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peck

 - 10 dictionary results
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peck

1  [pek]
–noun
1. a dry measure of 8 quarts; the fourth part of a bushel, equal to 537.6 cubic inches (8.81 liters).
2. a container for measuring this quantity. Abbreviation: pk, pk.
3. a considerable quantity: a peck of trouble.
Use peck in a Sentence
Origin:
1250–1300; ME pek < OF < ?
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peck

2  [pek]
–verb (used with object)
1. to strike or indent with the beak, as a bird does, or with some pointed instrument, esp. with quick, repeated movements.
2. to make (a hole, puncture, etc.) by such strokes; pierce.
3. to take (food) bit by bit, with or as with the beak.
–verb (used without object)
4. to make strokes with the beak or a pointed instrument.
–noun
5. a quick stroke, as in pecking.
6. a hole or mark made by or as by pecking.
7. a quick, almost impersonal kiss: a peck on the cheek.
8. (in timber) incipient decay from fungi, occurring in isolated spots.
9. pecks. Also, peckings. Slang. food.
—Verb phrase
10. peck at,
a. to nibble indifferently or unenthusiastically at (food).
b. to nag or carp at: Stop pecking at me, I'm doing the best I can.
Origin:
1300–50; ME pecke < MD pecken; akin to pick 1

Synonyms:
10a. pick at, poke at.

Peck

  [pek]
–noun
1. Annie Smith, 1850–1935, U.S. mountain climber.
2. Gregory, 1916–2003, U.S. actor.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2010.
Cite This Source Link To peck
peck 1   (pěk)   
v.   pecked, peck·ing, pecks

v.   tr.

  1. To strike with the beak or a pointed instrument.

  2. To make (a hole, for example) by striking repeatedly with the beak or a pointed instrument.

  3. To grasp and pick up with the beak: The bird pecked insects from the log.

  4. Informal To kiss briefly and casually.

v.   intr.

  1. To make strokes with the beak or a pointed instrument.

  2. To eat in small sparing bits; nibble: He pecked at his dinner.

  3. To criticize repeatedly; carp.

n.  

    1. A stroke or light blow with the beak or a pointed instrument.

    2. A mark or hole made by such a stroke.

  2. Informal A light quick kiss.


[Middle English pecken, probably variant of piken, to peck (perhaps influenced by Middle Low German pekken); see pick1.]
peck 2   (pěk)   
n.  

  1. Abbr. pk.

    1. A unit of dry volume or capacity in the U.S. Customary System equal to 8 quarts or approximately 537.6 cubic inches.

    2. A unit of dry volume or capacity in the British Imperial System equal to 8 quarts or approximately 554.8 cubic inches. See Table at measurement.

  2. A container holding or measuring a peck.

  3. Informal A large quantity; a lot: a peck of troubles.


[Middle English.]
Peck   (pěk)   
American explorer and mountain climber. Her most notable ascents include the volcano Popocatépetl in Mexico (1897) and Huascarán in the Peruvian Andes (1908).
Peck, Gregory 1916-2003.  
American actor who is best known for his portrayals of strong and courageous characters. Among his films are Spellbound (1950) and To Kill a Mockingbird (1962), for which he won an Academy Award.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
Cite This Source

peck  (v.)
c.1300, possibly a variant of picken (see pick (v.)), or in part from M.L.G. pekken "to peck with the beak." Pecker "one who pecks" is from 1697; slang sense of "penis" is from 1902. Peckerwood (1859) is U.S. Southern black dialectal inversion of woodpecker (q.v.); in folklore, taken as the type of white folks (1929) and symbolically contrasted with blackbird. As a behavior among hens, pecking order (1928) translates Ger. hackliste (T.J. Schjelderuo-Ebbe, 1922); transf. sense of "human hierarchy based on rank or status" is from 1955.

peck  (n.)
c.1280, "dry measure of one-quarter bushel," of unknown origin; perhaps connected with O.Fr. pek, picot (13c.), also of unknown origin. Chiefly of oats for horses; original sense may be "allowance" rather than a fixed measure, thus perhaps from peck (v.).
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
Cite This Source

peck

unit of capacity in the U.S. Customary and the British Imperial Systems of measurement. In the United States the peck is used only for dry measure and is equal to 8 dry quarts, or 537.6 cubic inches (8.810 litres). In Great Britain the peck may be used for either liquid or dry measure and is equal to 8 imperial quarts (2 imperial gallons), or one-fourth imperial bushel, or 554.84 cubic inches (9.092 litres). The peck has been in use since the early 14th century, when it was introduced as a measure for flour. The term referred to varying quantities, however, until the modern units were defined in the 19th century.

Learn more about peck with a free trial on Britannica.com.

Encyclopedia Britannica, 2008. Encyclopedia Britannica Online.
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