poke

¹ American  

[pohk] / poʊk /

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.

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.

poke ² American  

[pohk] / poʊk /

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 American  

[pohk] / poʊk /

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 American  

[pohk] / poʊk /

noun

1. pokeweed.

---

poke ⁵ American  

[poh-key] / poʊˈkeɪ /

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 British  

/ 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 British  

/ pəʊk /

noun

1. dialect a pocket or bag

2. See pig

---

poke ³ British  

/ 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 British  

/ pəʊk /

noun

1. short for pokeweed

---

poke More Idioms  

More idioms and phrases containing poke

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

---

Other Word Forms

• pokable adjective

Etymology

Origin of poke¹

First recorded in 1300–50; Middle English, from Middle Dutch, Middle Low German poken “to thrust, stick with a knife”; see also 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”; cf. 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”

Explanation

A poke is a jab or a sharp push, usually with something thin or pointed, like a finger, a stick, or even an elbow. The main idea behind a poke is a prodding action that creates a depression or hole, as when you poke someone in the ribs with your finger. It can also mean a quick, sharp movement, like when a turtle pokes its head out of its shell. Still, the word often has a less-than-pleasant feeling to it, like something not really dangerous but still annoying. We often say a tolerable experience is "better than a poke in the eye with a sharp stick." It can also take on a more figurative meaning — when you "poke your nose into someone else's business," it means that you are intruding in another's private matters.

Example Sentences

What is just as bad, in her view, are those dog walkers who do pick up after their dogs but then just poke the bags into the wall to avoid carrying them.

From BBC • Apr. 6, 2026

Aedes aegypti zero in on humans and tend to poke multiples times before taking blood.

From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 27, 2026

"You can poke big holes in them, and we showed that even if you severely damage the tubes with as many holes as you can punch, they still float."

From Science Daily • Jan. 30, 2026

She knew how to poke fun at pious men in frilly dickeys, and rhapsodize on the pleasures found in everyday life.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 27, 2026

“No,” Grandpa said, eying the trap and rubbing his nose, “it wouldn’t do any good to poke a stick in it. We wouldn’t know any more then than we do now.”

From "Summer of the Monkeys" by Wilson Rawls

Related Words

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