duck

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duck^¹

/dʌk/
/dʊk/ Ireland, Northern England

Rhymes with -ʌk

Where it comes from

From Middle English ducken, duken, douken (“to duck, plunge under water, submerge”), from Old English *dūcan (“to dip, dive, duck”), from Proto-West Germanic *dūkan, from Proto-Germanic *dūkaną (“to dip, dive, bend down, stoop, duck”).

Cognates

Related to Scots dulk (“to duck”), Middle Dutch ducken (“to duck”), Low German ducken (“to duck”), German ducken (“to duck”), Danish dukke, dykke (“to dive”). Related also to Scots dook, douk (“to bathe, drench, soak, baptise”), West Frisian dûke (“to plunge, dive”), Dutch duiken (“to dive, plunge, duck”), Low German duken (“to duck, dive, stoop”), German tauchen (“to dive, plunge, immerse, duck”), Swedish dyka (“to dive, submerge”).

verb ducks · ducking · ducked

transitive To quickly lower (the head or body), often in order to prevent it from being struck by something. As some raw youth in country bred, To arms by thirst of honour led, When at a skirmish first he hears The bullets whistling round his ears, Will duck his head aside
Similar: dip
transitive To lower (something) into water; to thrust or plunge under liquid and suddenly withdraw. Adams after ducking the Squire tvvice or thrice leaped out of the Tub, […]
Similar: dip, dunk
intransitive To go under the surface of water and immediately reappear; to plunge one's head into water or other liquid. […]In Tiber ducking thrice, by break of day[…]
intransitive To bow. The Learned pate / Duckes to the Golden Foole.
figuratively, transitive To evade doing something, especially something considered a responsibility. Victorian women choosing to duck the demands of domestic life to spend their time doing something they enjoyed is hardly a novel idea.
transitive To lower the volume of (a sound) so that other sounds in the mix can be heard more clearly. The music is ducked under the voice.
colloquial, intransitive To enter a place for a short moment. I'm just going to duck into the loo for a minute; can you hold my bag?

Similar: duck down

noun ducks

A cave passage containing water with low, or no, airspace.

duck^²

/dʌk/
/dʊk/ Ireland, Northern England

Rhymes with -ʌk

Where it comes from

From Middle English doke, ducke, dukke, dokke, douke, duke, from Old English duce, dūce (“duck”, literally “dipper, diver, ducker”), from Old English *dūcan (“to dip, dive, duck”), from Proto-West Germanic *dūkan, from Proto-Germanic *dūkaną (“to dive, bend down”). See verb above.

Cognates

Cognate with Scots duik, duke, dook (“duck”), Danish dukand, dykand (“sea-duck”), Swedish dykfågel (“a diver, diving bird, plungeon”), Dutch duiker (“diving bird, loon”, literally “diver, dipper, plunger”), German Low German Düker (“diving bird, loon”, literally “diver”), German Taucher (“diving bird, loon, grebe”, literally “diver, plunger”).

For the meaning development compare Russian ныро́к (nyrók, “pochard”) (< ныря́ть (nyrjátʹ, “to dive”)).

