See also: Skunk

English

edit
 
English Wikipedia has an article on:
Wikipedia
 
A striped skunk, Mephitis mephitis.

Pronunciation

edit

Etymology 1

edit

From an unattested Southern New England Algonquian word, cognate with Abenaki segôgw, segonku (he who squirts (musk) / urinates), from Proto-Algonquian *šeka·kwa, from *šek- (to urinate). Doublet of Chicago.

Noun

edit

skunk (plural skunks)

  1. Any of various small mammals, of the family Mephitidae, native to North and Central America, having a glossy black with a white coat and two musk glands at the base of the tail for emitting a noxious smell as a defensive measure.
    • 1634, William Wood, “Of the Beasts that Live on the Land”, in New Englands Prospect. A True, Lively, and Experimentall Description of that Part of America, Commonly Called New England; [], London: [] Tho[mas] Cotes, for Iohn Bellamie, [], →OCLC, 1st part, pages 22–23:
      The beaſts of offence be Squunckes, Ferrets, Foxes, vvhoſe impudence ſometimes drives them to the good vvives Hen rooſt, to fill their Paunch: ſome of theſe be blacke; their furre is of much eſteeme.
  2. (slang, derogatory, dated) A despicable person.
  3. (slang, derogatory, dated) Anything very bad; a stinker.
    • 1987, English Journal, volume 76, numbers 5-8, page 52:
      On the other hand, many critics contend that in terms of literary quality, many of the multiple-storyline books are true skunks.
  4. (slang) A walkover victory in sports or board games, as when the opposing side is unable to score.
    Coordinate term: shutout
  5. (cribbage) A win by 30 or more points. (A double skunk is 60 or more, a triple skunk 90 or more.)
Derived terms
edit
Descendants
edit
  • Czech: skunk
  • Danish: skunk
  • German: Skunk
  • Finnish: skunkki
  • French: skunks
  • Icelandic: skunkur
  • Japanese: スカンク (sukanku)
  • Kashubian: skunk (Canada, United States)
  • Norwegian: skunk
  • Polish: skunks
  • Russian: скунс (skuns)
  • Slovak: skunk
  • Swedish: skunk
Translations
edit

Verb

edit

skunk (third-person singular simple present skunks, present participle skunking, simple past and past participle skunked)

  1. (transitive, slang) To defeat so badly as to prevent any opposing points.
    I skunked him at cards.
    We fished all day but the lake skunked us.
  2. (cribbage) To win by 30 or more points.
  3. (intransitive, of beer) To go bad, to spoil.

See also

edit

Etymology 2

edit

Blend of skinhead +‎ punk, influenced by the animal (Etymology 1).

Noun

edit

skunk (plural skunks)

  1. A member of a hybrid skinhead and punk subculture.
    • 2006, Pam Nilan, Carles Feixa, Global Youth?: Hybrid Identities, Plural Worlds, page 192:
      In the early 1980s, certain ex-punks joined them, becoming 'skunks' – a hybrid subculture of skinheads and punks.
    • 2011, Gerard DeGroot (quoting Brown), Seventies Unplugged
      [] mods, skins, suedes, smoothies, punks, skunks, rude boys, soul boys and headbangers []

Etymology 3

edit

From skunkweed (certain highly aromatic marijuana).

Noun

edit

skunk (countable and uncountable, plural skunks)

  1. (slang) Clipping of skunkweed (marijuana).
  2. Any of the strains of hybrids of Cannabis sativa and Cannabis indica that may have THC levels exceeding those of typical hashish.

Czech

edit

Noun

edit

skunk m anim

  1. skunk (animal)

Declension

edit

Further reading

edit
  • skunk”, in Příruční slovník jazyka českého (in Czech), 1935–1957
  • skunk”, in Slovník spisovného jazyka českého (in Czech), 1960–1971, 1989

Dutch

edit

Etymology

edit

Borrowed from English skunk.

Pronunciation

edit
  • IPA(key): /skʏŋk/
  • Audio:(file)
  • Hyphenation: skunk

Noun

edit

skunk m (uncountable)

  1. skunk, weed with a high level of THC

Kashubian

edit

Etymology

edit

Borrowed from English skunk.

Pronunciation

edit

Noun

edit

skunk m animal (female equivalent szkùnka)

  1. (Canada, United States) skunk

Further reading

edit
  • Stanislow Frymark (2020) “skunk”, in Kashubian Language in Canada, the USA and New Zealand; Lexical Interferences in Kashubian Language in Canada, the USA and New Zealand (in English and Kashubian), Zómk Zôbòrsczi, →ISBN

Swedish

edit
 
Swedish Wikipedia has an article on:
Wikipedia sv

Etymology

edit

Borrowed from English skunk.

Pronunciation

edit

Noun

edit

skunk c

  1. a skunk
    Synonym: stinkdjur

Declension

edit
Declension of skunk 
Singular Plural
Indefinite Definite Indefinite Definite
Nominative skunk skunken skunkar skunkarna
Genitive skunks skunkens skunkars skunkarnas

References

edit