Quack

6 definitions found

From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 [gcide]:

  Quack \Quack\, n.
     1. The cry of the duck, or a sound in imitation of it; a
        hoarse, quacking noise. --Chaucer.
        [1913 Webster]
  
     2. [Cf. {Quacksalver}.] A boastful pretender to medical


        skill; an empiric; an ignorant practitioner.
        [1913 Webster]
  
     3. Hence, one who boastfully pretends to skill or knowledge
        of any kind not possessed; a charlatan.
        [1913 Webster]
  
              Quacks political; quacks scientific, academical.
                                                    --Carlyle.
        [1913 Webster]

From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 [gcide]:

  Quack \Quack\, a.
     Pertaining to or characterized by, boasting and pretension;
     used by quacks; pretending to cure diseases; as, a quack
     medicine; a quack doctor.
     [1913 Webster]

From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 [gcide]:

  Quack \Quack\, v. i. [imp. & p. p. {Qvacked}; p. pr. & vb. n.
     {Quacking}.] [Of imitative origin; cf. D. kwaken, G. quacken,
     quaken, Icel. kvaka to twitter.]
     [1913 Webster]
     1. To utter a sound like the cry of a duck.
        [1913 Webster]
  
     2. To make vain and loud pretensions; to boast. " To quack of
        universal cures." --Hudibras.
        [1913 Webster]
  
     3. To act the part of a quack, or pretender.
        [1913 Webster]

From WordNet (r) 2.0 [wn]:

  quack
       adj : medically unqualified; "a quack doctor" [syn: {quack(a)}]
       n 1: an untrained person who pretends to be a physician and who
            dispenses medical advice
       2: the harsh sound of a duck
       v 1: utter quacking noises; "The ducks quacked"
       2: act as a medical quack or a charlatan

From Moby Thesaurus II by Grady Ward, 1.0 [moby-thes]:

  75 Moby Thesaurus words for "quack":
     blagueur, bluff, bluffer, cackle, call, carol, caw, charlatan,
     charlatanic, charlatanish, chatter, cheep, chirk, chirp, chirr,
     chirrup, chitter, chuck, clack, cluck, cock-a-doodle-doo, coo,
     counterfeit, counterfeiter, croak, cronk, crow, cuckoo, drum, fake,
     faker, fourflusher, fraud, fraudulent, gabble, gaggle, gobble,
     guggle, honk, hoo, hoot, horse doctor, humbug, impersonator,
     impostor, malingerer, medicaster, medicine man, medicine monger,
     mountebank, peep, phony, pip, pipe, poser, poseur, pretender,
     quackish, quacksalver, quackster, ringer, roll, saltimbanco, scold,
     sham, shammer, simulator, sing, squawk, trill, tweet, twit,
     twitter, warble, whistle
  
  

From Bouvier's Law Dictionary, Revised 6th Ed (1856) [bouvier]:

  QUACK. One, who, without sufficient knowledge, study or previous 
  preparation, and without the diploma of some college or university, 
  undertakes to practice medicine or surgery, under the pretence that he 
  possesses secrets in those arts. 
       2. He is criminally answerable for his unskillful practice, and also, 
  civilly to his patient in certain cases. Vide Mala praxis; Physician.