What it means
Doss is proper British slang with a few scruffy little jobs. As a noun, it's something easy, the kind of class, shift, or exam you can glide through on half a brain cell and a lukewarm coffee. As a verb, to doss means to kip somewhere casually for the night, usually on a mate’s sofa, floor, or whatever patch of indoor survival presents itself. In doss about, it means loaf around and do sweet bugger all.
Usage examples
"That mock exam was a doss, so we bounced early. Missed the last train and ended up dossing at Jay’s, three of us on one sofa."
"Monday’s lecture is a total doss, he just reads off the slides and lets us out twenty minutes early."
"We dossed about all afternoon, watched three films and never once changed out of our pyjamas."
"We’re not revising for that module yet, it’s a complete doss and everyone knows it."
"Got too smashed after the pub, so I just dossed on my cousin’s floor with my coat as a pillow."
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Where it comes from
Doss goes back to older British cant, where it meant a bed, bedding, or a cheap place to sleep, especially in rough or temporary digs. That sense is recorded from the 18th and 19th centuries. From there it drifted into the modern idea of skiving, lounging, or doing something so easy it barely counts as effort.
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