Meanings
alternative Derick · alternative Derrick · alternative Deryck
- A male given name from the Germanic languages.
"Do you think so? Her husband has an odd name - Derek Keppel. He is a musician - a violinist."
1895, The American Magazine, Crowell-Collier Publishing Company, page 4463 more examples
We do not entertain as much anymore because of Derek. (He produces strain. We have to pretend he doesn't.) I used to like him when I still thought he was normal. I was fond of him. I used to call him Dirk, and Kiddo, Steamshovel, Dinky Boy, and Dicky Dare. Till I found out what he was. Now it's always formal: Derek.
1974, Joseph Heller, Something happened, →ISBN, page 509Frederick or Derek Boothby was in his late fifties, the son of a naval officer and a daughter of the Earl of Limerick.
2010, James Robertson, And the Land Lay Still, Hamish Hamilton, →ISBN, page 292The willingness to bring more marginal legal cases reflects how the amount of money being put toward election litigation has increased significantly, said Derek Muller, an election law professor at the University of Notre Dame who noted that the trend also applies to Democrats and outside groups across the ideological spectrum.
2024 April 11, Fredreka Schouten, Tierney Sneed, “GOP leaders pursue new lawsuits over 2024 election rules – including attacking methods of voting they want supporters to use”, in CNN, archived from the original on 29 Apr 2024 - A surname.
Origin
Borrowed in the Middle Ages from a Middle Low German variant of Theodoric, and revived in the 19th century.
Full word history & related roots →Translations
Ancient Greek Θευδέριχος
- Θευδέριχος (Theudérikhos)given name
Catalan Teodoric
- Teodoricgiven name
Chinese Mandarin 德里克, 德瑞克
- 德里克 (Délǐkè)given name
- 德瑞克 (Déruìkè)given name
Czech Dětřich
- Dětřichgiven name
Dutch Diederik, Diedrich
- Diederikgiven name
- Diedrichgiven name
- Dirkgiven name
Esperanto Teodoriko
- Teodorikogiven name
Estonian Tiidrik, Tiit
- Tiidrikgiven name
- Tiitgiven name
Finnish Tiiri, Didrik
- Tiirigiven name
- Didrikgiven name
French Thierry
- Thierrygiven name
German Dietrich, Dirk
- Dietrichgiven name
- Dirkgiven name
Greek Θεοδώριχος, Ντέρεκ
- Θεοδώριχος (Theodórichos)given name
- Ντέρεκ (Ntérek)given name
Hungarian Detre
- Detregiven name
Icelandic Diðrik, Þiðrik
- Diðrikgiven name
- Þiðrikgiven name
Italian Teodorico
- Teodoricogiven name
Japanese デレク
- デレク (dereku)given name
Latin Theodoricus
- Theodoricusgiven name
Latvian Didzis
- Didzisgiven name
Norwegian Didrik
- Didrikgiven name
Polish Teodoryk
- Teodorykgiven name
Portuguese Teodorico
- Teodoricogiven name
Romanian Teodoric
- Teodoricgiven name
Russian Дерек
- Дерек (Derek)given name
Spanish Teodorico
- Teodoricogiven name
Swedish Didrik
- Didrikgiven name
Rhymes & wordplay
Rhymes with Derek
Sounds the same
Cite this entry
Derek. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Derek
“Derek.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Derek. Accessed November 2, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “Derek,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Derek.
Source: Derek on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.