DUCK

Duck is the common name for numerous species in the waterfowl family Anatidae which also includes swans and geese. Ducks are divided among several subfamilies in the family Anatidae; they do not represent a monophyletic group (the group of all descendants of a single common ancestral species) but a form taxon, since swans and geese are not considered ducks. Ducks are mostly aquatic birds, mostly smaller than the swans and geese, and may be found in both fresh water and sea water.

This word replaced Old English end"duck", possibly to avoid confusion with other Old English words, like end"end" with similar forms. Other Germanic languages still have similar words for "duck", for example, Dutch end "duck", German Enter "duck" and Norwegian and "duck"