession > wealth > [noun] > rich or wealthy person > well-off person or people subsidy man1591 subsidy citizen1607 well-to-passer1654 well to pass1695 havea1739 have-something1755 best off1824 well off1828 well-to-do1829 better-to-do1860 kulak1877 better off1895 have-got1897 1829 Spectator 7 Feb. 88/1 There were met the noble, the wealthy, the well-to-do, from far and near. 1891 M. Oliphant Jerusalem iv. ii. 441 The well-to-do of every village gathered conspicuous on the road. 1929 P. Gibbs Hidden City xi. 50 Four acres of garden in which some neat nursemaids were perambulating the pink-cheeked babies of the well-to-do. 1961 A. H. Gardiner Egypt of Pharaohs iii. 32 The tombs of the well-to-do often yield hundreds of small statuettes. 2010 New Yorker 15 Mar. 57/3 The proponents of ski-drœt..derided this approach as ‘hotel-sport’, a frivolous pastime for the well-to-do. Phrases † to be well to do with oneself: to be pleased or satisfied with oneself. Cf. well adj. 4d. Obsolete. rare. ΚΠ 1843 R. S. Surtees Handley Cross I. vii. 130 He went on 'Change with..a strut that plainly told how well he was to do with himself. Derivatives ˌwell-to-ˈdo-ism n. now rare = well-to-do-ness n. ΘΚΠ the mind > possession > wealth > [noun] > state of being well-off warmness1399 competency1600 competence1738 well-to-do-ness1842 well-to-do-ism1848 well-offness1866 warmth1888 easy street1901 1848 A. H. Clough Corr. 19 May (1957) I. 174 Well-to-do-ism shakes her Egyptian scourge to the tune of Ye are idle, ye are idle. 1905 H. H. Peerless Diary 8 Mar. in Brief Jolly Change (2003) 90 The number of enormous marble buildings here, the statuary and the general air of well-to-do-ism strikes us pleasingly. 1982 M. J. Ardizzi Made in Italy (1999) viii. 187 Repelled by the air of 'well-to-do-ism' that protects the street like a blanket. ˌwell-to-ˈdo-ness n. prosperity. ΘΚΠ the mind > possession > wealth > [noun] > state of being well-off warmness1399 competency1600 competence1738 well-to-do-ness1842 well-to-do-ism1848 well-offness1866 warmth1888 easy street1901 1842 E. B. Lee Life J. P. Richter II. iii. vii. 102 A certain well-to-do-ness rules, without luxury. 1925 J. Bone London Perambulator 127 All the nice well-flavoured old things that suggested Kensington ‘well-to-do-ness’. 2006 W. H. Gass Temple of Texts 285 The competition between the fellow's fever and his well-to-do-ness help keep the farmer at a distance. This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, December 2014; most recently modified version published online June 2022). < adj.n.1794
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