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zek

American  
[zek] / zɛk /

noun

  1. (in the former U.S.S.R.) an inmate of a forced-labor camp.

Etymology

Origin of zek

First recorded in 1965–70; from Russian zek “prisoner,” representing a vocalization of ze + ka (the letter names of z, k ), probably an abbreviation of zaklyuchënnyi “prisoner”

Example Sentences

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It is also the first letter of the Russian word "zek", or "inmate".

From BBC • Oct. 25, 2023

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.