fuck-you lizard

noun

A tokay gecko (Gekko gecko), native to Southeast Asia.

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Meanings

nounfuck-you lizard (plural fuck-you lizards)

plural fuck-you lizards · alternative fuck you lizard

  1. slangvulgargovernmentA tokay gecko (Gekko gecko), native to Southeast Asia.

    At least it wasn’t a fuck-you lizard, I thought.

    2009, Wayne Karlin, Wandering Souls: Journeys with the Dead and the Living in Viet Nam, Nation Books, page 269
    2 more examples

    “Relax, son,” he whispered, “it’s only a fuck-you lizard.”

    1988, Russell E. McLogan, Boy Soldier: Coming of Age During World War II, Terrus Press, page 141

    “Uccck-ouuu.” Small Deer said, imitating a Fuck-You Lizard to perfection.

    2004, Mike Sutton, No Survivors, Author House, page 176

Synonyms & antonyms

Also see
tokay gecko

Origin

Named during the Vietnam War, as the lizard's cry could be heard as fuck you. The fuck sound is quite clear and short in duration, followed by a pause of about half a second and the elongated you. The same sound could also be heard as tokay (as in tokay gecko), as tokeh (as in tokeh-tokeh), or as tuctoo, all of which are other English names of the lizard.

Full word history & related roots →
Cite this entry
APA

fuck-you lizard. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/fuck-you%20lizard

MLA

“fuck-you lizard.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/fuck-you%20lizard. Accessed November 4, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “fuck-you lizard,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/fuck-you%20lizard.

Source: fuck-you lizard on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.