HOW TO PRONOUNCE
duck
/dʌk/
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American Pronunciation Guide · 0:39
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What does duck mean?
verb
- To quickly lower (the head or body), often in order to prevent it from being struck by something.
- To lower (something) into water; to thrust or plunge under liquid and suddenly withdraw.
- To go under the surface of water and immediately reappear; to plunge one's head into water or other liquid.
More meanings (27)
verb
- To bow.
- (figuratively) To evade doing something, especially something considered a responsibility.
- To lower the volume of (a sound) so that other sounds in the mix can be heard more clearly.
- To enter a place for a short moment.
- To surreptitiously leave a rubber duck on someone's parked Jeep as an act of kindness (see Jeep ducking).
noun
- A cave passage containing water with low, or no, airspace.
- Any of certain aquatic birds of the family Anatidae, having a flat bill and webbed feet, distinguished from swans and geese by generally being smaller and shorter-necked.
- Specifically, an adult female duck; contrasted with drake and with duckling.
- The flesh of a duck used as food.
- A batsman's score of zero after getting out. (Short for duck's egg.)
- (slang) A playing card with the rank of two.
- Ellipsis of architectural duck; a building intentionally constructed in the shape of an everyday object to which it is related.
- A marble to be shot at with another marble (the shooter) in children's games.
- A cairn used to mark a trail.
- One of the weights used to hold a spline in place for the purpose of drawing a curve.
- A long-necked medical urinal for men; a bed urinal.
- (slang) Synonym of bitch (“a man forced or coerced into a homosexual relationship, especially in prison”).
- A tightly-woven cotton or linen fabric, often used as sailcloth.
- Trousers made of such material.
- A term of endearment; pet; darling.
- An affectionate (sometimes slightly patronising or jocular) term for a person, often (in collocations old duck and dear old duck) an elderly woman.
- Dear, mate (informal way of addressing a friend or stranger).
- (dated, slang) Synonym of lame duck (“one who cannot fulfil their contracts”).
- (obsolete, slang) A faggot; a meatball made from offal.
proper noun
- A surname transferred from the nickname.
- A town in North Carolina.
- An unincorporated community in West Virginia.
Definitions regrouped for readability · CC BY-SA 4.0
IPA pronunciation
/dʌk/
CMU Pronouncing Dictionary ↗Pronunciation varies by speaker and region. About these dictionary pronunciations.
In the pages of books
See this word in context.
He wore a flannel cap and duck trousers, and the sleeves of his white flannel shirt were rolled back to the elbow.
“Ah! hear the foolish fellow! He says he has a duck feast to be eaten! Let us hurry there for our share!”
More book examples (3)
We then sallied forth to look about, after I had ordered a duck to be got ready for dinner, at three o’clock.
And they that keep that house cover them with heat of horse dung, without hen, goose or duck or any other fowl.
Cut a wild duck into quarters and put it into a stewpan with two fowls' livers cut up and fried in butter.