buck naked

Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.

No pronunciation record was provided for this word.

The earlier of two similar references to the unclothed state, the later version being the reverse bowdlerization butt-naked. First evidenced in early twentieth century literature and, some say, in the British lexicon. It is possible the phrase was originally based on the racist usage of "buck" to refer to Black people or Native Americans, who when enslaved were often presented naked at auctions.