Dictionary

ducat en · NOUN

Pronunciation

• (Southern-England) audio
• /ˈdʌkət/

Etymology

From Middle French ducat, late Old French ducat, from Old Italian ducato, from Medieval Latin ducātus, from oblique stem of dux (“duke; leader”). Doublet of duchy.

Meanings

1. (historical) A gold coin minted by various European nations.
   • But when the innkeeper saw what kind of goat the lad had, he thought this was a goat worth having, so when the lad had fallen asleep, he took another goat which couldn't make any golden ducats, and put that in its place. 1886, Peter Christen Asbjø￵rnsen, translated by H.L. Brækstad, Folk and Fairy Tales, page 166:
   • Shylock: "My daughter! O my ducats! Fled with a Christian! O my Christian ducats! Justice! the law! my ducats, and my daughter!..." c. 1596–1598 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Merchant of Venice”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act II, scene viii]:
2. (informal) A coin of the major denomination (dollar, euro, etc.); money in general.
3. (US, slang) A ticket.
   • […] the lines at the box office since ducats went on sale publicly Wednesday […] 1949 June 11, Billboard:
   • Customers are usually enticed in with a "ducat", or pass for one free dance. 1946, George Johnston, Skyscrapers in the Mist, page 88:
   • Ned Beaumont said, "Well, I've got a ducat that reads to there, anyway. 1972 [1931], Dashiell Hammett, “IV. The Dog House”, in The Glass Key, Vintage Books, page 73:

Forms

Deriveds

ducat gold

Translations (26)

ro ducat (historical gold coin) · es ducado (historical gold coin) · nl dukaat (historical gold coin) · gl ducado (historical gold coin) · ia ducato (historical gold coin) · hu dukát (historical gold coin) · hu arany (historical gold coin) · mk дукат (historical gold coin) · it ducato (historical gold coin) · ru дука́т (historical gold coin) · uk дука́т (historical gold coin) · sh dukat (historical gold coin) · ca ducat (historical gold coin) · fr ducat (historical gold coin) · pl dukat (historical gold coin) · fi dukaatti (historical gold coin) · hu aranypénz (historical gold coin) · ar بُنْدُقِي (historical gold coin) · hu aranyérme (historical gold coin) · tr düka (historical gold coin) · lad dukado (historical gold coin) · uk дука́ч (historical gold coin) · ms bunduki (historical gold coin) · pt ducado (historical gold coin) · de Dukat (historical gold coin) · cs dukát (historical gold coin)