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View synonyms for duke

duke

1

[ dook, dyook ]

noun

  1. (in Continental Europe) the male ruler of a duchy; the sovereign of a small state.
  2. 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.
  3. a nobleman of corresponding rank in certain other countries.
  4. a cultivated hybrid of the sweet and sour cherry.
  5. dukes, Slang. fists; hands:

    Put up your dukes.



verb (used with object)

, duked, duk·ing.
  1. Slang. to hit or thrash with the fists (sometimes followed by out ): The bully said he was going to duke out anyone who disagreed.

    He duked me because he said I had insulted him.

    The bully said he was going to duke out anyone who disagreed.

Duke

2

[ dook, dyook ]

noun

  1. Benjamin Newton, 1855–1929, and his brother, James Buchanan, 1856–1925, U.S. industrialists.
  2. a male given name.

duke

/ djuːk /

noun

  1. a nobleman of high rank: in the British Isles standing above the other grades of the nobility
  2. the prince or ruler of a small principality or duchy
“Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged” 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012


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Word History and Origins

Origin of duke1

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”; dux; duke def 5 dukes (in the sense “fists”) of unclear derivation and perhaps of distinct origin
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Word History and Origins

Origin of duke1

C12: from Old French duc, from Latin dux leader
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Idioms and Phrases

Idioms
  1. duke it out, to fight, especially with the fists; do battle:

    The adversaries were prepared to duke it out in the alley.

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Example Sentences

Had Pelosi gotten her way, Harris would have had to duke it out with Democrats in an open primary.

From Salon

He quotes a source as saying: "The duke is no longer a financial burden on the King."

From BBC

He said Myers illness was physically obvious but as soon as the cameras started rolling "he'd have his dukes up, ready for a scrap".

From BBC

But US judge Carl Nichols ruled on Monday that "the public does not have a strong interest in disclosure of the duke's immigration records".

From BBC

Days after it, the duke announced he was stepping back from royal duties, saying the Epstein scandal had become a "major disruption" to the Royal Family.

From BBC

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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.

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