duke

From Old French duc, through Middle English 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.

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.[1]

• (UK) IPA^(key): /djuːk/, /dʒuːk/
• (US) IPA^(key): /d(j)uːk/

• Audio (UK)

  (file)

• Audio (US)

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• Rhymes: -uːk

duke (plural dukes)

1. The male ruler of a duchy (female equivalent: duchess).
2. The sovereign of a small state.
3. A high title of nobility; the male holder of a dukedom.

   Hypernyms: title, holder

   Coordinate terms: baron, count, countess, earl, marquis, marquess, viscount, prince, monarch

4. A grand duke.
5. (slang, usually in the plural) A fist.

   Put up your dukes!

duke (third-person singular simple present dukes, present participle duking, simple past and past participle duked)

1. (transitive, informal) To hit or beat with the fists.
   • 2003, John A. Dinan, Private Eyes in the Comics, →ISBN, page 65:

     It seems that PI Rainer was duked by his wife […] .

2. (slang, transitive) To give cash to; to give a tip to.

   Synonym: tip

   I duked him twenty dollars.

• IPA^(key): [ˈdukɛ]

duke

1. A particle which precedes a participle to form a gerundive adverbial phrase.

   duke kënduar — (while) singing, by singing

Borrowed from Spanish duque (“duke”).

duke

1. duke

• duk, duc, duyk, doyk, dug

Borrowed from Old French duc, from Latin dux.

• IPA^(key): /diu̯k/

duke (plural dukes)

1. leader, guide, commander, boss
2. noble, lord
3. duke (rank of nobility)

• duchesse
• dukedom
• duche

• English: duke
• Scots: duik, duke

• “dūk (n.)” in MED Online, Ann Arbor, Mich.: University of Michigan, 2007, retrieved 2018-04-02.

duke (third-person singular present dukes, present participle dukin, past dukit, past participle dukit)

1. to cut into a queue, without permission (intransitive); to cut into a queue in front of someone (transitive)

   Oi, dinnae duke us!

Borrowed from Spanish duque (“duke”).

duke

1. duke