Beck

Part of speech: verb

Pronunciation: /ˈbɛk/

Definitions

1. A small natural watercourse typically found in northern England ; a slight movement of the head or hand used to signal or call someone
2. A narrow flowing body of water usually smaller than a river ; a subtle gesture made by nodding or waving to attract attention
3. A minor stream or creek often recognized as a geographical feature ; a silent or brief motion of the head or hand to indicate direction or invitation

Etymology: The word "beck" has three quite separate histories that happen to share a spelling. The stream sense is the oldest. It comes from Old English "bæc" and "bec", meaning a brook, which descends from a Proto-Germanic root for stream. It is a close relative of German "Bach" and Dutch "beek", and the Old Norse "bekkr" shows the same word travelling through the Viking settlements of northern England, where so many stream names still end in "-beck". The gesture sense is a different word entirely. It is a shortened form of "beckon", from Old English "bēcnan", meaning to signal, and it traces back to the same Germanic root as "beacon". A beck of the hand is therefore a signal, a wave made to call someone over, and the word's core idea is that of a sign visible from a distance. A third "beck" comes from Old French "bec", meaning beak. This is the source of the phrase "at someone's beck and call", in which the noun has nothing to do with brooks or gestures, and it is the reason the word sits in the same dictionary entry as the other two.

Synonyms: summon, call, gesture, signal, INVALID