Word forms: plural, 3rd person singular presenttense quacks, present participle quacking, past tense, past participle quacked
1. countable noun [oft NOUN noun]
If you call someone a quack or a quack doctor, you mean that they claim to be skilled in medicine but are not.
[disapproval]
I went everywhere for treatment, tried all sorts of quacks.
Synonyms: doctor, GP, physician, medical practitioner More Synonyms of quack
2. adjective [ADJECTIVE noun]
Quack remedies or quack cures are medical treatments that you think are unlikely to work because they are not scientific.
[disapproval]
Why do intelligent people find quack remedies so appealing?
3. verb
When a duck quacks, it makes the noise that ducks typically make.
There were ducks quacking on the lawn. [VERB]
Quack is also a noun.
Suddenly he heard a quack.
More Synonyms of quack
quack in British English1
(kwæk)
verb(intransitive)
1.
(of a duck) to utter a harsh guttural sound
2.
to make a noise like a duck
noun
3.
the harsh guttural sound made by a duck
Word origin
C17: of imitative origin; related to Dutch kwakken, German quacken
quack in British English2
(kwæk)
noun
1.
a.
an unqualified person who claims medical knowledge or other skills
b.
(as modifier)
a quack doctor
2. British, Australian and New Zealand informal
a doctor; physician or surgeon
verb
3. (intransitive)
to act in the manner of a quack
Derived forms
quackish (ˈquackish)
adjective
Word origin
C17: short for quacksalver
quack in American English1
(kwæk)
noun
1.
an untrained person who practices medicine fraudulently
2.
any person who pretends to have knowledge or skill that he or she does not have in a particular field; charlatan
adjective
3.
characterized by pretentious claims with little or no foundation
4.
dishonestly claiming to effect a cure
verb intransitive
5.
to engage in quackery
SYNONYMY NOTE: quack1, charlatan both apply to a person who unscrupulously pretends to knowledge or skill he or shedoes not possess, but , quack2 almost always is used of a fraudulent or incompetent practitioner of medicine; , mountebank, in modern use, applies to a person who resorts to cheap and degrading methods inhis or her work, etc.; , impostor applies especially to a person who fraudulently impersonates another and, more generally,to anyone who is a hypocrite; , faker is an informal term for a person who practices deception or misrepresentation
Word origin
short for quacksalver
quack in American English2
(kwæk)
verb intransitive
1.
to utter the characteristic sound or cry of a duck, or a sound like it
noun
2.
the sound made by a duck, or any sound like it
Word origin
echoic
Examples of 'quack' in a sentence
quack
Sounds like the quack has finally got through.
The Sun (2009)
This is precisely the sort of situation that old saying about things that look and quack like ducks was devised for.
Times, Sunday Times (2013)
Dogs bark, ducks quack and banks moan about regulation.
Times, Sunday Times (2012)
Does it quack like an Ed?
Times, Sunday Times (2011)
We'd call it quack medicine.
Times, Sunday Times (2013)
Chinese translation of 'quack'
quack
(kwæk)
n(c)
[of duck]嘎嘎声(聲) (gāgāshēng)
(inf, pej, = doctor) 庸医(醫) (yōngyī) (个(個), gè)
vi
嘎嘎叫 (gāgājiào)
adj
(inf, pej)[remedy]冒牌的 (màopái de)
Nearby words of
quack
Pyrenees
Q
QC
quack
quad
quadruple
quads
1 (noun)
Definition
a doctor
I went everywhere for treatment, tried all sorts of quacks.
Synonyms
doctor
Do not stop the treatment without consulting your doctor.
GP
physician
the President's personal physician
medical practitioner
2 (noun)
Definition
an unqualified person who claims medical knowledge
The man was a quack after all, just as Rosalinda had warned.
Synonyms
charlatan
This so-called psychic was exposed as a charlatan.
fraud (informal)
He believes many psychics are frauds.
fake
She denied claims that she is a fake.
pretender
humbug (old-fashioned)
What a revolting humbug the man was!
impostor
He was an impostor who masqueraded as a doctor.
mountebank
phoney or phony (informal)
quacksalver (archaic)
(modifier)
Why do intelligent people find quack remedies so appealing?
Synonyms
fake
fraudulent
phoney or phony (informal)
pretended
sham
counterfeit
Additional synonyms
in the sense of fraud
Definition
a person who acts in a false or deceitful way
He believes many psychics are frauds.
Synonyms
impostor,
cheat,
fake,
bluffer,
sham,
hoax,
hoaxer,
forgery,
counterfeit,
pretender,
charlatan,
quack,
fraudster,
swindler,
mountebank,
grifter (slang, US, Canadian),
double-dealer,
phoney or phony (informal)
in the sense of humbug
Definition
a dishonest person
What a revolting humbug the man was!
Synonyms
fraud (informal),
cheat,
faker,
charlatan,
quack,
trickster,
conman or woman (informal),
con artist (informal),
impostor,
fraudster,
swindler,
grifter (slang, US, Canadian),
phoney or phony (informal),
rorter (Australian, slang)
in the sense of impostor
Definition
a person who cheats or swindles by pretending to be someone else