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

But England's good work was soon undone as the individual errors and systemic failings that have pockmarked this month surfaced once more.

From BBC

She runs down a passage pockmarked by shrapnel.

From BBC

It’s a set of 30-foot-high gold-colored pockmarked cylinders visible across the border.

From Los Angeles Times

After significant rainfall left Long Beach roads pockmarked with potholes, the city ramped up its efforts to fix them.

From Los Angeles Times

Its two baseball fields were so pockmarked by gopher holes that even walking over them was difficult.

From Los Angeles Times