pockmark

[ pok-mahrk ]

noun

1. Usually pockmarks. scars or pits left by a pustule in smallpox or the like.
2. a small pit or scar:

   a tabletop full of pockmarks.

verb (used with object)

1. to mark or scar with or as with pockmarks:

   gopher holes pockmarking the field.

pockmark

/ ˈpɒkˌmɑːk /

noun

1. Also calledpock a pitted scar left on the skin after the healing of a smallpox or similar pustule
2. any pitting of a surface that resembles or suggests such scars

verb

1. tr to scar or pit (a surface) with pockmarks

Other Words From

• pockmarked adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of pockmark¹

First recorded in 1665–75; pock + mark ¹

Example Sentences

The Sur Pockmark Field -- an area about the size of the city of Los Angeles that is located off the coast of Big Sur, California -- contains more than 5,200 circular depressions.

From Science Daily

The team found multiple layers of sandy deposits, called turbidites, in the sediment samples taken from the pockmarks and the sub-bottom images of the pockmark field.

From Science Daily

These sediment gravity flows appear to cause erosion in the center of each pockmark, maintaining these unique underwater morphologic features over time.

From Science Daily

For the past six years, MBARI's Continental Margin Processes Team has been working to understand the origins of the pockmark formations, establish whether they are geologically active, and determine if they are areas of special biological significance.

From Science Daily

The research team used mapping AUVs developed by engineers in MBARI's Seafloor Mapping Lab to visualize a portion of the Sur Pockmark Field in greater detail.

From Science Daily