duke
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English
Etymology
From Old French duc, through Middle English duk, duke, from Latin dux, ducis. Displaced native Old English heretoga. Was present as duc in late Old English, from the same Latin source. Doublet of dux and doge.
The “fist” sense is thought to be Cockney rhyming slang where “Duke(s) of York” = fork. Fork is itself Cockney slang for hand, and thus fist.
Pronunciation
- (UK) IPA(key): /djuːk/, /dʒuːk/
- (US) IPA(key): /d(j)uːk/
Audio (UK) (file) Audio (US) (file) - Rhymes: -uːk
- Homophone: juke (with yod coalescence)
Noun
duke (plural dukes)
- The male ruler of a duchy (female equivalent: duchess).
- The sovereign of a small state.
- A high title of nobility; the male holder of a dukedom.
- A grand duke.
- Any of various nymphalid butterflies of the Asian genera Bassarona and Dophla.
- (slang, usually in the plural) A fist.
- Put up your dukes!
- 1952, Ralph Ellison, Invisible Man, Penguin Books (2014), page 438:
- “Your friend sure knows how to use his dukes. Biff, bang! One, two, and the copʼs on his ass!”
- 1963, J P Donleavy, A Singular Man, published 1963 (USA), page 19:
- "How did the sport go."
"O sparred a few rounds. Let the instructor have a few on the button."
"You must be tough."
"I can handle my dukes."
Derived terms
Related terms
Translations
male ruler of a duchy
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male holder of a dukedom
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grand duke
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- The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout § Translations.
Translations to be checked
Verb
duke (third-person singular simple present dukes, present participle duking, simple past and past participle duked)
- (transitive, informal) To hit or beat with the fists.
- (slang, transitive) To give cash to; to give a tip to.
- Synonym: tip
- I duked him twenty dollars.
Derived terms
References
- ^ Douglas Harper (2001–2024) “dukes”, in Online Etymology Dictionary.
Albanian
Etymology
from older ntuke from tu Also used as tue in Gheg.
Pronunciation
Particle
duke
- A particle which precedes a participle to form a gerundive adverbial phrase.
- duke kënduar — (while) singing, by singing
Basque
Pronunciation
Verb
duke
- (Northern or archaic) Third-person singular (hark), taking third-person singular (hura) as direct object, future indicative form of izan.
Usage notes
Linguistically, this verb form can be seen as belonging to the reconstructed citation form edun instead of izan.
Bikol Central
Etymology
Pronunciation
Noun
dúke
Related terms
Middle English
Noun
duke
- Alternative form of duk (“duke”)
Scots
Verb
duke (third-person singular simple present dukes, present participle dukin, simple past dukit, past participle dukit)
- (intransitive) To cut into a queue, without permission.
- (transitive) To cut into a queue in front of someone.
- Oi, dinnae duke us!
- (please add an English translation of this usage example)
Tagalog
Etymology
Borrowed from Spanish duque (“duke”), from Old French duc, from Latin dux.
Pronunciation
Noun
duke (Baybayin spelling ᜇᜓᜃᜒ)
Related terms
Further reading
- “duke”, in Pambansang Diksiyonaryo | Diksiyonaryo.ph, Manila, 2018