What does buck mean?
Buck is a versatile English word with several distinct but related uses. Most literally, it denotes the adult male of certain animals — most commonly deer, but also goats, antelopes, and rabbits — where it contrasts with the female doe or hind. In informal American speech, buck also means one dollar, as in 'that cost me twenty bucks.' As a verb, buck describes the sharp, arched-back jump a horse makes to unseat its rider, and by extension it means to resist or oppose something firmly, as in 'to buck convention' or 'to buck the system.' This sense gives rise to well-known idioms: 'pass the buck,' meaning to shift responsibility onto someone else, and 'the buck stops here,' meaning to accept that responsibility oneself. Buck is generally informal or colloquial in tone, especially in its monetary sense, and appears frequently in everyday conversation, sports commentary, and political discussion. Its range of literal and figurative senses makes it a useful word across registers.
An adult male of certain animals, especially deer, goats, or rabbits; also, informal US currency worth one dollar.
"The hunter waited patiently for the buck to emerge from the thicket."
In the financial sense, 'buck' is strictly informal.
Of a horse: to leap with the back arched, attempting to throw off a rider; more generally, to resist or oppose something.
"The company chose to buck industry norms by offering unlimited paid leave."
The figurative sense ('buck the trend') is common in journalism and business writing.
Standard plural applies both to animals and to dollars.
"Several bucks were grazing near the river at dawn."
"Passing the buck" — blaming someone else — comes from poker players passing a knife with a buckhorn handle to mark whose turn it was to deal.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Etymology of buck
The noun buck derives from Middle English 'bukke', from Old English 'bucca', meaning a male goat, which traces back through Proto-Germanic roots shared with Dutch 'bok' and German 'Bock'. Its use as a term for a dollar appeared in 19th-century America. The verb sense of resisting likely developed from the image of a bucking animal's resistance.
Related word forms
How buck is actually used
Buck is informal when referring to money and can feel colloquial in formal writing. The verb sense related to horses is common in rodeo contexts. The phrase 'pass the buck' is widely used figuratively to mean shifting responsibility.
Easily confused with buck
Bulk refers to large size or mass, while buck is a male animal or slang for a dollar.