duckling
Americannoun
noun
Etymology
Origin of duckling
First recorded in 1400–50; late Middle English; duck 1, -ling 1
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
My parents look at me like they don’t quite know me, but in a good way, like they’re surprised to find that their ugly duckling was a swan all along.
From Literature
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Have warm feelings toward Copenhagen’s favorite son, Hans Christian Andersen, and his little tales about lovelorn mermaids and ugly ducklings?
From Los Angeles Times
I drove around downtown Los Angeles on a recent Friday morning looking for one of the Civic Center’s ugly ducklings.
From Los Angeles Times
In fact, Callas made herself out of what she considered to be an ugly duckling.
From Los Angeles Times
It’s to the Moscow mallard and her ducklings I head to find out what Russians think of America and of the US election.
From BBC
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.