noun ducks · duck · ducke

countable, uncountable 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. Matsumoto Castle exhibits the architecture of both war and peace, from its steep wooden stairs, hidden inner levels and archer’s perches to the moon-viewing room added in 1630, which also offers a vantage point for viewing the brocaded carps and ducks residing in the castle moat.
countable, uncountable Specifically, an adult female duck; contrasted with drake and with duckling.
Similar: duckess
uncountable The flesh of a duck used as food.
Similar: duckflesh, duckmeat
countable, uncountable A batsman's score of zero after getting out. (Short for duck's egg.) ‘How do you like your duck, Harris?’ one raucous voice yelled.
countable, slang, uncountable A playing card with the rank of two.
abbreviation, countable, ellipsis, uncountable Ellipsis of architectural duck; a building intentionally constructed in the shape of an everyday object to which it is related. A luncheonette in the shape of a coffee cup is particularly conspicuous, as is intended of an architectural duck or folly.
Similar: duck building
countable, uncountable A marble to be shot at with another marble (the shooter) in children's games.
US, countable, uncountable A cairn used to mark a trail.
countable, uncountable One of the weights used to hold a spline in place for the purpose of drawing a curve.
countable, dated, slang, uncountable Synonym of lame duck (“one who cannot fulfil their contracts”).
Similar: lame duck
countable, uncountable A long-necked medical urinal for men; a bed urinal.
UK, countable, obsolete, slang, uncountable A faggot; a meatball made from offal.
US, countable, slang, uncountable Synonym of bitch (“a man forced or coerced into a homosexual relationship, especially in prison”). The more passive males are subjected to physical violence. I was subjected to being what they call a punk or a duck, which is someone else's power trip, that's all.
Similar: bitch

duck^³

/dʌk/
/dʊk/ Ireland, Northern England

Rhymes with -ʌk

Where it comes from

From Dutch doek, from Middle Dutch doeck, doec (“linen cloth”), from Old Dutch *dōc, from Proto-West Germanic *dōk, from Proto-Germanic *dōkaz (“cloth, rag”), from Proto-Indo-European *dwōg-, *dwōk-. Cognate with German Tuch (“cloth”), Swedish duk (“cloth, canvas”), Icelandic dúkur (“cloth, fabric”). Doublet of doek.

noun ducks · dook · doock

countable, uncountable A tightly-woven cotton or linen fabric, often used as sailcloth. Near-synonym: sailduck
Similar: duckcloth, sailduck
countable, in plural, uncountable Trousers made of such material. And they would go up and find old Allington, in white ducks, standing in the fringe of long grasses and cow-parsley on the other edge of the island, looking to his poultry or his rabbits.

duck^⁴

/dʌk/
/dʊk/ Ireland, Northern England

Rhymes with -ʌk

Where it comes from

Potteries dialect, Black Country dialect and dialects of the former territory of Mercia (central England). Compare Danish dukke (“doll”), Swedish docka (“baby; doll”), dialectal English doxy (“sweetheart”).

noun ducks

A term of endearment; pet; darling. […]and hold-faſt is the onely Dogge: My Ducke[…]
An affectionate (sometimes slightly patronising or jocular) term for a person, often (in collocations old duck and dear old duck) an elderly woman. Even if this dear old duck didn’t take off before the real fun began, she would be going to beddy-byes any time from now.
Midlands Dear, mate (informal way of addressing a friend or stranger). Ay up duck, ow'a'tha?

Similar: friend

duck^⁵

/dʌk/
/dʊk/ Ireland, Northern England

Rhymes with -ʌk

Where it comes from

Denominal verb of duck (noun) and ellipsis of rubber duck

verb ducks · ducking · ducked

transitive To surreptitiously leave a rubber duck on someone's parked Jeep as an act of kindness (see Jeep ducking). The couple has gotten messages from people they've ducked saying how happy it made them, and even some saying they might also start ducking.

Duck^⁶

/dʌk/

Sounds like duck · Rhymes with -ʌk

Where it comes from

The surname is originally a nickname from Middle English doke (“duck”). See duck.

proper noun

A surname transferred from the nickname.
A town in North Carolina. I drove north now, past Nags Head and Duck and beyond.
An unincorporated community in West Virginia.

