duke

1 of 2

noun

ˈdük 

also ˈdyük

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

3

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

—usually used in plural

dukedom

ˈdük-dəm 

also ˈdyük-

noun

duke

2 of 2

verb

duked; duking

intransitive verb

: fight

see also:

duke it out

Examples of duke in a Sentence

Noun

Put up your dukes and fight, you coward!

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

While it’s been inhabited by different people and families, including dukes and even a doctor who is said to haunt the castle still today, it was owned by Christopher Brooke from the 1980s until 2024. —Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 24 Feb. 2026

La Tour, too, became famous during his lifetime—commissioned by the duke of Lorraine, Cardinal Richelieu, and King Louis XIII—but then was forgotten for centuries. —Nicole Krauss, Harpers Magazine, 24 Feb. 2026

Verb

Last week’s unfrozen funding comes as the Gateway Development Commission, New York State and New Jersey continue to duke it out with the federal government in court. —Evan Simko-Bednarski, New York Daily News, 24 Feb. 2026

This would leave nearly three months for the Democratic candidate to campaign for the general election while the Republicans are still duking it out. —Lauren Green, The Washington Examiner, 21 Feb. 2026

Word History

Etymology

Noun

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

First Known Use

Noun

12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Verb

1935, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing duke

• duke it out
• grand duke

Rhymes for duke

• fluke
• juke
• kook
• luc
• luke
• nuke
• puke
• souk
• spook
• archduke
• rebuke
• caoutchouc

Kids Definition

duke

noun

ˈd(y)ük

1

: a soveriegn ruler of a duchy

2

: a nobleman of the highest rank especially of the British nobility

3

slang : fist sense 1

—usually used in plural

Biographical Definition

Duke

biographical name

ˈdük 

ˈdyük

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