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Auk vs Orc - What's the difference?

auk | orc |

As nouns the difference between auk and orc

is that auk is any of several species of Arctic sea birds of the family Alcidae while orc is any of several large, ferocious sea creatures, now especially the killer whale.

As an initialism ORC is

orange River Colony, a name given to the Orange Free State when annexed by Britain in 1900.

auk

English

Alternative forms

*

Noun

(wikipedia auk) (en noun)
  • Any of several species of Arctic sea birds of the family Alcidae .
  • Synonyms

    * alcid

    orc

    English

    (wikipedia orc)

    Etymology 1

    From (etyl) orque, (etyl) orca, and their source, (etyl) .

    Noun

    (en noun)
  • Any of several large, ferocious sea creatures, now especially the killer whale.
  • Etymology 2

    Probably from (etyl) .

    Noun

    (en noun)
  • (fantasy, mythology) A mythical evil monstrous humanoid creature, usually quite aggressive.
  • * 1656 , Samuel Holland, Don Zara del Fogo , I.1:
  • Who at one stroke didst pare away three heads from off the shoulders of an Orke , begotten by an Incubus.
  • * 1834 , "The National Fairy Mythology of England" in Fraser's Magazine for Town and Country, Vol. 10, p. 53:
  • The chief exploit of the hero, Beowulf the Great, is the destruction of the two monsters Grendel and his mother; both like most of the evil beings in the old times, dwellers in the fens and the waters; and both, moreover, as some Christian bard has taken care to inform us, of "Cain's kin," as were also the eotens, and the elves, and the orcs (eĆ³tenas, and ylfe, and orcneas).
  • * 1954 , (JRR Tolkien), The Fellowship of the Ring :
  • There was a flash like flame and the helm burst asunder. The orc fell with cloven head.

    See also

    * goblin * troll

    Anagrams

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