A fried pastry that's usually round and often has a hole in the middle, usually covered with sugar or glaze.
From Dutch 'olie-koekje' (oil cake), but the 'dough' + 'nut' naming came from the fact that early versions were rolled in dough and fried. The 'nut' referred to the small size and round shape, like a nutmeat. Named for its form, not its ingredients.
Doughnuts reveal how language adapts—the Dutch settlers brought their fried pastries to America, English speakers saw the dough-ball shape, and renamed them using two descriptive English words. Dunkin' Donuts now serves more doughnuts than there are people on Earth!
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