Background for ducks

ducks

/dʌks/

Illustration ducks - Image 1

verb

To quickly lower the head or body in order to prevent it from being struck by something.

Examples :

"The child ducks when his older brother playfully throws a pillow at him. "

Illustration ducks - Image 1

verb

To quickly lower (the head) in order to prevent it from being struck by something.

Examples :

"To avoid getting hit by the falling book, the student quickly ducked. "

Illustration ducks - Image 1

verb

To lower (something) into water; to thrust or plunge under liquid and suddenly withdraw.

Examples :

""He ducks the teabag into the hot water for a few seconds to make his tea." "

Illustration ducks - Image 1

verb

To go under the surface of water and immediately reappear; to plunge one's head into water or other liquid.

Examples :

"The child ducks her head underwater to wash the shampoo out of her hair. "

action nature sport

Illustration ducks - Image 1

verb

Examples :

"The actor ducks his head slightly when the audience applauds. "

Illustration ducks - Image 1

verb

To evade doing something.

Examples :

"He always ducks his chores by pretending to be asleep. "

action attitude

Illustration ducks - Image 1

verb

To lower the volume of (a sound) so that other sounds in the mix can be heard more clearly.

Examples :

"The DJ ducks the music when someone starts speaking on the microphone. "

music sound technology media

Illustration ducks - Image 1

verb

To enter a place for a short moment.

Examples :

""I need to duck into the store to grab some milk." "

Illustration ducks - Image 1

Illustration ducks - Image 2

noun

An aquatic bird of the family Anatidae, having a flat bill and webbed feet.

Examples :

"We fed the ducks bread at the pond. "

animal bird nature organism biology ecology

Illustration ducks - Image 1

noun

Specifically, an adult female duck; contrasted with drake and with duckling.

Examples :

"We could tell the ducks apart from the drakes by their quieter quacks and brown feathers. "

animal bird biology nature

Illustration ducks - Image 1

noun

The flesh of a duck used as food.

Examples :

"We ordered ducks from the restaurant for Thanksgiving dinner. "

food animal bird

Illustration ducks - Image 1

noun

A batsman's score of zero after getting out. (short for duck's egg, since the digit "0" is round like an egg.)

Examples :

""The opening batsman got ducks in both innings, disappointing the crowd." "

Illustration ducks - Image 1

noun

A playing card with the rank of two.

Examples :

"My brother drew a pair of ducks from the deck of cards. "

Illustration ducks - Image 1

noun

A partly-flooded cave passage with limited air space.

Examples :

"The spelunkers navigated the narrow ducks, carefully watching for loose rocks. "

geology geography nature place

Illustration ducks - Image 1

noun

A building intentionally constructed in the shape of an everyday object to which it is related.

Examples :

"A luncheonette in the shape of a coffee cup is particularly conspicuous, as is intended of an architectural duck or folly."

architecture building style

Illustration ducks - Image 1

noun

A marble to be shot at with another marble (the shooter) in children's games.

Examples :

""Before the marble game, we carefully placed the ducks in a circle, ready to be knocked over." "

Illustration ducks - Image 1

noun

A cairn used to mark a trail.

Examples :

"The hikers followed the trail markers, which were small ducks of stones. "

mark way sign place geography nature

Illustration ducks - Image 1

noun

One of the weights used to hold a spline in place for the purpose of drawing a curve.

Examples :

"The student carefully positioned the ducks along the flexible spline to create a smooth, flowing curve on her architectural drawing. "

technical computing

Illustration ducks - Image 1

noun

A long-necked medical urinal for men.

Examples :

"The nurse emptied the ducks regularly, ensuring the male patients had clean urinals throughout the day. "

medicine utensil device

Illustration ducks - Image 1

noun

A tightly-woven cotton fabric used as sailcloth.

Examples :

"The old sailboat's ducks, patched and weathered, still caught the wind beautifully. "

material nautical sailing

Illustration ducks - Image 1

noun

(in plural) Trousers made of such material.

Examples :

"My grandfather always wears white ducks when he plays golf. "

Illustration ducks - Image 1

noun

A term of endearment; pet; darling.

Examples :

"And hold-fast is the only dog, my duck (William Shakespeare - The Life of King Henry the Fifth, Act 2, Scene 3)."

person family language

Illustration ducks - Image 1

noun

Dear, mate (informal way of addressing a friend or stranger).

Examples :

""Alright, ducks, let's get started on this assignment." "

person language communication

Illustration ducks - Image 1

noun

A pair of twos.

Examples :

"In the poker game, John needed one more card to make "ducks," a pair of twos, to win the pot. "

Illustration ducks - Image 1

noun

(used vocatively) Dear (used as a pet name).

Examples :

"Hello ducks, how are you today?"

language word person

Illustration ducks - Image 1

noun

The light trousers worn by sailors in hot climates.

Examples :

"During the summer training cruise, the sailors wore their ducks and blue shirts to stay cool in the tropical heat. "

nautical wear military

Illustration ducks - Image 1

noun

A person or thing that is helpless, inefficient or disabled.

Examples :

"The old car was a total ducks; it barely ran and always broke down. "

person character animal

Illustration ducks - Image 1

noun

An elected official who has lost the recent election or is not eligible for reelection and is marking time until leaving office.

Examples :

"Congressman Jones was a lame duck and did not vote on many issues that were important to his constituents."

politics government

Illustration ducks - Image 1

noun

A person who cannot fulfill their contracts.

Examples :

"After several failed business deals and unpaid debts, John was known as a ducks in the local community. "

business finance law