duke

play

noun \ ˈdük also ˈdyük \

Definition of duke

1 :a sovereign male ruler of a continental European duchy

2 :a nobleman of the highest hereditary rank; especially :a member of the highest grade of the British peerage

[probably from dukes of York, rhyming slang for fork (hand, fist)]

slang :fist, hand —usually used in plural

—

dukedom

play \-dəm\ noun

See duke defined for English-language learners

See duke defined for kids

Examples of duke in a Sentence

Put up your dukes and fight, you coward!

Recent Examples of duke from the Web

Well, in 2003, Landry and the Live Oak Society put up their dukes to protect the tree, estimated to be 500 to 600 years old, from destruction.

— cate root, NOLA.com, "10 spots to see majestic trees from the Live Oak Society registry," 24 Aug. 2017
Everybody played cards: kings and dukes, clerics, friars and noblewomen, prostitutes, sailors, prisoners.

— adrienne bernhard, The Atlantic, "The Lost Origins of Playing-Card Symbols," 24 Aug. 2017
The marigold hue of her sweater coordinated nicely with the side stripes decorating her Off White daisy dukes.

— maria ward, Vogue, "Only Bella Hadid Could Make A Preppy Style Signature Look This Cool," 23 Aug. 2017
For the occasion, the singer wore a badass take on sportswear, including a Fila crop top ($60) and distressed daisy duke denim shorts lacing up along the hips ($98).

— shira karsen, Billboard, "Where to Buy Beyonce's Fila Crop Top & Distressed Shorts," 9 Aug. 2017
The Star Wars Make-or-Break In Hollywood’s current director-scape, where up-and-comers duke it out with veterans for the juicy paychecks, the new Star Wars anthology has proved an unexpected battleground between young and old.

— julie miller, HWD, "The Secrets of Hollywood’s Highest-Paid Directors," 21 July 2017
The two duke it out on Saturday, separated only by time and measured by who can drop the biggest bombshell announcement or trailer.

— meredith woerner, latimes.com, "At Comic-Con, a major comics seller defects while new Hollywood stars arrive to dazzle fans," 19 July 2017
Like Rosalind, this Marion is daughter to a duke and the smartest one in the room.

— mike fischer, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, "Humorous 'Heart of Robin Hood' has a touch of 'The Princess Bride'," 18 July 2017
All joking aside though, might the duke and duchess be planning on baby number three?

— madeleine luckel, Vogue, "Kate Middleton Jokes (We Think?) About Third Baby, and the World Freaks Out," 18 July 2017

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'duke.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Origin and Etymology of duke

Middle English, from Anglo-French duc, from Latin duc-, dux, from ducere to lead — more at ¹tow

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 12th century

See Words from the same year

Other Government and Politics Terms

agent provocateur, agitprop, autarky, cabal, egalitarianism, federalism, hegemony, plenipotentiary, popular sovereignty, socialism

duke

verb

Definition of duke

duked; duking

intransitive verb

:fight

— duke it out

:to engage in a fight and especially a fistfight

See duke defined for English-language learners

Recent Examples of duke from the Web

For now, though, the two Premier League clubs will duke it out to land Sanches - albeit temporarily - before the 2017 window slams shut.

— SI.com, "Swansea Interested in Shock Loan Swoop for Out-of-Favour Bayern Star But Liverpool Still Favourites," 29 Aug. 2017
Those two networks frequently duke it out for second place; last November CNN averaged 1.83 million viewers to MSNBC's 1.64 million, Nielsen said.

— david bauder, Detroit Free Press, "MSNBC surges as home for President Donald Trump opponents," 7 Aug. 2017
WISCONSIN 44, DUKE 30: Wisconsin: Enrique Duboy (30); Gianni Garcia-Powell (11); Jacob Alicot (4).

— Sun-Sentinel.com, "Sharpshooters take aim at big wins in Cooper City Boys Senior roundball play," 21 July 2017
Males weighing upwards of 4,000 pounds duke it out in bloody battles to establish themselves as alphas.

— shaena montanari, National Geographic, "Elephant Seals Recognize Their Rivals’ Voices—Hear Their Calls," 20 July 2017
The U.S. Open Cup is guaranteed to have one lower-division side reach the semifinals, and teams from the NASL and USL will duke it out to determine which one will be that much closer to an improbable trophy.

— si.com staff, SI.com, "How to watch Miami FC vs. FC Cincinnati: U.S. Open Cup live stream," 12 July 2017
Fists of fury Convention Center Hall G, 12 p.m. July 15, free Fists will fly as boxers from the Indiana and Ohio Golden Glove Champions teams duke it out at the Indiana Black Expo Midwest Invitational.

— jessica hice, Indianapolis Star, "11 free things to do at the Indiana Black Expo Summer Celebration," 6 July 2017
TEXAS A&M 44, DUKE 30: Texas A&M: Nicholas Klonaris (12); David Reino (10); Gage Taylor (6).

— Sun-Sentinel.com, "Starter Division duo share spotlight on the Cooper City youth basketball hardwood," 4 July 2017
But not every big, dumb movie is created equal—and that’s reflected every summer as action movies duke it out in the box office.

— the editors of gq, GQ, "Summer Blockbuster Power Rankings 2017," 3 July 2017

First Known Use of duke

circa 1947

Duke

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biographical name \ ˈdük , ˈdyük \

Definition of Duke

Benjamin Newton 1855–1929 and his brother James Buchanan 1856–1925 American tobacco industrialists

DUKE Defined for English Language Learners

duke

play

noun

Definition of duke for English Language Learners

: a man of very high rank in the British nobility
: the ruler of an independent area of land especially in some parts of Europe in the past
dukes : fists or hands