Auk Definition
ôk
noun
Any of various diving seabirds of the family Alcidae of northern regions, having a chunky body, short wings, and webbed feet, such as the razorbill and the murres.
American Heritage
Any of a number of related diving alcidine shorebirds of northern seas, with a heavy body, webbed feet, a short tail, and short wings used as paddles.
Webster's New World
Other Word Forms of Auk
Noun
Singular:
auk
Plural:
auksOrigin of Auk
-
From Icelandic álka, from Old Norse álka (“auk”), from Proto-Germanic *allakǭ, *allǭ (“sea-bird”), from Proto-Indo-European *el- (a kind of bird). Cognate with Swedish alka (“auk”), Danish alke (“auk”), Swedish dialectal alla (fuligula glacialis, “long-tailed duck”), Latin olor (“swan”), Ancient Greek ελέα (eléa, “marsh-bird”), Welsh alarch (“swan”).
From Wiktionary
Norwegian alk from Old Norse ālka
From American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition
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