poke

¹

[pohk]

verb (used with object)

poked, poking 

1. to prod or push, especially with something narrow or pointed, such as a finger, elbow, stick, etc..

   He was asleep until she poked him in the ribs.

2. to make (a hole, one's way, etc.) by or as by prodding or pushing.

   The branch poked a hole in my sweater.

   It was a difficult trek, as he had to poke his way slowly through the underbrush.

3. to thrust or push.

   She poked her head out of the window.

4. to force, drive, or stir by or as by pushing or thrusting.

   He poked the fire up.

5. to thrust obtrusively.

   The prosecutor kept poking his finger at the defendant.

verb (used without object)

poked, poking 

1. to make a pushing or thrusting movement with the finger, a stick, etc..

   Angle the needle and poke hard, and it should get through the fabric.

2. to extend or project (often followed byout ).

   His handkerchief is poking out of his back pocket.

3. to thrust oneself obtrusively.

   It's dangerous to poke into something that's none of your business.

4. to search curiously; pry (often followed by around orabout ).

   When working airport security, you often have to poke around in other people's stuff.

5. to go or proceed in a slow or aimless way (often followed byalong ).

   We spent a while poking along at 5 mph while the traffic jam cleared.

noun

1. a thrust or push.

   She gave the cake a poke with a toothpick to see if it was done.

2. Informal.,  a slow or dawdling person; slowpoke.

poke

²

[pohk]

noun

1. Chiefly Midland U.S. and Scot..,  a bag or sack, especially a small one.

2. a wallet or purse.

3. Archaic.,  a pocket.

poke

³

[pohk]

noun

1. a projecting brim at the front of a bonnet, framing the face.

2. Also called poke bonnet. a bonnet or hat with such a brim.

poke

⁴

[pohk]

noun

1. pokeweed.

poke

⁵

[poh-key]

noun

1. a Hawaiian salad of cubed raw tuna mixed with diced sweet onion and scallion and marinated in soy sauce and sesame oil.

poke

¹

/ pəʊk /

verb

1. (tr) to jab or prod, as with the elbow, the finger, a stick, etc

2. (tr) to make (a hole, opening, etc) by or as by poking

3. to thrust (at)

4. informal,  (tr) to hit with the fist; punch

5. to protrude or cause to protrude

   don't poke your arm out of the window

6. (tr) to stir (a fire, pot, etc) by poking

7. (intr) to meddle or intrude

8. (intr; often foll by about or around) to search or pry

9. to loiter, potter, dawdle, etc

10. slang,  (tr) (of a man) to have sexual intercourse with

11. to mock or ridicule

12. See nose

noun

1. a jab or prod

2. short for slowpoke

3. informal,  a blow with one's fist; punch

4. slang,  sexual intercourse

poke

²

/ pəʊk /

noun

1. dialect,  a pocket or bag

2. See pig

poke

³

/ pəʊk /

noun

1. Also called: poke bonnet. a woman's bonnet with a brim that projects at the front, popular in the 18th and 19th centuries

2. the brim itself

poke

⁴

/ pəʊk /

noun

1. short for pokeweed

Other Word Forms

• pokable adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of poke¹

First recorded in 1300–50; Middle English, from Middle Dutch, Middle Low German poken “to thrust, stick with a knife”; poach ²

Origin of poke²

First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English, from Middle Dutch, whence also Old North French poque, French poche “bag, pocket”; poach ¹, pocket, pouch

Origin of poke³

First recorded in 1760–70; apparently special use of poke ¹

Origin of poke⁴

First recorded in 1590–1600; perhaps shortening of obsolete pocan “pokeweed,” perhaps variant of puccoon (pokeberries and puccoon roots were both sources of red dye)

Origin of poke⁵

First recorded in 1975–80; from Hawaian: literally, “to slice crosswise, section, a section”

Word History and Origins

Origin of poke¹

C14: from Low German and Middle Dutch poken to thrust, prod, strike

Origin of poke²

C13: from Old Northern French poque, of Germanic origin; related to Old English pocca bag, Old Norse poki _pouch , Middle Dutch poke bag; compare _poach ²

Origin of poke³

C18: from _poke ¹ (in the sense: to thrust out, project)

Idioms and Phrases

Idioms

1. poke one's nose into, to meddle in; pry into.

   We felt as if half the people in town were poking their noses into our lives.

2. poke fun at, to ridicule or mock, especially covertly or slyly.

   In her novel, she pokes fun at her ex-husband.

More idioms and phrases containing poke

• make fun of (poke fun at)
• pig in a poke
• take a poke at

Example Sentences

There was only one question left: How long do the hosts have before they can poke fun at the accident?

From Los Angeles Times

On the video call, Foyaz Ullah showed the scars on his right wrist, and described repeatedly being punched and slapped on his back and face, and poked with a bamboo rod.

From BBC

Don’t worry, Aronofsky only shows a few frames of that and nothing of the assault, instead letting Bud spend much of the film with his sweet head poking out of a gym bag.

From Los Angeles Times

In Shake It Off, she poked fun at the media's discourse: "I go on too many dates / But I can't make them stay / At least, that's what people say."

From BBC

“It’s on legislators and the governor right now in California to lay out a strategy that you can’t poke a lot of holes in, and that hasn’t been the case in the past.”

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• dig 
• jab 
• nudge 
• prod 
• protrude 
• punch 
• shove 
• stab 
• stick 
• stick out