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

Phrases

duke it out

: to engage in a fight and especially a fistfight

Examples of duke in a Sentence

Noun

Put up your dukes and fight, you coward!

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

Oh — and the duke is disinvited from the queen’s jubilee celebrations. —Jack King, Vulture, 20 Sep. 2024

Under the Farnese dukes, the city became wealthy and powerful. —Laura Itzkowitz, Travel + Leisure, 3 Nov. 2024

Verb

Since May, Liccardo and Low have duked it out on the campaign trail as millions of dollars flooded the race despite it not being one of California’s key battleground races. —Grace Hase, The Mercury News, 5 Nov. 2024

The highlight for me was watching and listening closely to Joan Robinson (Post-Keynesian diva) duking it out with Frank Hahn (Neoclassical divo), in playful but serious jabs and thrusts. —John Cassidy, The New Yorker, 2 Nov. 2024

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

circa 1947, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing duke

• duke it out
• grand duke

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