poke1 verbpoke2 noun
pokepoke1 /pəʊk $ poʊk/ ●●○ verb 
VERB TABLE
poke
| Simple Form | ||
| Present | I, you, we, they | poke |
| he, she, it | pokes | |
| Past | I, you, he, she, it, we, they | poked |
| Present perfect | I, you, we, they | have poked |
| he, she, it | has poked | |
| Past perfect | I, you, he, she, it, we, they | had poked |
| Future | I, you, he, she, it, we, they | will poke |
| Future perfect | I, you, he, she, it, we, they | will have poked |
| Continuous Form | ||
| Present | I | am poking |
| he, she, it | is poking | |
| you, we, they | are poking | |
| Past | I, he, she, it | was poking |
| you, we, they | were poking | |
| Present perfect | I, you, we, they | have been poking |
| he, she, it | has been poking | |
| Past perfect | I, you, he, she, it, we, they | had been poking |
| Future | I, you, he, she, it, we, they | will be poking |
| Future perfect | I, you, he, she, it, we, they | will have been poking |
EXAMPLES FROM OTHER DICTIONARIES
- Careful with that stick! You nearly poked me in the eye.
- Sherman poked his camera through the curtains.
- Someone poked me in the eye during basketball practice.
- The boys poked the fish with sticks to see if it was still alive
- By its light, he poked around in the charred remains of the nestboxes.
- I poked my head under the dripping awning of a newsstand and asked the proprietor.
- I shan't inspect the harness, I shan't poke around the stables.
- Instead, they stayed inside and poked their arms through the bars for their food, just out of reach.
- It's time you scrapped your overwritten early loves and learned to poke fun at the real thing.
- The muzzle of a gun poked up - would they be caught in crossfire?
- With wet clothes clinging to her back, she looked skeletal, her shoulder blades poking up like sharp crags.
THESAURUS
to make something or someone move by pressing them with your hands, arms etc: · Push the door, don’t pull it.· She pushed him away and walked out.
to push someone or something in a rough or careless way: · People were shoving to get to the front of the queue.· Tom shoved his suitcase under the bed.
informal to push something quickly and carelessly into a small space: · She stuffed a few clothes into a bag and left.
to push someone or something with your finger or something sharp: · I poked the snake with a stick but it was dead.
to push someone beside you gently with your elbow to get their attention: · Toby nudged me and pointed out of the window.
to push something round or something on wheels so that it moves forward: · They rolled the logs down the hill.· The car still didn’t start so we tried to roll it off the road.
to push something with wheels, for example a bicycle or a trolley, so that it moves forward, while guiding it with your hands: · Rob wheeled his bike round the back of the house.
to try to get involved in a situation where you are not wanted or needed: · She tried not to interfere in her children’s lives.· It’s not your problem, so don’t interfere.
to interfere in someone else’s affairs in a way that is annoying for them. Meddle is more informal than interfere, and has more of a feeling of being annoyed: · I did not want my parents meddling in my private affairs.· He warned diplomats against meddling in Indonesia’s affairs.
to interfere by being somewhere where you are not wanted, or getting involved in a situation that is private – used especially when saying that you want to avoid doing this: · Sorry, I didn’t mean to intrude while you were on the phone.· When someone dies, people are often worried about intruding.
informal to interfere by trying to become involved in a private situation or conversation that does not concern you: · Stop butting in, will you!· I didn’t want to give them any advice in case they thought I was butting in.
to try to find out what someone else is doing in their private life, by asking questions or secretly checking what they are doing, in a way that seems annoying or rude: · Journalists like to pry into the lives of the rich and famous.· I didn’t mean to pry – I just wanted to know if I could help.
informal to ask questions about someone else’s private life or give them advice they do not want, in a way that annoys them: · She’s one of those people who’s always poking her nose into other people’s business.
Longman Language Activatorto interfere to try to influence a situation that you should not be involved in, for example by telling someone what to do or giving them advice that they do not want: · I'm sorry. I didn't mean to interfere, but I didn't want Glenda to be upset.· The protestors were peaceful, and the police decided not to interfere.interfere in: · She has no right to interfere in her son's marriage.· The US was accused of interfering in China's internal affairs.
to interfere in a situation that you do not understand or know enough about, and that someone else is responsible for dealing with: meddle in: · Church leaders shouldn't meddle in politics.meddle with: · Most of us don't know our neighbors well enough to meddle with their lives.
informal to ask questions about someone else's private life and give them advice they do not want, in a way that annoys them: · No one wants the government sticking its nose into the personal affairs of citizens.· She's one of these people who is always poking her nose into other people's business.
