duke

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.[1]

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

• Audio (UK)

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• Audio (US)

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• Rhymes: -uːk
• Homophone: juke (with yod coalescence)

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. Any of various nymphalid butterflies of the Asian genera Bassarona and Dophla.
6. (slang, usually in the plural) A fist.
   • 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!”

   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”).

• Hyphenation: du‧ke
• IPA^(key): /ˈduke/

duke

1. duke

duke

1. Alternative form of duk (“duke”)

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

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

   Oi, dinnae duke us!

Borrowed from Spanish duque (“duke”).

• Hyphenation: du‧ke
• IPA^(key): /ˈduke/, [ˈdu.xe]

duke

1. duke