BUCK - Definition & Meaning for Kids
Meaning 1
Part of speech: Noun
United States author whose novels drew on her experiences as a missionary in China (1892-1973)
Meaning 2
Part of speech: Noun
mature male of various mammals (especially deer or antelope)
Categories: Placental, Placental mammal, Eutherian, Eutherian mammal
Meaning 3
Part of speech: Verb
to strive with determination
Example: John is bucking for a promotion
Categories: Endeavor, Endeavour, Strive
Meaning 4
Part of speech: Verb
resist
Example: buck the trend
Categories: React, Oppose
Meaning 5
Part of speech: Verb
jump vertically, with legs stiff and back arched
Example: the yung filly bucked
Categories: Move
Synonyms
Tear, Jerk, Dollar, Horse, Shoot down
🌱 Word Origin (Etymology)
The word "buck" comes from Middle English bouken. It started in Proto-Indo-European *bʰūgʰ-. Then it appeared in Proto-Germanic *būganą. Later, people used it in Proto-West Germanic *beugan. After that, it was Old Dutch *būgan. Over time, it became Old Saxon būgan, which was borrowed from Middle Dutch bucken, which was borrowed from Middle Low German bucken, which was borrowed from Dutch bok. Finally, it reached Proto-Indo-European *bʰuǵ-. It started in Proto-Germanic *bukkaz. Then it appeared in Proto-West Germanic *bukk. Later, people used it in Old English buc. After that, it was Middle English buc. Many other languages have similar words:.
- German: Bock
- Norwegian: bukk
- West Frisian: bok
- Albanian: buzë
- Old Armenian: բուծ
- Persian: بز
- Sanskrit: बुक्क
- Middle High German: büchen
- Swedish: byka
- Danish: byge
- Low German: būken
🔗 Related Words
puck – A related word in the same word family.
bow – A related word in the same word family.
elbow – A related word in the same word family.
🧩 Fun Fact
Words that pass through many languages often accumulate layers of meaning from each culture.