duck
1 Americannoun
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ducks,
plural
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duck
plural
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any of numerous wild or domesticated web-footed swimming birds of the family Anatidae, especially of the genus Anas and allied genera, characterized by abroad, flat bill, short legs, and depressed body.
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the female of this bird, as distinguished from the male.
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the flesh of this bird, eaten as food.
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Informal. person; individual.
He's the queer old duck with the shaved head and walrus mustache.
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a playing marble, especially one that is not used as a shooter.
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(used with a singular verb) ducks, ducky.
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Cricket Slang.
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failure of a batsman to score.
to be out for a duck.
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a player's score of zero.
to be bowled for a duck.
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idioms
verb (used without object)
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ducks,
present (3rd person singular)
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ducked,
past participle, past
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ducking
present participle
verb (used with object)
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ducks,
present (3rd person singular)
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ducked,
past participle, past
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ducking
present participle
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to lower suddenly.
Duck your head going through that low doorway.
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to avoid or evade (a blow, unpleasant task, etc.); dodge: to duck an embarrassing question.
to duck a hard right;
to duck an embarrassing question.
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to plunge or dip in water momentarily.
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Cards Informal. to play a card lower than (the card led).
noun
noun
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a heavy, plain-weave cotton fabric for tents, clothing, bags, etc., in any of various weights and widths.
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(used with a plural verb) ducks, slacks or trousers made of this material.
noun
noun
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any of various small aquatic birds of the family Anatidae, typically having short legs, webbed feet, and a broad blunt bill: order Anseriformes
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the flesh of this bird, used as food
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the female of such a bird, as opposed to the male (drake)
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any other bird of the family Anatidae, including geese, and swans
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Also: ducks. informal dear or darling: used as a term of endearment or of general address See also ducky
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informal a person, esp one regarded as odd or endearing
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cricket a score of nothing by a batsman
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informal without effect
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informal to become adept at or attracted to something very quickly
verb
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to move (the head or body) quickly downwards or away, esp so as to escape observation or evade a blow
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to submerge or plunge suddenly and often briefly under water
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informal to dodge or escape (a person, duty, etc)
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(intr) bridge to play a low card when possessing a higher one rather than try to win a trick
noun
noun
noun
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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ducksimple
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duckssimple
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have duckedperfect
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has duckedperfect
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am duckingprogressive
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are duckingprogressive
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is duckingprogressive
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have been duckingperfect progressive
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has been duckingperfect progressive
Past
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duckedsimple
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had duckedperfect
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was duckingprogressive
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were duckingprogressive
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had been duckingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of duck1
First recorded before 1000; Middle English duk, doke, Old English dūce “diver, duck”; akin to duck 2
Origin of duck2
First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English duken, douken; cognate with German tauchen “to dive,” ducken “to duck”
Origin of duck3
First recorded in 1630–40; from Dutch doek “cloth”; cognate with German Tuch
Origin of duck4
An Americanism dating back to 1940–45; by alteration
Explanation
A duck is a bird that spends much of its life on or near water. You can sometimes see whole families of ducks paddling across lakes and ponds. Ducks can be wild or domesticated — if you keep ducks in your yard, you'll need to provide them with at least a small body of water. When the word duck is a verb, it means "to bow or dip suddenly," like when your kite plunges suddenly and you duck to avoid getting hit in the head. You can duck figuratively, too: "Don't you dare duck out of helping me clean up after the party!"
Vocabulary lists containing duck
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
Donald Trump could become a lame duck president after US midterm elections but prospects at the ballot box are looking brighter for ducks of the feathered variety.
From Barron's ● Sep. 28, 2026
The flavors of each influence the book’s dishes, which also include more elaborate creations like a Hawaiian whole-roasted duck.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 20, 2026
Duckett edged a beauty for a golden duck.
From BBC ● Sep. 12, 2026
Recalling the model airplane sets he assembled as a child, he arranged a fish, a chicken and a duck as a collection of dissected parts on a tabletop, labeling it with instructions for reconstruction.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 3, 2026
To save time, I duck between the trees and hurry across the manicured lawn to the front door, making it to the admissions office with ten minutes to spare.
From "Red Flags and Butterflies" by Sheryl Azzam
He said that in the wild, ducks gorge before migration and store fat in their livers and argues that "gavage" -- the process of force-feeding -- is a traditional means of animal husbandry.
From Barron's ● Sep. 28, 2026
Marsh harriers, bearded tits, flocks of waders and overwintering ducks and geese are a regular sight for visitors, along with otters, water voles, fen raft spiders, orchids and rare sharp-leaved pondweed.
From BBC ● Sep. 6, 2026
My oldest, who is 14, ducks behind our raised garden beds, where orange marigolds and sprawling tomato branches shield her from his view.
From Slate ● Sep. 5, 2026
“The house was small, so we built onto it to add a kitchen. We use the barns as a sanctuary for rescued horses, ducks, chickens, peacocks, goats, and other animals,” she went on.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 2, 2026
It was not unpleasant in itself, if you did not know what had once been there—the sedge, the ducks, and the giant carp that two tramps had roasted and feasted on by the island temple.
From "Atonement" by Ian McEwan
New Zealand had ducked and dived to minimise the effect of South Africa's set-piece supremacy.
From BBC ● Sep. 5, 2026
MIAMI—My escort ducked his head into the empty TSA checkpoint 2 miles outside Miami International Airport and whispered, “We have a member arriving.‘
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 15, 2026
“I immediately ducked down, put my hands up, and covered my head,” she said.
From Slate ● Jul. 7, 2026
Then, hoping to avoid any urgent diaper events, I ducked into the next room and dialed up the president.
From Salon ● Jun. 24, 2026
But as soon as I ducked inside, I knew something was wrong.
From "Nory Ryan’s Song" by Patricia Reilly Giff
One person sits in concentrated silence at each window, another perched in the back of the pick-up truck, ducking for the occasional limb branching from trees which rise around us.
From BBC ● Aug. 8, 2026
But after a dozen sessions, Maddie began ducking under a chair the moment her veterinarian reached for the needles.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 17, 2026
Not Brody, whose chiseled, wiry presence is ever in motion, flailing, ducking, wincing, yearning.
From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 29, 2026
As I continued to circle the crowd, ducking between rows of folding chairs, I caught the same refrains over and over.
From Slate ● Jan. 3, 2026
The chopper landed in a grassy clearing and the men jumped out, ducking to keep their heads below the whirling blades.
From "Most Dangerous: Daniel Ellsberg and the Secret History of the Vietnam War" by Steve Sheinkin
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.
