Word.ws English Dictionary

doing a number on

doing a number on is the present participle and gerund of do a number on.

Meaning of do a number on

Verb

do a number on (third-person singular simple present does a number on, present participle doing a number on, simple past did a number on, past participle done a number on)

  1. (idiomatic, informal) To damage, especially to a significant extent; to treat harshly; to produce ill effects in.
    • Your harsh words could do a number on my mental health.
    Synonyms:
    take its toll

Questions about doing a number on

What is doing a number on the present participle and gerund of?
Doing a number on is the present participle and gerund of do a number on.

Words near doing a number on in the dictionary

  1. doing a little trolling
  2. doing a lot of work
  3. doing a Melba
  4. doing a moonlight flit
  5. doing a never
  6. doing a number on
  7. doing a perish
  8. doing a power of good
  9. doing a runner
  10. doing a slow burn
  11. doing away with

Source and license

Adapted from Wiktionary: doing a number on (page history and authors); do a number on (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

Last updated:

Cite this entry: “doing a number on.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/doing_a_number_on. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.