Dictionary
Thesaurus
Encyclopedia
Translator
Web
Related Searches
Synonyms
Nearby Words

quack

 - 10 dictionary results

quack

1  [kwak]
Use quack in a Sentence
–noun
1. the harsh, throaty cry of a duck or any similar sound.
–verb (used without object)
2. to utter the cry of a duck or a sound resembling it.
Origin:
1610–20; imit.; cf. D kwakken, G quacken

quack

2  [kwak]
–noun
1. a fraudulent or ignorant pretender to medical skill.
2. a person who pretends, professionally or publicly, to skill, knowledge, or qualifications he or she does not possess; a charlatan.
–adjective
3. being a quack: a quack psychologist who complicates everyone's problems.
4. presented falsely as having curative powers: quack medicine.
5. of, pertaining to, or befitting a quack or quackery: quack methods.
–verb (used with object)
6. to treat in the manner of a quack.
7. to advertise or sell with fraudulent claims.
Origin:
1620–30; short for quacksalver

Related forms:
quackish, adjective
quack⋅ish⋅ly, adverb
quack⋅ish⋅ness, noun

Synonyms:
2. mountebank, phony.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source Link To quack
quack 1   (kwāk)   
n.  The characteristic sound uttered by a duck.
intr.v.   quacked, quack·ing, quacks
To utter the characteristic sound of a duck.

[Middle English quek, of imitative origin.]
quack'y adj.
quack 2   (kwāk)   
n.  

  1. An untrained person who pretends to be a physician and dispenses medical advice and treatment.

  2. A charlatan; a mountebank.

adj.  Relating to or characteristic of a quack: a quack cure.
intr.v.   quacked, quack·ing, quacks
To act as a medical quack or a charlatan.

[Short for quacksalver.]
quack'er·y n., quack'ish adj., quack'ish·ly adv.
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
Slang Dictionary
quack

  1. n.
    a fraudulent physician; a derogatory term for a physician. : I won't go back to that quack ever again!
Dictionary of American Slang and Colloquial Expressions by Richard A. Spears.Fourth Edition.
Copyright 2007. Published by McGraw Hill.
Cite This Source
Word Origin & History

quack  (v.)
"to make a duck sound," 1617, quelke, of echoic origin (cf. M.Du. quacken, O.C.S. kvakati, L. coaxare "to croak," Gk. koax "the croaking of frogs," Hitt. akuwakuwash "frog"). M.E. on the quakke (14c.) meant "hoarse, croaking."

quack  (n.)
"medical charlatan," 1638, short for quacksalver (1579), from Du. kwaksalver, lit. "hawker of salve," from M.Du. quacken "to brag, boast," lit. "to croak" (see quack (v.)) + zalf "salve." Cf. Ger. Quacksalber, Dan. kvaksalver, Swed. kvacksalvare.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
Cite This Source
Medical Dictionary

Main Entry: 1quack
Pronunciation: 'kwak
Function: noun
: a pretender to medical skill : an ignorant or dishonest practitioner quacks of the day —Journal of the American Medical Association> —quack·ish /-ish/ adjective

Main Entry: 2quack
Function: adjective
: of, relating to, characteristic of, or being a quack <quack remedies>
Merriam-Webster's Medical Dictionary, © 2002 Merriam-Webster, Inc.
Cite This Source
Medical Dictionary

quack (kwāk)
n.

  1. An untrained person who pretends to be a physician and dispenses medical advice and treatment.

  2. A charlatan.

quack'er·y n.

The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Cite This Source
Search another word or see quack on Thesaurus | Reference
FacebookTwitterFollow us:
Partner Sites:
Ask AnswersEviteExpediaHotelsHotwireLife123LiveDailyMy Way