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definitions

skunk

[ skuhngk ]
/ skʌŋk /
|
SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR skunk ON THESAURUS.COM

noun, plural skunks, (especially collectively) skunk.

a small North American mammal, Mephitis mephitis, of the weasel family, having a black coat with a white, V-shaped stripe on the back, and ejecting a fetid odor when alarmed or attacked.
any of several related or similar animals.Compare hog-nosed skunk, spotted skunk.
Informal. a thoroughly contemptible person.
U.S. Navy Slang. an unidentified ship or target.

verb (used with object)

Slang. to defeat thoroughly in a game, especially while keeping an opponent from scoring: The team skunked the favorites in the crucial game.

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RELATED WORDS

cheat, scoundrel, knave, stinker

Nearby words

  1. skull and crossbones,
  2. skull session,
  3. skull-cap,
  4. skullcap,
  5. skullduggery,
  6. skunk cabbage,
  7. skunk river,
  8. skunk works,
  9. skunkweed,
  10. skunky

Origin of skunk

1625–35, Americanism; < the Massachusett reflex of Proto-Algonquian *šeka·kwa (derivative of *šek- urinate + -a·kw fox, foxlike animal
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for skunk

British Dictionary definitions for skunk

skunk

/ (skʌŋk) /

noun plural skunks or skunk

any of various American musteline mammals of the subfamily Mephitinae, esp Mephitis mephitis (striped skunk), typically having a black and white coat and bushy tail: they eject an unpleasant-smelling fluid from the anal gland when attacked
informal a despicable person
slang a strain of cannabis smoked for its exceptionally powerful psychoactive properties

verb

(tr) US and Canadian slang to defeat overwhelmingly in a game

Word Origin for skunk

C17: from Algonquian; compare Abnaki segākw skunk
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