British informal /butt in American informal to give your opinion or advice to someone when they do not want it, because it is a private situation: · I don't want your dad over here sticking his oar in.
to become involved in someone's private affairs when you know you have no right to be involved - use this especially when saying that you want to avoid doing this: · I don't want to intrude, but are you all right?· Sorry, I didn't mean to intrude. I didn't realize you were on the phone.intrude on: · It's very important not to intrude on the family's grief, whilst still helping with the funeral arrangements.intrude into: · Companies should not have the right to intrude into employees' personal lives by giving them psychological tests.
to make fun of someone or something to make someone or something seem stupid by making jokes about them: · They made fun of the girls and their new outfits.· You shouldn't make fun of other people's beliefs.· Peter didn't seem to realize that they were making fun of him.
to make fun of someone or something, especially in an unkind way: · The other kids poked fun at him, saying his mother dressed him like a girl.· His plays ingeniously poked fun at the way the Communist Party corrupted language.
to make jokes about someone when you talk to them, either in an unkind way, or in a friendly way that shows you like them: · Sam's sisters used to tease him because he was overweight.· Don't get upset, Stuart, she's only teasing.tease somebody about something: · Kevin's always teasing me about my cooking.
informal to make fun of someone in a friendly way by telling something that is not true: · Did Ronnie really call or are you just pulling my leg?pull sb's leg about: · Don't worry. I was just pulling your leg about moving - I'm not going anywhere.
to repeatedly say unpleasant things to someone that show you do not respect them, in order to make them angry or upset: · She went on taunting him until he lost his temper.· When I didn't want to fight he would taunt me repeatedly. "Coward," he would say, "coward, coward, coward ...."taunt somebody about something: · He couldn't forget how they had taunted him about his appearance.
a book, film, or performance that sends up a group or person makes fun of them by copying them in a very funny way: send up somebody: · Gibson's new play brilliantly sends up the upper classes and their attitudes.send somebody up: · Half the time, he uses his act to send himself up.
to show by your unpleasant attitude or remarks that you do not have a high opinion of someone or what they do: · Instead of helping, they just sat and sneered.sneer at: · He wanted to prove something to the critics who had sneered at his paintings.
to make fun of a person, institution, belief etc, and show that you do not have a high opinion of them, sometimes in a friendly way: · Liz mocked him, saying that he was a coward.· The press mocked his attempts to appeal to young voters.· "Ooh, aren't you clever!" she mocked.· You mustn't mock -- it's not their fault they don't know much about art.
British informal to make someone look stupid, in either a friendly or unfriendly way, for example by saying something you do not mean or by copying their behaviour: · Just ignore him - he's just taking the mickey.· "You're a genius - you should go on one of those quiz shows!" "Are you taking the mickey?"take the mickey out of: · They're always taking the mickey out of each other, but they're good friends really.
informal to make fun of someone - some people consider this expression to be rude: · I didn't mean it - I was only taking the piss.take the piss out of: · The show takes the piss out of virtually everyone, from politicians to eco-warriors.
to push someone or something with your finger, elbow, or with something pointed to gently push someone with your elbow to get their attention, especially when you do not want anyone else to notice: · Toby nudged my arm. "That's the guy I told you about," he whispered.· Christine nudged me and giggled.
to push someone or something with your finger or with something sharp: · The boys poked the fish with sticks to see if it was still alivepoke somebody in the eye/side/ribs: · Careful with that stick! You nearly poked me in the eye.
to gently push someone or something, using your finger or something such as a stick: · Sergeant Thompson raised his stick and prodded the soldier in the chest.· They walked around him, prodding and pinching him.
to suddenly push your finger or elbow into someone's body, to get their attention or tell them something: · Jenny dug me sharply in the ribs and told me to be quiet.· Edward laughed loudly, digging me in the ribs, wanting me to share the joke.
to stick out to stick out from a surface or through an opening: · The fridge door won't shut because there's something sticking out.· His large ears stuck out almost at right angles.stick out of/from/through etc: · A neatly folded handkerchief was sticking out of his jacket pocket.· A pair of skis stuck out through the car window.
to stick out and point upwards: · His hair was white, and stuck up in tufts on his head.· Can you see that branch that's sticking up?stick up from/through/out of etc: · He saw a hand sticking up through the snow. · A church steeple stuck up above the roofs of the surrounding cottages.
formal to stick out, especially to stick out further than is usual or expected: protrude from/through/into etc: · I noticed a metal pipe protruding from the wall.· The largest stone can be seen protruding above the level of the river.· She injured herself on a screw that protruded 2 inches out of the bench.
