"ship's berth," late 15c., from Middle Dutch or Middle Low German docke, perhaps ultimately (via Late Latin *ductia "aqueduct") from Latin ducere "to lead" (see duke (n.)); or possibly from a Scandinavian word for "low ground" (cf. Norwegian dokk "hollow, low ground"). Original sense perhaps "furrow a grounded vessel makes in a mud bank." As a verb from 1510s. Related: Docked; docking.
dock
n.2
"where accused stands in court," 1580s, originally rogue's slang, from Flemish dok "pen or cage for animals," origin unknown.
dock
v.
"cut an animal's tail," late 14c., from dok (n.) "fleshy part of an animal's tail" (mid-14c.), related to Old English -docca "muscle," from Proto-Germanic *dokko "something round, bundle" (cf. Old Norse dokka "bundle, girl," Danish dukke "doll," German Docke "small column, bundle, doll, smart girl"). Meaning "to reduce (someone's) pay for some infraction" is first recorded 1822. Related: Docked; docking.
dock
n.3
name for various tall, coarse weeds, Old English docce, from Proto-Germanic *dokkon (cf. Middle Dutch docke-, German Docken-, Old Danish dokka), akin to Middle High German tocke "bundle, tuft," and ultimately to the noun source of dock (v.).
On trial, especially in a criminal case. For example, The accused stood in the dock through the entire proceeding. This expression employs dock in the sense of “an enclosed place for the defendant in a court of law,” a usage dating from the late 1500s, and is used even in American courts where no such enclosure exists.
