26984 words

duck

12 definitions • 18 examples
1
a bird that lives by water and has webbed feet (= feet with skin between the toes), a short neck, and a large beak:

Examples:

The ducks started quacking loudly when we threw them some bread.
a duck pond
2
the meat of this bird:

Examples:

We had roast duck.
3
a friendly way of talking to someone you like:

Examples:

[ as form of address ] Come and sit beside me, duck.
4
in cricket, a score of 0:

Examples:

for a duck I was out for a duck (= having scored 0).
He's had a bad run of form, with three ducks in five innings.
5
to move your head or the top part of your body quickly down, especially to avoid being hit:

Examples:

duck down I saw the ball hurtling towards me and ducked down.
duck your head Duck your head or you'll bang it on the doorframe.
6
to push someone underwater for a short time:

Examples:

The boys were splashing around and ducking each other in the pool.
7
to move quickly to a place, especially in order not to be seen:

Examples:

duck into When he saw them coming, he ducked into a doorway.
8
to avoid answering a question or dealing with a situation:

Examples:

He has ducked questions about whether he intends to continue in office.
She became known as an executive who didn't duck hard decisions.
They have a legal duty not to duck their responsibilities.
9
a bird that lives by water and has short legs with webbed feet (= feet with toes joined by skin), or the meat of this bird
10
to move your head or the top part of your body quickly down, esp. to avoid being hit:

Examples:

[ T ] Duck your head or you’ll bang it on the door frame.
[ I ] She ducked below the surface of the rippling water.
11
To duck is also to move quickly to a place, esp. in order not to be seen:

Examples:

[ I ] When he saw them coming, he ducked into a store.
12
To duck a subject or question is to avoid it:

Examples:

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