Link Centre Dictionary

fluke

UK/fluːk/ US/fluk/ uncommon

noun

1.
2.

a barb on a harpoon or arrow

3.

flat blade-like projection on the arm of an anchor

Synonyms
4.

either of the two lobes of the tail of a cetacean

5.

parasitic flatworms having external suckers for attaching to a host

Synonyms

Origin

Mid-16th century in the sense of “anchor blade”. Probably the same word as in etymology 2 above or else a related word for something flat (cf. Proto-Germanic *flakaz). A derivation from Middle Low German vlögel (“wing”), from Proto-Germanic *flugilaz, seems phonetically impossible. If anything, related vlōch, vlucht (“flight”, both also “wing”) or even *vlunke (modern Low German Flunk (“wing, pinion”)) are more plausible candidates. Note that the kind of whale's fin is called Fluke in contemporary German, but this is likely from English.

Phrases

  • American fluke
  • bile fluke
  • bladder fluke
  • blood fluke
  • cat liver fluke
  • cecal fluke
  • Chinese liver fluke
  • deer fluke
  • fluke out
  • fluke up
  • snow fluke
  • turn flukes

Related words

Word family

Broader terms

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Parts

WordNet 2.1 (Princeton University). Wiktionary (CC BY-SA). CMU Pronouncing Dictionary. WordNet 2.1 Copyright Princeton University. All rights reserved. Wiktionary content is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike Licence.