Bucker

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A person or animal who throws or resists strongly by sudden movements ; a device used to hold or support wood for cutting or to split logs
2. An individual known for vigorous jumping or kicking motions ; equipment designed to stabilize timber during sawing or splitting operations
3. Someone or something that makes strong resistance by jumping or thrashing about ; a mechanical aid for processing logs by facilitating safer and steadier cuts

Etymology: "Bucker" is built from "buck" plus the agent suffix "-er", so it names something or someone that bucks. The verb "buck" has a long history of meaning to leap or jerk the body, as a horse does when it tries to throw a rider, and "bucker" follows naturally from that sense, applied to an animal or person that performs such vigorous motions. The second sense, the sawing equipment, comes from the same verb. A sawhorse-like frame or clamp that holds timber steady during cutting or splitting resists the wood's movement, so it "bucks" against the force applied to it. The tool's name is simply the action of its job turned into a noun, a plain and practical coinage rather than a story of any particular inventor.

Synonyms: dumper, loader