buck

buck¹ S1 [bʌk] n

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1¦(dollar)¦

2 the buck stops here

3 pass the buck

4¦(animal)¦

5 feel/look like a million bucks

6¦(man)¦

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[Sense: 1,4; Date: 1800-1900; Origin: Perhaps from buckskin; because it was used as a unit of exchange in trade with Native Americans.]

[Sense: 2; Date: 1900-2000; Origin: buck 'object used in the card game of poker to mark the next person to play' (19-20 centuries), from buckhorn knife 'knife with a handle made from a buck's horn' (19-20 centuries).]

[Sense: 3, 5; Origin: Old English bucca 'male deer or goat']

1.) ¦(DOLLAR)¦ informal

a US, Canadian, or Australian dollar

▪ He owes me ten bucks.

▪ The movie is about a group of men trying to make a buck (=earn some money) as male strippers.

big/mega bucks

(=a lot of money)

▪ Using celebrities in advertising is guaranteed to pull in big bucks.

make a fast/quick buck

(=make some money quickly, often dishonestly)

2.) the buck stops here also the buck stops with sb

used to say that a particular person is responsible for something

▪ The buck stops firmly with the boss.

3.) pass the buck

to make someone else them responsible for something that you should deal with

4.) ¦(ANIMAL)¦

plural buck

or bucks

a male rabbit, ↑deer, and some other male animals

→↑doe

5.) feel/look like a million bucks

informal especially AmE to feel or look very healthy, happy, and beautiful

6.) ¦(MAN)¦

old-fashioned a young man

→(get) a bigger/better etc bang for your buck at ↑bang¹ (5)

buck ²

buck² v

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1¦(horse)¦

2¦(move suddenly)¦

3¦(oppose)¦

4¦(make somebody happier)¦

Phrasal verbs

　buck for something

　buck up

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1.) ¦(HORSE)¦

if a horse bucks, it kicks its back feet into the air, or jumps with all four feet off the ground

2.) ¦(MOVE SUDDENLY)¦ [I]

to suddenly move up and down or backwards and forwards in an uncontrolled way

▪ The plane bucked sharply.

3.) ¦(OPPOSE)¦ [T]

to oppose something in a direct way

▪ He was a rebel who continually bucked the system (=opposed rules or authority) .

▪ Unemployment in the area has bucked the national trend by falling over the last month.

buck against

▪ Initially he had bucked against her restraints.

4.) ¦(MAKE SOMEBODY HAPPIER)¦ [T]

to make someone feel more happy, confident, or healthy

▪ He was bucked by the success he'd had.

▪ She gave me a tonic which bucked me a little.

buck for [buck for sth] [i]phr v

to try very hard to get something, especially a good position at work

▪ He's bucking for promotion.

buck up phr v

1.) to become happier or to make someone happier

▪ Come on, buck up, things aren't that bad!

buck sb<=>up

▪ You need something to buck you up.

2.) buck up!

BrE old-fashioned used to tell someone to hurry up

▪ Buck up, John! We'll be late.

3.) informal to improve, or to make something improve

▪ It'll be a long time before the situation starts to buck up.

buck sth<=>up

▪ a company that is looking to buck up its networking capabilities

4.) buck your ideas up

BrE informal used to tell someone to improve their behaviour or attitude

buck ³

buck³ adv AmE

buck naked

not wearing any clothes