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deck

Syllabification: (deck)
Pronunciation: /dek/
Translate deck | into French | into German | into Italian | into Spanish
Definition of deck

noun

  • 1a structure of planks or plates, approximately horizontal, extending across a ship or boat at any of various levels, especially one of those at the highest level and open to the weather:he stood on the deck of his flagship
  • a floor or platform resembling or compared to a ship’s deck, especially the floor of a pier or a platform for sunbathing.
  • a platformlike structure, typically made of lumber and unroofed, attached to a house or other building:they cooked hamburgers on the deck adjoining the living room
  • a level of a large, open building, especially a sports stadium:Jeter hit an enormous home run into the upper deck
  • (the deck) informal the ground or floor:there was a big thud when I hit the deck
  • the flat part of a skateboard or snowboard.
  • 2a component or unit in sound-reproduction equipment that incorporates a playing or recording mechanism for discs or tapes:the car has cruise control and a tape deck
  • 3chiefly North American a pack of cards:shuffle the deck
  • North American informal a packet of narcotics.

verb

[with object]
  • 1 (usually be decked) decorate or adorn brightly or festively:Ingrid was decked out in her Sunday best
  • 2 informal knock (someone) to the ground with a punch.

Phrases

clear the decks

see clear.

not playing with a full deck

North American informal mentally deficient.

on deck

on or onto a ship’s main deck:she stood on deck for hours
North American informal ready for action or work.
Baseball next to hit in the batting order.

Derivatives

decked

adjective
[in combination]:a three-decked vessel

Origin:

late Middle English: from Middle Dutch dec 'covering, roof, cloak', dekken 'to cover'. Originally denoting canvas used to make a covering (especially on a ship), the term came to mean the covering itself, later denoting a solid surface serving as roof and floor

deck in other Oxford dictionaries

Definition of deck in the British & World English dictionary