Stag vs. Buck — What's the Difference?
Edited by Tayyaba Rehman — By Fiza Rafique — Updated on September 21, 2023
A stag is a male deer, specifically of the red deer species, often mature and with large antlers. A buck is a male deer or antelope, generally across multiple species, and can be young or mature.
Difference Between Stag and Buck
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Key Differences
A stag is a term often used to describe a mature male red deer, particularly one that has reached sexual maturity and has developed large, branching antlers. A buck, in contrast, is a term broadly used for the male of several species of deer and antelope, regardless of age or size of antlers.
The term "stag" is more exclusive and generally refers to red deer, although it can sometimes be used for other deer species. The term "buck" is more inclusive, applying to males in species such as white-tailed deer, black-tailed deer, mule deer, and even antelopes.
In hunting terminology, a stag is often sought after for its majestic antlers, which can be a symbol of the animal's age and vitality. A buck may also be prized in hunting, but the term can include younger males that have not yet developed large antlers.
The usage of "stag" and "buck" can also vary by region. For example, in Europe, the term "stag" is more commonly used, while in North America, "buck" is the prevalent term. Both words, however, are universally understood among those familiar with deer species.
Comparison Chart
Species
Primarily red deer
Multiple species
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Maturity
Often mature
Can be young or mature
Antlers
Usually large, branching
Varies widely
Usage
More common in Europe
More common in North America
Hunting
Prized for large antlers
Prized but may have smaller antlers
Compare with Definitions
Stag
A male red deer.
The stag stood majestically in the clearing.
Buck
Commonly used in North American terminology.
American hunters often use the term buck.
Stag
A mature male deer with large antlers.
The hunters were searching for a stag to mount on their wall.
Buck
A male deer.
Stag
A term commonly used in Europe for male deer.
The European hunters referred to the animal as a stag.
Buck
The male of various other mammals, such as antelopes, kangaroos, mice, or rabbits.
Stag
A term often used in hunting to describe a prized male deer.
He was thrilled to have finally caught a stag.
Buck
Antelope considered as a group
A herd of buck.
Stag
The adult male of various deer, especially the red deer.
Buck
A robust or high-spirited young man.
Stag
An animal, especially a pig, castrated after reaching sexual maturity.
Buck
A fop.
Stag
A person who attends a social gathering unaccompanied by a partner, especially a man who is unaccompanied by a woman.
Buck
(Offensive) A Native American or black man.
Stag
A social gathering for men only.
Buck
An act or instance of bucking
A horse that unseated its rider on the first buck.
Stag
Of or for men only
A stag party.
Buck
Buckskin.
Stag
Pornographic
Stag films.
Buck
Bucks Buckskin breeches or shoes.
Stag
Unaccompanied
Went to the dance stag.
Buck
A sawhorse or sawbuck.
Stag
To attend a social gathering unaccompanied by a partner. Used especially of men.
Buck
A leather-covered frame used for gymnastic vaulting.
Stag
(countable) An adult male deer.
Buck
(Informal) A dollar.
Stag
(countable) A colt, or filly.
Buck
(Informal) An amount of money
Working overtime to make an extra buck.
Stag
A romping girl; a tomboy.
Buck
A large round amount of currency, especially a hundred dollars.
Stag
(countable) An improperly or late castrated bull or ram – also called a bull seg (see note under ox).
Buck
A hundred of some other units, especially miles per hour or pounds
Was doing a buck twenty out on the Interstate.
A boxer weighing in at a buck fifty.
Stag
An outside irregular dealer in stocks, who is not a member of the exchange.
Buck
(Games) A counter or marker formerly passed from one poker player to another to indicate an obligation, especially one's turn to deal.
Stag
One who applies for the allotment of shares in new projects, with a view to sell immediately at a premium, and not to hold the stock.
Buck
(Informal) Obligation to account for something; responsibility
Tried to pass the buck for the failure to his boss.
Stag
An unmarried man; a bachelor; a man not accompanying a woman at a social event.
A stag dance; a stag party; a stag bar
Buck
To leap upward while arching the back
The horse bucked in fright.
Stag
(countable) A social event for men held in honor of a groom on the eve of his wedding, attended by male friends of the groom; sometimes a fundraiser.
The stag will be held in the hotel's ballroom.
Buck
To charge with the head lowered; butt.
Stag
Guard duty.
Buck
To make sudden jerky movements; jolt
The motor bucked and lurched before it finally ran smoothly.
Stag
(countable) A stag beetle (family Lucanidae).
Buck
To resist stubbornly and obstinately; balk.
Stag
(countable) The Eurasian wren, Troglodytes troglodytes.
