(in Continental Europe) the male ruler of a duchy; the sovereign of a small state.
a British nobleman holding the highest hereditary title outside the royal family, ranking immediately below a prince and above a marquis; a member of the highest rank of the British peerage.
a nobleman of corresponding rank in certain other countries.
a cultivated hybrid of the sweet and sour cherry.
Slang. dukes, fists; hands.
Put up your dukes.
Benjamin Newton, 1855–1929, and his brother, James Buchanan, 1856–1925, U.S. industrialists.
a male given name.
a nobleman of high rank: in the British Isles standing above the other grades of the nobility
the prince or ruler of a small principality or duchy
First recorded in 1100–50; Middle English duke, duc, late Old English duc, from Old French duc, dus, dux, from Medieval Latin dux “hereditary ruler of a small state,” Latin: “leader”; see dux; duke def. 5 dukes (in the sense “fists”) of unclear derivation and perhaps of distinct origin
A duke is a member of a royal or noble group. In some places, dukes rule over certain regions, while in others duke is just an honorary title. In the U.K., a duke inherits his title from his parents. Prince William, for example, is the Duke of Cambridge, while his father Prince Charles is the Duke of Cornwall and Rothesay. The equivalent title for a woman is duchess. Informally, duke has a very different meaning in the U.S. — if you "duke it out," you have a fight, and to "put up your dukes" means to clench your fists and get ready to punch.
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Cedars-Sinai spokesperson Duke Helfand said the hospital would be unable to recruit and retain physicians, nurses, and specialists if the measure passed, dramatically impairing its ability to provide healthcare.
From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 10, 2026
Ellen Meade, an associate professor of economics at Duke University, said she thinks Warsh will want to demonstrate at his first press conference that there is a “new world” at the Fed.
From MarketWatch • Jun. 6, 2026
Charles and Camilla joined members of the royal family, including the Prince and Princess of Wales, Zara and Mike Tindall and the Duke and Duchess of Edinburgh.
From BBC • Jun. 6, 2026
Among utilities, Duke Energy edged up 0.7% and American Electric Power rose 1.2%.
From Barron's • Jun. 4, 2026
He took a closer look at the dog named Duke, who didn’t seem too happy to be locked up in a crate, sharing a cozy motel room with Dozer and Petunia.
From "Dog Squad" by Chris Grabenstein
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
