Duel noun [ Italian duello , from Latin duellum , orig., a contest between two, which passed into the common form bellum war, from duo two: confer French duel . See Bellicose , Two , and confer Duello .] A combat between two persons, fought with deadly weapons, by agreement. It usually arises from an injury done or an affront given by one to the other.

Trial by duel (Old Law) , a combat between two persons for proving a cause; trial by battel.

Duel intransitive verb & t. To fight in single combat. [ Obsolete]

Dueler noun One who engages in a duel. [ R.] [ Written also dueller .] South.

Dueling noun The act or practice of fighting in single combat. Also adj. [ Written also duelling .]

Duelist noun [ French duelliste .] One who fights in single combat. [ Written also duellist .]

A duelist . . . always values himself upon his courage, his sense of honor, his fidelity and friendship.

Hume.

Duelo noun [ Italian See Duel .] A duel; also, the rules of dueling. [ Obsolete] Shak.

Dueness noun Quality of being due; debt; what is due or becoming. T. Goodwin.

Duenna noun ; plural Duennas . [ Spanish dueña , doña , from Latin domina . See Dame .]
1. The chief lady in waiting on the queen of Spain. Brande.

2. An elderly lady holding a station between a governess and companion, and appointed to have charge over the younger ladies in a Spanish or a Portuguese family. Brande & C.

3. Any old woman who is employed to guard a younger one; a governess. Arbuthnot.

Duet noun [ Duetto .] (Mus.) A composition for two performers, whether vocal or instrumental.

Duettino noun [ It ., dim. from duetto a duet.] A duet of short extent and concise form.

Duetto noun [ Italian , from It & Latin duo two. See Two .] See Duet .

Duff (dŭf) noun [ From Middle English dagh . √67. See Dough .]
1. Dough or paste. [ Prov. Eng.] Halliwell.

2. A stiff flour pudding, boiled in a bag; -- a term used especially by seamen; as, plum duff .

Duff transitive verb [ imperfect & past participle Duffed ; present participle & verbal noun Duffing .] [ Etym. uncertain.] [ Colloq. or Slang]
1. To treat or manipulate so as to give a specious appearance to; to fake; hence, to cheat.

2. In Australia, to alter the brands on (cattle, horses, etc.); to steal (cattle, etc.), and alter their brands.

Duffel noun [ Dutch duffel , from Duffel , a town not far from Antwerp.] A kind of coarse woolen cloth, having a thick nap or frieze. [ Written also duffle .]

Good duffel gray and flannel fine.

Wordsworth.

Duffel noun Outfit or suppplies, collectively; kit. [ Colloq., U. S.]

Duffel bag A sack to hold miscellaneous articles, as tools, supplies, or the like.

Duffer noun
1. A peddler or hawker, especially of cheap, flashy articles, as sham jewelry; hence, a sham or cheat. [ Slang, Eng.] Halliwell.

2. A stupid, awkward, inefficient person. [ Slang]

Duffer noun
1. (Mining) See Shicer .

2. (Zoology) Any common domestic pigeon.

Duffer noun One who duffs cattle, etc. [ Australia]

Unluckily, cattle stealers are by no means so rare as would be desirable; they are locally known as duffers .

Baden-Powell.

Duffle noun See Duffel .

Dufrenite noun [ From ......ierre Armand Dufrénoy , a French geologist.] (Min.) A mineral of a blackish green color, commonly massive or in nodules. It is a hydrous phosphate of iron.

Dug (dŭg) noun [ Akin to Swedish dägga to suckle (a child), Danish dægge , and probably to Goth. daddjan . √66.] A teat, pap, or nipple; -- formerly that of a human mother, now that of a cow or other beast.

With mother's dug between its lips.

Shak.

Dug imperfect & past participle of Dig .

Dugong (du*gŏg") noun [ Malayan d...y...ng , or Javan. duyung .] (Zoology) An aquatic herbivorous mammal ( Halicore dugong ), of the order Sirenia, allied to the manatee, but with a bilobed tail. It inhabits the Red Sea, Indian Ocean, East Indies, and Australia. [ Written also duyong .]

Dugout (dŭg"out) noun
1. A canoe or boat dug out from a large log. [ U.S.]

A man stepped from his slender dugout .

G. W. Cable.

2. A place dug out.

3. A house made partly in a hillside or slighter elevation. [ Western U.S.] Bartlett.

Dugway noun A way or road dug through a hill, or sunk below the surface of the land. [ U.S.]

Duke noun [ French duc , from Latin dux , ducis , leader, commander, from ducere to lead; akin to Anglo-Saxon teón to draw; confer Anglo-Saxon heretoga ( here army) an army leader, general, German herzog duke. See Tue , and confer Doge , Duchess , Ducat , Duct , Adduce , Deduct .]
1. A leader; a chief; a prince. [ Obsolete]

Hannibal, duke of Carthage.

