English Online Dictionary. What means burke? What does burke mean?
English
Pronunciation
- enPR: bûrk, IPA(key): /bɜː(ɹ)k/
- Rhymes: -ɜː(ɹ)k
Etymology 1
Eponymous, from William Burke.
Verb
burke (third-person singular simple present burkes, present participle burking, simple past and past participle burked)
- (UK, Ireland, Australia, New Zealand, slang) To murder by suffocation.
- 1829 February 2, Times (London), 3/5
- As soon as the executioner proceeded to his duty, the cries of ‘Burke him, Burke him—give him no rope’... were vociferated... ‘Burke Hare too!’
- 1829 February 2, Times (London), 3/5
- (UK, Ireland, Australia, New Zealand, slang, historical) To murder for the same purpose as Burke, to kill in order to have a body to sell to anatomists, surgeons, etc.
- (UK, Ireland, Australia, New Zealand, slang) To smother; to conceal, hush up, suppress.
Derived terms
- burker
See also
- bishop
Etymology 2
Noun
burke (plural burkes)
- (British, slang) Alternative form of berk
Anagrams
- Buker, Burek, burek
Northern Sami
Etymology
(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)
Pronunciation
- (Kautokeino) IPA(key): /ˈpurːke/
Noun
burke
- can, tin
Inflection
Further reading
- Koponen, Eino, Ruppel, Klaas, Aapala, Kirsti, editors (2002–2008), Álgu database: Etymological database of the Saami languages[1], Helsinki: Research Institute for the Languages of Finland