duck Hear it!

duck¹ Definition

duck (duk)

noun

  1. pl. ducks or duck any of a large number of relatively small waterfowl with a flat bill, short neck and legs, and webbed feet
  2. a female duck
  3. the flesh of a duck as food
  4. Chiefly Brit., Informal a darling; dear
  5. ☆ Slang a person, esp. one qualified as being “odd,” “harmless,” “funny,” etc.

Etymology: ME doke < OE duce, lit., diver, ducker < base of *ducan, to plunge, dive (see duck); replaces OE ened (akin to Ger ente), common Gmc word for the bird

duck¹ Idioms

like water off a duck's back

with no effect or reaction

duck² Definition

duck (duk)

transitive verb, intransitive verb

  1. to plunge or dip under water for a moment
  2. to lower, turn, or bend (the head, body, etc.) suddenly, as in avoiding a blow or in hiding
  3. ☆ Informal to avoid or evade the candidate ducked the issue
  4. Slang to move (in or out) quickly

Etymology: ME douken < OE *ducan, to plunge, dive, akin to OHG tūhan (Ger tauchen), MLowG dūken, Du duiken, to dive

noun

the act of ducking

duck² Related Forms

duck′er noun

duck³ Definition

duck (duk)

noun

  1. a cotton or linen cloth somewhat like canvas but finer and lighter in weight
  2. clothes, esp. white trousers, made of this cloth

Etymology: Du doek, akin to Ger tuch, cloth

duck4 Definition

duck (duk)

noun

☆ Mil. Slang an amphibious motor vehicle used during WWII

Etymology: altered (infl. by duck) < DUKW, military code name

duck Synonyms

duck

n.

Types and breeds of ducks include: freshwater, sea, gadwall, garganey, shoveler, spoonbill, widgeon, baldpate, bufflehead, butterball, whistler, broadbill, ruddy, old, squaw, harlequin, ringneck, black, wood, mandarin, musk, pintail, tufted, spotbill, mottled, masked, yellow-billed, redhead, pochard, canvasback, mallard, Peking, eider, fulvous, tree, Mexican, Aylesbury; cinnamon teal, green-winged teal, scoter, surf, coot, scaup, merganser, sheldrake;

like water off a duck's back<strong>*

ineffective, ineffectual, weak; see useless 1.

duck Synonyms

duck

v.

  1. To lower the head or body quickly

    bob, bend, stoop; see bow 1.

  2. To immerse quickly

    plunge, submerge, dunk; see dip 1, immerse 1.

  3. To avoid

    dodge, evade, elude; see avoid, evade 1.

duck Usage Examples

Object

stool: Hung on the wall in the council chamber is the town's old ducking stool.

Converse of object

  • dabble: December records were very similar with a maximum count of 132 Wigeon on the 24th and good numbers of other dabbling duck.
  • feed: Note: Children are welcome to feed the wild ducks, which can be seen daily from the living room window.

Adjective modifier

  • tufted: A flock of about 40 of these birds was headed by two Tufted Ducks.
  • white-headed: Small numbers of White-headed Ducks were found breeding at 11 wetlands.
  • ferruginous: The sun shone on a group of 26 ferruginous duck flying passed the boat.
  • lame: In his final weeks of office, far from being a lame duck, Bill Clinton is more popular than ever.
  • long-tailed: The sight of hundreds of Long-tailed Duck on the sea on our last visit was unforgettable.
  • ruddy: An example is that of the ruddy duck, introduced into Europe as an ornamental species from America.

Modifies a noun

  • confit: Expect treats like foie gras & duck confit terrine, caramelized scallop salad, wild Scottish halibut & sherry trifles.
  • pond: The main duck pond is situated on the far side of the play area.
  • breast: Add the duck breast halves, skin side up.
  • egg: The market for duck eggs, however, is poor in the UK.

Noun used with modifier

  • eider: Feathers from the eider duck Old blue paper covered slide by an unknown mounter.
  • Muscovy: Does this gnarled old Muscovy Duck bare a resemblance to a certain narrowboat navigator?
  • mandarin: Bird watchers always seem to have problems with what to make of mandarin ducks, i.e. can they count them in their annual total?
  • roast: If this is not done 80 per cent of the calories from roast duck will be from fat!
  • peking: The star of great american history including peking duck.
  • rubber: The rubber duck is airbrushed to give the look of a regular rubber duck.

Preposition: with

pancake: The crispy duck with pancakes was superb, although they were a little stingy on the plum sauce.