tusk

[ tuhsk ]

/ tʌsk /

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See synonyms for: tusk / tusks on Thesaurus.com

noun

(in certain animals) a tooth developed to great length, usually one of a pair, as in the elephant, walrus, and wild boar, but singly in the narwhal.

a long, pointed, or protruding tooth.

a projection resembling the tusk of an animal.

Also called gain. Carpentry. a diagonally cut shoulder at the end of a timber for strengthening a tenon.

verb (used with object)

to dig up or tear off with the tusks.

to gore with a tusk.

verb (used without object)

to dig up or thrust at the ground with the tusks.

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Origin of tusk

before 900; Middle English, metathetic variant of tux,Old English, variant of tusctush²; cognate with Old Frisian tusk; akin to tooth

OTHER WORDS FROM tusk

tuskless, adjectivetusklike, adjectiveun·tusked, adjective

Words nearby tusk

Tusculum, tush, tushery, tushie, Tusi, tusk, Tuskegee, tusker, tusk shell, tussah, tussal

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use tusk in a sentence

Classifying these remains as tusks or teeth, and understanding when the creatures they came from existed and how they are related, helps give a more complete picture of the history of dicynodonts, and how tusks in mammals today came to be.
When is a tooth a tusk? It’s surprisingly complex.|Margo Milanowski|October 27, 2021|Popular-Science
Elephants use their tusks for a variety of tasks, including stripping bark off of trees and digging for subterranean minerals and water sources.
Ivory poaching has triggered a surge in elephants born without tusks|Kate Baggaley|October 22, 2021|Popular-Science
The post Ivory poaching has triggered a surge in elephants born without tusks appeared first on Popular Science.
Ivory poaching has triggered a surge in elephants born without tusks|Kate Baggaley|October 22, 2021|Popular-Science
Special banks accept pig tusks, which are considered sacred in the region and have been used as ceremonial currency since ancient times.
Creative Currencies — The Anti-Crypto|Sohini Das Gupta|August 11, 2021|Ozy

Poaching was also ruled out, because the elephants’ bodies were intact with their tusks.
Elephants are dying in droves in Botswana. Scientists don’t know why|Tawanda Karombo|May 14, 2021|Science News
In the film world, it was really Kevin Smith who brought Osment back into the fold with Tusk.
Gone Guy: The Return of Haley Joel Osment|Marlow Stern|October 29, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Johnny Depp has a pretty sizeable role in Tusk as the Montreal private eye Guy LaPointe.
Kevin Smith's Marijuanaissance: On 'Tusk,' 'Falling Out' with Ben Affleck, and 20 Years of 'Clerks'|Marlow Stern|September 9, 2014|DAILY BEAST
The first sequence of the show was set to "Tusk" by Fleetwood Mac.
‘The Americans’ Showrunners Dissect the Secrets of Season 2|Andrew Romano|February 27, 2014|DAILY BEAST
As a patron of Tusk Trust, a conservation charity, Williamtravelled to Botswana in 2010 to raise awareness of the issue.
Charles, William and Tyke Launch Fresh Anti-Poaching Campaign|Tom Sykes|May 21, 2013|DAILY BEAST
Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk is making his first visit to Canada this week.
Econ 101|David Frum|May 15, 2012|DAILY BEAST
Some of them are found to have but one tusk, the other being torn out in fighting with each other, or falling out through age.
Buffon's Natural History. Volume IX (of 10)|Georges Louis Leclerc de Buffon
As for his face, all tusk and jaw and no brow, where had Parr gotten such an idea of it?
The Devil's Asteroid|Manly Wade Wellman
He held in his hand a curious wooden spear with a loose barb tipped with the tusk of a walrus.
The Norsemen in the West|R.M. Ballantyne
I was therefore very desirous of adding the tusk of one of these wild boars to my trophies of the chase.
The Hunters' Feast|Mayne Reid
The three elephants killed were all bulls, that of Mr. Wallace having only one tusk.
The Blind Lion of the Congo|Elliott Whitney

British Dictionary definitions for tusk

tusk

/ (tʌsk) /

noun

a pointed elongated usually paired tooth in the elephant, walrus, and certain other mammals that is often used for fighting

the canine tooth of certain animals, esp horses

a sharp pointed projection

Also called: tusk tenon building trades a tenon shaped with an additional oblique shoulder to make a stronger joint

verb

to stab, tear, or gore with the tusks

Derived forms of tusk

tusked, adjectivetusklike, adjective

Word Origin for tusk

Old English tūsc; related to Old Frisian tosk; see tooth

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

Scientific definitions for tusk

tusk

[ tŭsk ]

A long, pointed tooth, usually one of a pair, projecting from the mouth of certain animals, such as elephants, walruses, and wild pigs. Tusks are used for procuring food and as weapons.

tusk

Origin of tusk

OTHER WORDS FROM tusk

Words nearby tusk

Words related to tusk

How to use tusk in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for tusk

Derived forms of tusk

Word Origin for tusk

Scientific definitions for tusk