decks

1. 1
   noun

   Plural of deck.

   Sailors scrubbed the wooden decks until they gleamed in the sun.

   Both decks of the bus were full during rush hour.

   Note

   A regular plural that serves every noun meaning at once: the floors of a ship, raised platforms like balconies and patios, packs of cards, even the stacked subheadlines of a newspaper. Ships are counted in decks, so a small boat has one and a larger ship two or three. In card games each player may own a deck, so several decks can mean several players' sets. The same spelling is also the verb form, as in "she decks the hall."

2. 2
   verb

   Third-person singular simple present of deck.

   Each spring she decks the whole garden with bright ribbons for the festival.

   The boxer decks his opponent with a single sharp uppercut.

   Note

   The present-tense form for a singular subject (she decks, it decks) carries quite different verbs under one spelling. The decorative uses usually name the adornment in a with-phrase: she decks the garden with ribbons. The informal boxing use takes a person as its object and means a knockdown. Card players have their own use: a strategy that decks an opponent leaves them nothing to draw, which usually means losing the game.

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