English

Verb

poke ‎(third-person singular simple present pokes, present participle poking, simple past and past participle poked)

1. To prod or jab with an object such as a finger or a stick. [from later 14th c.]
   • 2010 December 29, Sam Sheringham, “Liverpool 0 - 1 Wolverhampton”, in BBC:

     Ward showed good pace to beat the advancing Reina to the ball and poke a low finish into the corner.

2. To stir up a fire to remove ash or promote burning.
3. (figuratively) To rummage as in to poke about in. [from early 19th c.]
4. (transitive, computing) To modify the value stored in (a memory address).
   • 1984, Franco Frey, SPECGRAFFITI (in Crash magazine, issue 6, July 1984)

     The 200 UDGs may be used either by paging between 10 sets of 20 UDGs or, alternatively, by displaying 96 different characters by poking the system variable CHARS with 256 less than the starting address of your graphics.

   • 1985, Tom Weishaar, Bert Kersey, The DOStalk Scrapbook (page 44)

     If you try to poke a value outside this range into a byte, Basic will beep you with an ILLEGAL QUANTITY error.

5. To put a poke on.

   to poke an ox

6. To thrust with the horns; to gore.
7. (informal, Internet) To notify.
8. (transitive) To thrust (something) in a particular direction such as the tongue.

Derived terms

Translations

Noun

poke ‎(plural pokes)

1. A prod, jab, or punch.
2. (US, slang) A lazy person; a dawdler.
3. (US, slang) A stupid or uninteresting person.

   (Can we find and add a quotation of Bartlett to this entry?)

4. (US) A device to prevent an animal from leaping or breaking through fences, consisting of a yoke with a pole inserted, pointed forward.
5. (computing) The storage of a value in a memory address, typically to modify the behaviour of a program or to cheat at a video game.
   • 1988, "Lloyd Mangram", Forum (in Crash magazine issue 54, July 1988)

     Perhaps all those super hackers who so regularly produce infinite lives etc. could produce pokes to be used by 128K users.

Derived terms

• better than a poke in the eye with a sharp stick

Etymology 2

From Middle English poke, from Anglo-Norman poke, (whence pocket), from Frankish *poka. More at pocket.

Noun

poke ‎(plural pokes)

1. (now regional) A sack or bag. [from early 13th c.]
   • c. 1386, Geoffrey Chaucer, The Canterbury Tales, The Miller's Prologue and Tale:

     Gerveys answerde, “Certes, were it gold,
     Or in a poke nobles alle untold,
     Thou sholdest have, as I am trewe smyth.

   • c. 1599, William Shakespeare, As You Like It, act 2, scene 7:

     And then he drew a dial from his poke,
     And, looking on it with lack-lustre eye,
     Says very wisely, ‘It is ten o'clock…’

   • 1605, William Camden, Remaines Concerning Brittaine, 1629 edition, Proverbes, page 276:

     When the Pig is proffered, hold vp the poke.

   • 1627, Michael Drayton, Minor Poems of Michael Drayton, 1907 edition, poem Nimphidia:

     And suddainly vntyes the Poke,
     Which out of it sent such a smoke,
     As ready was them all to choke,
     So greeuous was the pother [...].

   • 1814, September 4, The Examiner, volume 13, number 349, article French Fashions, page 573:

     … and as to shape, a nightmare has as much. Under the poke and the muff-box, the face sometimes entirely disappears …

   • 1946, Mezz Mezzrow and Bernard Wolfe, Really the Blues, Payback Press 1999, page 91:

     In the summertime they'd reach out and snatch your straw hat right off your head, and if you were fool enough to go after it your poke was bound to be lighter when you came out.

   • 2008, James Kelman, Kieron Smith, Boy, Penguin 2009, page 138:

     She did not eat blood-oranges. Her maw gived her one in a poke and she was going to throw it in the bin, Oh it is all black.

2. A long, wide sleeve; a poke sleeve.
3. (Scotland, Northern Ireland) An ice cream cone.

Derived terms

• buy a pig in a poke
• pocket

Translations

Etymology 3

Either a shortening of, or from the same source as, pocan ‎(“pokeweed”) (quod vide).

Noun

poke ‎(plural pokes)

1. (dialectal) Pokeweed.

Synonyms

• see the list at pokeweed

Translations

Etymology 4

From Hawaiian poke ‎(“slice crossways”)

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈpoʊ.keɪ/

Noun

poke ‎(uncountable)

1. (Hawaii) Slices or cubes of raw fish or other raw seafood, mixed with sesame oil, seaweed, sea salt, herbs, spices, or other flavorful ingredients.

Finnish

Declension

Etymology 1

< portsari ‎(“doorman”)

Noun

poke

1. (slang) doorman, bouncer (at a bar or nightclub)

Etymology 2

< porno ‎(“pornography”)

Noun

poke

1. (slang) pornography

Maori

Adjective

poke

1. grimy

Old French

Alternative forms

• poque
• pouche
• puche

Etymology

Of Frankish origin.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /pɔ.kə/

Noun

poke f ‎(oblique plural pokes, nominative singular poke, nominative plural pokes)

1. sack

   E puis les poudrez bien de sel e les mettez ensemble en une poke de bon kanevaz

Derived terms

• poket

Tocharian A

Etymology

Compare Tocharian B pokai.

Noun

poke

1. arm