Buck
(Informal) To strive with determination
Bucking for a promotion.
Stag
To act as a "stag", an irregular dealer in stocks.
Buck
To throw or toss by bucking
Buck off a rider.
Bucked the packsaddle off its back.
Stag
(transitive) To watch; to dog, or keep track of.
Buck
To oppose directly and stubbornly; go against
“Los Angeles County, the most populous county in the country, is bucking the trend” (American Demographics).
Stag
Of a man, attending a formal social function without a date.
My brother went stag to prom because he couldn't find a date.
Buck
(Football) To charge into (an opponent's line) carrying the ball.
Stag
The adult male of the red deer (Cervus elaphus), a large European species closely related to the American elk, or wapiti.
Buck
To butt against with the head.
Stag
A colt, or filly; also, a romping girl.
Buck
To pass (a task or duty) to another, especially so as to avoid responsibility
"We will see the stifling of initiative and the increased bucking of decisions to the top" (Winston Lord).
Stag
A castrated bull; - called also bull stag, and bull seg. See the Note under Ox.
Buck
Of the lowest rank in a specified military category
A buck private.
A buck sergeant.
Stag
An outside irregular dealer in stocks, who is not a member of the exchange.
Buck
A male deer, antelope, sheep, goat, rabbit, hare, and sometimes the male of other animals such as the hamster, ferret and shad.
Stag
The European wren.
Buck
(US) An uncastrated sheep, a ram.
Stag
To act as a "stag," or irregular dealer in stocks.
Buck
A young buck; an adventurous, impetuous, dashing, or high-spirited young man.
Stag
To watch; to dog, or keep track of.
Buck
A fop or dandy.
Stag
Male red deer
Buck
A black or Native American man.
Stag
Adult male deer
Buck
A unit of a particular currency
Stag
Attend a dance or a party without a female companion
Buck
A dollar (one hundred cents).
Can I borrow five bucks?
Stag
Give away information about somebody;
He told on his classmate who had cheated on the exam
Buck
A rand (currency unit).
Stag
Watch, observe, or inquire secretly
Buck
A euro.
Stag
A term sometimes applied to other deer species' mature males.
Although rare, the term stag can refer to males of other deer species.
Buck
Money.
Corporations will do anything to make a buck.
Buck
(finance) One million dollars.
Buck
One hundred.
The police caught me driving a buck forty [140 miles per hour] on the freeway.
That skinny guy? C'mon, he can't weigh more than a buck and a quarter [125 pounds].
Buck
Clipping of buckshot
He loaded the shotgun with two rounds of double-ought buck.
Buck
An implement the body of which is likened to a male sheep’s body due maintaining a stiff-legged position as if by stubbornness.
Buck
The body of a post mill, particularly in East Anglia. See Wikipedia:Windmill machinery.
Buck
A frame on which firewood is sawed; a sawhorse; a sawbuck.
Buck
A leather-covered frame used for gymnastic vaulting.
Buck
A wood or metal frame used by automotive customizers and restorers to assist in the shaping of sheet metal bodywork.
Buck
(dated) An object of various types, placed on a table to indicate turn or status; such as a brass object, placed in rotation on a US Navy wardroom dining table to indicate which officer is to be served first, or an item passed around a poker table indicating the dealer or placed in the pot to remind the winner of some privilege or obligation when his or her turn to deal next comes.
Buck
Synonym of buck dance.
Buck
Synonym of mule
Buck
A kind of large marble in children's games.
Buck
(Scotland) The beech tree.
Buck
Lye or suds in which cloth is soaked in the operation of bleaching, or in which clothes are washed.
Buck
The cloth or clothes soaked or washed.
Buck
(intransitive) To copulate, as bucks and does.
Buck
(intransitive) To bend; buckle.
Buck
To leap upward arching its back, coming down with head low and forelegs stiff, forcefully kicking its hind legs upward, often in an attempt to dislodge or throw a rider or pack.
Buck
To throw (a rider or pack) by bucking.
Buck
To subject to a mode of punishment which consists of tying the wrists together, passing the arms over the bent knees, and putting a stick across the arms and in the angle formed by the knees.
Buck
To resist obstinately; oppose or object strongly.
The vice president bucked at the board's latest solution.
Buck
To move or operate in a sharp, jerking, or uneven manner.
The motor bucked and sputtered before dying completely.
Buck
To overcome or shed (e.g., an impediment or expectation), in pursuit of a goal; to force a way through despite (an obstacle); to resist or proceed against.
The plane bucked a strong headwind.
Our managers have to learn to buck the trend and do the right thing for their employees.
John is really bucking the odds on that risky business venture. He's doing quite well.
