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• drake
  drake

  noun

  a male duck.
• Drake
  Drake

  noun

  Sir Francis, c1540–96, English admiral and buccaneer: sailed around the world 1577–80.

drake

¹ American  

[dreyk] / dreɪk /

noun

1. a male duck.

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drake ² American  

[dreyk] / dreɪk /

noun

1. a small cannon, used especially in the 17th and 18th centuries.

2. drake fly.

3. Archaic. a dragon.

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Drake ³ American  

[dreyk] / dreɪk /

noun

1. Sir Francis, c1540–96, English admiral and buccaneer: sailed around the world 1577–80.

2. Joseph Rodman 1795–1820, U.S. poet.

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drake ¹ British  

/ dreɪk /

noun

1. angling an artificial fly resembling a mayfly

2. history a small cannon

3. an obsolete word for dragon

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Drake ² British  

/ dreɪk /

noun

1. Sir Francis. ?1540–96, English navigator and buccaneer, the first Englishman to sail around the world (1577–80). He commanded a fleet against the Spanish Armada (1588) and contributed greatly to its defeat

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drake ³ British  

/ dreɪk /

noun

1. the male of any duck

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Etymology

Origin of drake¹

1250–1300; Middle English; cognate with Low German drake, dialectal German drache; compare Old High German antrahho, anutrehho male duck

Origin of drake²

before 900; Middle English; Old English draca < Latin dracō dragon

Example Sentences

After spending almost a month receiving treatment, including two surgeries and antibiotics, the drake, or male, mallard was cleared this week to leave, according to a Facebook post from the wildlife center.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 28, 2023

I changed to a green drake pattern, cast near where it had splashed and soon landed my first cutt of the trip.

From Washington Post • Aug. 13, 2022

Thankfully for me drake isn't just a rapper.

From Time • Jul. 23, 2015

As Toronto music critic Rawiya Kameir tweeted, “lmaooooooooo at everyone who said drake has a ‘new accent’ obviously you’ve never met a toronto roadman before.”

From Slate • Feb. 26, 2015

At two months old the duck may be distinguished by her coarse quack, the drake by a fine, rasping noise, and later on by the curled feathers in his tail.

From Natural and Artificial Duck Culture by Rankin, James