dirk

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dirk

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Etymology unknown, apparently from Scots dirk. First attested in 1602 as dork, in the later 17th century as durk. The spelling dirk is due to Johnson's Dictionary of 1755.

Early quotations as well as Johnson 1755 suggest that the word is of Scottish Gaelic origin, but no such Gaelic word is known. The Gaelic name for the weapon is biodag. Gaelic duirc is merely an 18th-century adoption of the English word.

A possible derivation is from the North Germanic/Scandinavian personal name Dirk (short for Diederik), which is used of lock-picking tools (but not of knives or daggers). Alternatively a corruption of Low German Dulk, Dolk (“dagger”), ultimately from Proto-Germanic *dulkaz, *dalkaz (“knife, dagger”), related to Saterland Frisian Dolk (“dagger”), West Frisian dolk (“dagger”), Dutch dolk (“dagger”), German Dolch (“dagger”).

• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /dɜːk/
• (General American) IPA^(key): /dɝk/

• Audio (General Australian):

  (file)

• Rhymes: -ɜː(ɹ)k

dirk (plural dirks)

1. A long Scottish dagger with a straight blade.
   • 1898, W.D.F Vincent, The Cutters' Practical Guide:

     The Claymore is worn on the left side, the dirk on the right, and the Skean Dhu in the stocking […]

2. (nautical) A ceremonial dagger worn by naval or air force officers in some nations' militaries; formerly, a fighting dagger used by sailors as a boarding weapon.
   • 1881–1882, Robert Louis Stevenson, Treasure Island, London; Paris: Cassell & Company, published 14 November 1883, →OCLC:

     In half a minute he had reached the port scuppers, and picked, out of a coil of rope, a long knife, or rather a short dirk, discolored to the hilt with blood.

   • 1996, Frank Twiss, Social Change in the Royal Navy, 1924–1970:

     In this kit was the ‘Officer of the Watch’ telescope from Dolland and Sons, presented to me by my godmother, Inman's Nautical Tables, a parallel ruler, and, of course, a dirk.

• dirk knife

dirk (third-person singular simple present dirks, present participle dirking, simple past and past participle dirked)

1. To stab with a dirk.
   • 1820, Sir Walter Scott, The Abbot‎^[1], archived from the original on 4 June 2014, Chapter the Fourth:

     Roland Graeme has dirked Adam Woodstock — that is all.” ¶ “Good Heaven!” said the Lady, turning pale as ashes, “is the man slain?”

   • 1825, James Kirke Paulding, John Bull in America; or, the New Munchausen‎^[2], page 127:

     For these offenses, I was informed privately, by a worthy English settler, who had been like me seduced by Mr. Birkbeck, they had hired a man to dirk me for ten dollars, the usual price of blood in this country, as Mr. Chichester says.

dirk (third-person singular simple present dirks, present participle dirking, simple past and past participle dirked)

1. (obsolete) To darken.
   • 1579, Edmund Spenser, The Shepheardes Calender‎^[3], page 34:

     Thy wast bignes but combers the grownd, / And dirks the beauty of my blossomes rownd.

Unlikely not to have come from the same murky origins as dork, despite sound variation among dick-dirk-dork. Influence from der seems plausibly intermixed.

dirk (plural dirks)

1. (Midwestern US, dated, slang) A penis.

   Synonyms: dork; see also Thesaurus:penis

   • May 1964, Lawrence Poston, "Some Problems in the Study of Campus Slang", American Speech volume 39, issue 2

     The word dick itself serves as model for two variants which are probably Midwestern, dirk and dork, also meaning "penis"...

2. (Midwestern US, dated, slang) A socially unacceptable person; an oddball.

   Near-synonym: dork

   • May 1964, Lawrence Poston, "Some Problems in the Study of Campus Slang", American Speech volume 39, issue 2

     ...on at least one Midwestern campus a dirk may be an "oddball" student, while a prick (more common) is of course an offensive one.

dirk

1. imperative of dirka

• durk

From earlier durk, of uncertain origin; perhaps related to German Dolch (“dagger”).

dirk (plural dirks)

1. dirk

dirk (third-person singular simple present dirks, present participle dirkin, simple past dirkt, past participle dirkt)

1. dirk