shelduck

shel·duck

noun \-ˌdək\

Definition of SHELDUCK

: any of various Old World ducks (genus Tadorna); especially : a common mostly black-and-white duck (T. tadorna) slightly larger than the mallard

Illustration of SHELDUCK

Origin of SHELDUCK

shel- (as in sheldrake) + duck

First Known Use: 1707

Rhymes with SHELDUCK

amok, awestruck, blackbuck, black duck, bushbuck, cold duck, dead duck, dumbstruck, dump truck, fire truck, fish duck, fly-struck, hand truck, Kalmuck, lame-duck, moonstruck, mukluk, muktuk, potluck, reedbuck, roebuck, sawbuck, stagestruck, starstruck, sunstruck, unstuck, upchuck, woodchuck

shelduck

noun    (Concise Encyclopedia)

Any of several short-billed, somewhat gooselike, Old World ducks with long legs and an upright stance. They are smaller members of the duck tribe Tadornini (family Anatidae). The common shelduck (Tadorna tadorna), of Europe and Asia, is black and white with a reddish chest band; the drake has a knob on his red bill. The ruddy shelduck (Casarca ferruginea), ranging from northern Africa and Spain to Mongolia, is orangish, with a pale head and white wing patches. Drakes usually have melodious whistling calls and are aggressive. In North America, mergansers are sometimes called sheldrakes.

Variants of SHELDUCK

shelduck or sheldrake