skunk

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See also: Skunk

English

English Wikipedia has an article on:
Wikipedia
A striped skunk, Mephitis mephitis.

Pronunciation

Etymology 1

From an unattested Southern New England Algonquian word, cognate with Abenaki segôgw, segonku (he who squirts (musk) / urinates), from Proto-Algonquian *šeka·kwa, from *šek- (to urinate). Doublet of Chicago.

Noun

skunk (plural skunks)

  1. Any of various small mammals, of the family Mephitidae, native to North and Central America, having a glossy black with a white coat and two musk glands at the base of the tail for emitting a noxious smell as a defensive measure.
    • 1634, William Wood, “Of the Beasts that Live on the Land”, in New Englands Prospect. A True, Lively, and Experimentall Description of that Part of America, Commonly Called New England; , London: Tho Cotes, for Iohn Bellamie, , →OCLC, 1st part, pages 22–23:
      The beaſts of offence be Squunckes, Ferrets, Foxes, vvhoſe impudence ſometimes drives them to the good vvives Hen rooſt, to fill their Paunch: ſome of theſe be blacke; their furre is of much eſteeme.
  2. (slang, derogatory, dated) A despicable person.
  3. (slang, derogatory, dated) Anything very bad; a stinker.
    • 1987, English Journal, volume 76, numbers 5-8, page 52:
      On the other hand, many critics contend that in terms of literary quality, many of the multiple-storyline books are true skunks.
  4. (slang) A walkover victory in sports or board games, as when the opposing side is unable to score.
    Coordinate term: shutout
  5. (cribbage) A win by thirty or more points. (A double skunk is sixty or more, a triple skunk ninety or more.)
Derived terms
Descendants
Translations

Verb

skunk (third-person singular simple present skunks, present participle skunking, simple past and past participle skunked)

  1. (transitive, slang) To defeat so badly as to prevent any opposing points.
    I skunked him at cards.
    We fished all day but the lake skunked us.
  2. (cribbage) To win by thirty or more points.
  3. (intransitive, of beer) To go bad, to spoil.

See also

Etymology 2

Blend of skinhead +‎ punk, influenced by the animal (Etymology 1).

Noun

skunk (plural skunks)

  1. A member of a hybrid skinhead and punk subculture.
    • 2006, Pam Nilan, Carles Feixa, Global Youth?: Hybrid Identities, Plural Worlds, page 192:
      In the early 1980s, certain ex-punks joined them, becoming 'skunks' – a hybrid subculture of skinheads and punks.
    • 2011, Gerard DeGroot (quoting Brown), Seventies Unplugged
      mods, skins, suedes, smoothies, punks, skunks, rude boys, soul boys and headbangers

Etymology 3

From skunkweed (certain highly aromatic marijuana).

Noun

skunk (countable and uncountable, plural skunks)

  1. (slang) Clipping of skunkweed (marijuana).
  2. Any of the strains of hybrids of Cannabis sativa and Cannabis indica that may have THC levels exceeding those of typical hashish.

Czech

Noun

skunk m anim

  1. skunk (animal)

Declension

Further reading

  • skunk”, in Příruční slovník jazyka českého (in Czech), 1935–1957
  • skunk”, in Slovník spisovného jazyka českého (in Czech), 1960–1971, 1989

Dutch

Etymology

Borrowed from English skunk.

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /skʏŋk/
  • Audio:(file)
  • Hyphenation: skunk

Noun

skunk m (uncountable)

  1. skunk, weed with a high level of THC

Kashubian

Etymology

Borrowed from English skunk.

Pronunciation

Noun

skunk m animal (female equivalent szkùnka)

  1. (Canada, United States) skunk

Further reading

  • Stanislow Frymark (2020) “skunk”, in Kashubian Language in Canada, the USA and New Zealand; Lexical Interferences in Kashubian Language in Canada, the USA and New Zealand, Zómk Zôbòrsczi, →ISBN

Swedish

Swedish Wikipedia has an article on:
Wikipedia sv

Etymology

Borrowed from English skunk.

Pronunciation

Noun

skunk c

  1. a skunk
    Synonym: stinkdjur

Declension

Declension of skunk
nominative genitive
singular indefinite skunk skunks
definite skunken skunkens
plural indefinite skunkar skunkars
definite skunkarna skunkarnas

References