Sir T. Elyot.

All were dukes once, who were "duces" -- captains or leaders of their people.

Trench.

2. In England, one of the highest order of nobility after princes and princesses of the royal blood and the four archbishops of England and Ireland.

3. In some European countries, a sovereign prince, without the title of king.

Duke's coronet . See Illust . of Coronet . -- To dine with Duke Humphrey , to go without dinner. See under Dine .

Duke intransitive verb To play the duke. [ Poetic]

Lord Angelo dukes it well in his absence.

Shak.

Dukedom noun
1. The territory of a duke.

2. The title or dignity of a duke. Shak.

Dukeling noun A little or insignificant duke. Ford.

Dukeship noun The quality or condition of being a duke; also, the personality of a duke. Massinger.

Dukhobors, Dukhobortsy noun plural [ Russian dukhobortsy spirit wrestlers; dukh spirit + bortsy wrestlers.] A Russian religious sect founded about the middle of the 18th century at Kharkov. They believe that Christ was wholly human, but that his soul reappears from time to time in mortals. They accept the Ten Commandments and the "useful" portions of the Bible, but deny the need of rulers, priests, or churches, and have no confessions, icons, or marriage ceremonies. They are communistic, opposed to any violence, and unwilling to use the labor of animals. Driven out of Russia proper, many have emigrated to Cyprus and Canada. See Raskolnik , below.

Dulcamara noun [ New Latin , from Latin dulcis sweet + amarus bitter.] (Botany) A plant ( Solanum Dulcamara ). See Bittersweet , noun , 3 (a) .

Dulcamarin noun (Chemistry) A glucoside extracted from the bittersweet ( Solanum Dulcamara ), as a yellow amorphous substance. It probably occasions the compound taste. See Bittersweet , 3 (a) .

Dulce transitive verb To make sweet; to soothe. [ Obsolete]

Dulceness noun Sweetness. [ Obsolete] Bacon.

Dulcet adjective [ Old French doucet , dim. of dous sweet, French doux , Latin dulcis ; akin to Greek ... . Confer Doucet .]
1. Sweet to the taste; luscious. [ Obsolete]

She tempers dulcet creams.

Milton.

2. Sweet to the ear; melodious; harmonious.

Their dainty lays and dulcet melody.

Spenser.

Dulciana noun [ New Latin , from Latin dulcis sweet.] (Mus.) A sweet-toned stop of an organ.

Dulcification noun [ Confer French dulcification .] The act of dulcifying or sweetening. Boyle.

Dulcified adjective Sweetened; mollified.

Dulcified spirit or spirits , a compound of alcohol with mineral acids; as, dulcified spirits of niter.

Dulcifluous adjective [ Latin dulcis sweet + fluere to flow.] Flowing sweetly. [ R.]

Dulcify transitive verb [ imperfect & past participle Dulcified ; present participle & verbal noun Dulcifying .] [ Latin dulcis sweet + -fy : confer French dulcifier .]
1. (Pharm.) To sweeten; to free from acidity, saltness, or acrimony. Wiseman.

2. Fig. : To mollify; to sweeten; to please.

As she . . . was further dulcified by her pipe of tobacco.

Hawthorne.

Dulciloquy noun [ Latin dulcis sweet + loqui to speak.] A soft manner of speaking.

Dulcimer noun [ Italian dolcemele ,r Spanish dulcemele , from Latin dulcis sweet + melos song, melody, Greek ...; confer Old French doulcemele . See Dulcet , and Melody .] (Mus.) (a) An instrument, having stretched metallic wires which are beaten with two light hammers held in the hands of the performer. (b) An ancient musical instrument in use among the Jews. Dan. iii. 5. It is supposed to be the same with the psaltery.

Dulcinea noun [ Spanish , from Dulcinea del Toboso the mistress of the affections of Don Quixote .] A mistress; a sweetheart.

I must ever have some Dulcinea in my head.

Sterne.

Dulciness noun See Dulceness . [ Obsolete]

Dulcino noun (Mus.) See Dolcino .

Dulcite noun [ Confer French dulcite , from Latin dulcis sweet.] (Chemistry) A white, sugarlike substance, C ₆ H ₈ .(OH) ₂ , occurring naturally in a manna from Madagascar, and in certain plants, and produced artificially by the reduction of galactose and lactose or milk sugar.

Dulcitude noun [ Latin dulcitudo , from dulcis sweet. Sweetness. [ R.] Cockeram.

Dulcorate transitive verb [ Latin dulcoratus , past participle of dulcorare , from dulcor sweetness, from dulcis sweet.] To sweeten; to make less acrimonious. [ R.] Bacon.

Dulcoration noun [ Late Latin dulcoratio .] The act of sweetening. [ R.] Bacon.