Buck
(riveting) To press a reinforcing device (bucking bar) against (the force of a rivet) in order to absorb vibration and increase expansion. See Wikipedia: Rivet:Installation.
Buck
(forestry) To saw a felled tree into shorter lengths, as for firewood.
Buck
(electronics) To output a voltage that is lower than the input voltage. See Wikipedia: Buck converter
Buck
To soak, steep or boil in lye or suds, as part of the bleaching process.
Buck
To wash (clothes) in lye or suds, or, in later usage, by beating them on stones in running water.
Buck
(mining) To break up or pulverize, as ores.
Buck
Lye or suds in which cloth is soaked in the operation of bleaching, or in which clothes are washed.
Buck
The cloth or clothes soaked or washed.
Buck
The male of deer, especially fallow deer and antelopes, or of goats, sheep, hares, and rabbits.
Buck
A gay, dashing young fellow; a fop; a dandy.
The leading bucks of the day.
Buck
A male Indian or negro.
Buck
A frame on which firewood is sawed; a sawhorse; a sawbuck.
Buck
The beech tree.
Buck
To soak, steep, or boil, in lye or suds; - a process in bleaching.
Buck
To wash (clothes) in lye or suds, or, in later usage, by beating them on stones in running water.
Buck
To break up or pulverize, as ores.
Buck
To copulate, as bucks and does.
Buck
To spring with quick plunging leaps, descending with the fore legs rigid and the head held as low down as possible; - said of a vicious horse or mule.
Buck
To subject to a mode of punishment which consists in tying the wrists together, passing the arms over the bent knees, and putting a stick across the arms and in the angle formed by the knees.
Buck
A gymnastic horse without pommels and with one end elongated; used lengthwise for vaulting
Buck
A piece of paper money worth one dollar
Buck
United States author whose novels drew on her experiences as a missionary in China (1892-1973)
Buck
A framework for holding wood that is being sawed
Buck
Mature male of various mammals (especially deer or antelope)
Buck
To strive with determination;
John is bucking for a promotion
Buck
Resist;
Buck the trend
Buck
Move quickly and violently;
The car tore down the street
He came charging into my office
Buck
Jump vertically, with legs stiff and back arched;
The yung filly bucked
Buck
Of the lowest rank in a category;
A buck private
Buck
A term used for the males of various deer species.
He saw a buck among the herd of white-tailed deer.
Buck
Can refer to a male antelope.
A buck stood alert on the African savanna.
Buck
Can refer to both young and mature male deer.
The young buck was just starting to grow his antlers.
Common Curiosities
What is a buck?
A buck is a male deer or antelope of any age.
Is the term 'stag' specific to certain species?
It's primarily used for red deer but can sometimes extend to other deer species.
Can a buck be young?
Yes, a buck can be young or mature.
Why are stags prized in hunting?
Stags are often prized for their large, branching antlers.
Why are bucks prized in hunting?
Bucks are prized, but the size of the antlers can vary widely.
Is a stag the same as a buck?
No, 'stag' is often a mature male red deer, while 'buck' can refer to any male deer or antelope.
Is a stag always mature?
A stag is often mature and has large antlers.
Is the term 'buck' commonly used in North America?
Yes, the term 'buck' is more commonly used in North America.
What is a stag?
A stag is a mature male red deer with large antlers.
Do stags and bucks both have antlers?
Yes, but the size and complexity can differ.
Can the term 'stag' be used outside of red deer?
It's less common but can sometimes refer to other deer species.
Is the term 'stag' commonly used in Europe?
Yes, the term 'stag' is more commonly used in Europe.
Can the term 'buck' be used for antelopes?
Yes, 'buck' can refer to a male antelope.
Is the term 'buck' specific to certain species?
No, it is used for males of various deer and antelope species.
What's the primary difference between a stag and a buck?
The primary difference is the species and maturity; 'stag' often refers to a mature male red deer, while 'buck' can refer to any male deer or antelope.
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Fiza RafiqueFiza Rafique is a skilled content writer at AskDifference.com, where she meticulously refines and enhances written pieces. Drawing from her vast editorial expertise, Fiza ensures clarity, accuracy, and precision in every article. Passionate about language, she continually seeks to elevate the quality of content for readers worldwide.
Edited by
Tayyaba RehmanTayyaba Rehman is a distinguished writer, currently serving as a primary contributor to askdifference.com. As a researcher in semantics and etymology, Tayyaba's passion for the complexity of languages and their distinctions has found a perfect home on the platform. Tayyaba delves into the intricacies of language, distinguishing between commonly confused words and phrases, thereby providing clarity for readers worldwide.