Thesaurus

Closest in meaning: douse, sidestep, parry, dodge, circumvent, elude, evade, put off, skirt, dip, hedge, fudge, down, dive, head, shirk

verb

Similar: duck down

noun

Similar: friend

Translations

Every language

verb to quickly lower the head or body (intransitive)

Español	agacharse, esconderse
Português	agachar-se, abaixar-se
Français	esquiver
Deutsch	sich ducken, sich schnell bücken
Ελληνικά	σκύβω skývo
Română	ghemui
Русский	пригиба́ться prigibátʹsja, пригну́ться prignútʹsja
Tiếng Việt	cúi (đầu)

verb to quickly lower the head (transitive)

Español	sumergirse
Português	agachar, abaixar
Français	baisser
Deutsch	ducken
Русский	пригиба́ть prigibátʹ, пригну́ть prignútʹ
Tiếng Việt	cúi

verb to lower into the water

Español	sumergir, hundir
Português	mergulhar
Français	plonger
Deutsch	untertauchen
Ελληνικά	κάνω πατητή káno patití
Русский	окуна́ть okunátʹ, окуну́ть okunútʹ
Tiếng Việt	dìm (xuống nước), ngụp

verb to try to evade doing something

Español	eludir, esquivar, evadir
Português	esquivar
Français	esquiver
Deutsch	ausweichen
Tiếng Việt	trốn

noun aquatic bird of the family Anatidae

Español	pato, ánade, corco, corío, parro, quetro
한국어	오리 ori
日本語	鴨 kamo, カモ kamo, 家鴨 ahiru, アヒル ahiru
中文	鴨 /鸭 yā, 鴨子 /鸭子 yāzi
हिन्दी	बतख़ batax, बत्तख battakh, बतख batakh, बत्तख़ battax, बत्तक battak
Kiswahili	bata
Português	pato, pata
Français	canard
Deutsch	Ente
Italiano	anatra
Ελληνικά	πάπια pápia, νήσσα níssa
Română	rață, rățoi
Русский	у́тка útka, се́лезень sélezenʹ, ка́чка káčka
Tiếng Việt	vịt
العربية	بَطَّة baṭṭa
עברית	ברווז \ בַּרְוָז barváz

noun female duck

Español	pata
हिन्दी	बत्तख़ battax, बतख batakh
Português	pata
Français	cane, canard femelle
Deutsch	Ente, Entenweibchen, weibliche Ente
Ελληνικά	πάπια pápia
Română	rață
Русский	у́тка útka
Tiếng Việt	vịt cái
العربية	بَطَّة baṭṭa

noun flesh of a duck used as food

Español	pato
हिन्दी	बतख़ batax
Português	pato
Français	canard
Deutsch	Ente
Italiano	anatra
Ελληνικά	πάπια pápia
Română	rață
Русский	у́тка útka
Tiếng Việt	thịt vịt

noun a batsman's score of zero after getting out

Español	cero
Kiswahili	bata
Русский	нуль nulʹ
Tiếng Việt	ván trắng

noun slang: playing card two

Русский	дво́йка dvójka

noun cotton fabric

Español	lona
Italiano	olona
Русский	паруси́на parusína, гру́бое полотно́ grúboje polotnó

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MLA

"duck." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/duck. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026.

APA

duck. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/duck

Chicago

"duck." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/duck.

BibTeX

@misc{duck_2026,
  title = {duck},
  howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
  year = {2026},
  url = {https://micwyn.com/word/duck},
  urldate = {2026-11-06}
}

duck

AI In plain words

duck¹

Where it comes from

verb ducks · ducking · ducked

noun ducks

duck²

Where it comes from

noun ducks · duck · ducke

duck³

Where it comes from

noun ducks · dook · doock

duck⁴

Where it comes from

noun ducks

duck⁵

Where it comes from

verb ducks · ducking · ducked

Duck⁶

Where it comes from

proper noun

Thesaurus

Translations

verb to quickly lower the head or body (intransitive)

verb to quickly lower the head (transitive)

verb to lower into the water

verb to try to evade doing something

noun aquatic bird of the family Anatidae

noun female duck

noun flesh of a duck used as food

noun a batsman's score of zero after getting out

noun slang: playing card two

noun cotton fabric

duck^¹

duck^²

duck^³

duck^⁴

duck^⁵

Duck^⁶