Library / English Dictionary

DYKE

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

 I. (noun) 

Sense 1

Meaning:

A barrier constructed to contain the flow of water or to keep out the sea

Synonyms:

dam; dike; dyke

Classified under:

Nouns denoting man-made objects

Hypernyms ("dyke" is a kind of...):

barrier (a structure or object that impedes free movement)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "dyke"):

milldam (dam to make a millpond to provide power for a water mill)

weir (a low dam built across a stream to raise its level or divert its flow)

Instance hyponyms:

Aswan High Dam; High Dam (one of the world's largest dams on the Nile River in southern Egypt)

Glen Canyon Dam (a large dam built in 1964 on the Colorado River in Arizona)

Hoover Dam (a large dam built in 1933 on the Colorado River in Nevada)

Derivation:

dyke (enclose with a dike)

Sense 2

Meaning:

(slang) offensive term for a lesbian who is noticeably masculine

Synonyms:

butch; dike; dyke

Classified under:

Nouns denoting people

Hypernyms ("dyke" is a kind of...):

gay woman; lesbian; tribade (a female homosexual)

Domain usage:

depreciation; derogation; disparagement (a communication that belittles somebody or something)

argot; cant; jargon; lingo; patois; slang; vernacular (a characteristic language of a particular group (as among thieves))

 II. (verb) 

Sense 1

Meaning:

Enclose with a dike

Example:

dike the land to protect it from water

Synonyms:

dike; dyke

Classified under:

Verbs of touching, hitting, tying, digging

Hypernyms (to "dyke" is one way to...):

close in; enclose; inclose; shut in (surround completely)

Sentence frame:

Somebody ----s something

Derivation:

dyke (a barrier constructed to contain the flow of water or to keep out the sea)

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