if something juts out , for example a piece of land or a part of a building, it sticks out sharply and in a way that is very noticeable: jut out from/of/through etc: · Our guide led us to where a flat rock juts out from the side of the cliff.· a slim piece of land jutting out into the Gulf of Mexicojut 2 feet/100 metres etc out: · Our rafts floated downstream towards the icebergs, which jutted 30 feet out of the water.
if part of something pokes out , it sticks out or sticks up and can be seen, while the rest of it is covered: poke out of/from/through etc: · I looked across the street and saw Mike's head poking out above the fence.· The first snowdrops poked out through the frozen ground.
if something bulges , it sticks out more than usual in a rounded shape : · His cheeks bulged, and his face turned purple with rage.bulge out/from/through etc: · Father's face was flushed, and his eyes bulged out.bulge with: · Her purse bulged with keys, cigarettes, scraps of paper, and old receipts.
formal if part of a building, mountain, or other very large object projects somewhere, it sticks out in that direction: project into/over/from/through etc: · Two walkways projected over the gorge on both sides of the river.· The pier would be 1000 metres long and project about 400 metres into the sea.
to make part of your body stick out: stick something out · A woman stuck her head out of the window and told us to come upstairs.· He stuck his lower lip out and frowned.stick out something · He stuck out a hand. 'Hi, I'm Melvyn.'· I stuck out my thumb and caught a ride to Tay Ninh.stick your tongue out (at somebody) (=in order to be rude to someone) · Dan made a face and stuck his tongue out.
to stick part of your body out for a short time from something that it is inside or behind: poke something out: · A young doctor poked his head out, and called me into the examination room.poke out something: · He poked out his tongue and looked at it carefully in the mirror.
to stick a part of your body out of something, especially slowly or carefully: put something out: · He put his head out slowly and looked up the corridor.put out something: · He put out his hands and Officer Johnson clicked on the handcuffs.
COLLOCATIONS FROM THE ENTRY
Be careful with that umbrella or you’ll poke someone in the eye. One of the nurses poked her head around the door.COLLOCATIONS FROM OTHER ENTRIES What if the car you buy turns out to be a pig in a poke?COLLOCATIONS FROM THE CORPUSADVERB
Be careful with that umbrella or you’ll poke someone in the eye. One of the nurses poked her head around the door. What if the car you buy turns out to be a pig in a poke?· Now, they dragged one of the local lochs and they poked about in the river but they found nothing.· Somebody was in there, poking about.· Charlie told me it wasn't nothing for them to get through twenty nicker poking about in the shops.· Tam had complained earlier about how he was for ever sneaking up on them and poking about while they were building the fence.· Lee was poking about, knocking dusty packets of seeds off the shelf and moving flower pots.· He wouldn't take kindly to an outsider coming to interfere and poke about.· My husband likes to poke about in the woods.· A marabou stork was poking about nearby in a pile of rubbish, and I gave it a wide berth.
· Would you expect him to poke along in the slow lane?· Old fogey that I am, after that I stayed in the slow lane, poking along at 80 or 90.
· By its light, he poked around in the charred remains of the nestboxes.· Fakhru went to the wastebasket and poked around with his finger.· Why not let me poke around quietly?· In the harsh air she poked around in the flowerpots and bushes by the front door.· I shan't inspect the harness, I shan't poke around the stables.· After that he'd spent a lot of time with Jekub, poking around, finding out about it.· If the dahabeeyah had had an engine-room Owen could have imagined him poking around happily in it.· I poked around in the kitchen, checking out the fridge, the freezer and the cupboards.
· Numerous sponge bags hung on pegs, some with rubber ducks poking out!· By the time the white petals died and the mint-colored berry poked out, the leaf shine was gilded tight and waxy.· A slim frame but tight little muscles there poking out from under the rolled-up sleeves.· Belts were slung around both their hips, guns poking out of the holsters.· It poked out from the edge of the fallen slab.· Sort of round and with little things poking out.· One of my socks is poking out from where the two zips meet, like a floppy white hernia.· Many of them were the tops of volcanoes poking out of the ocean, and most were surrounded by deadly coral reefs.
· He is himself fresh snow, and the baby shoots poking through.· The top stick of dynamite is covered with earth, leaving the wire poking through.· The plastic dimpled, and a silvery point poked through.· Smoke rose out of the crooked chimneys that poked through their roofs, white wisps trailing north with the wind.· At the heads close-cropped to combat the lice and the holey jumpers with elbows poking through.
· The muzzle of a gun poked up - would they be caught in crossfire?· With wet clothes clinging to her back, she looked skeletal, her shoulder blades poking up like sharp crags.· I don't understand how you think, and I can't poke up with all this anger and jealousy.· He pulled at it with his hand and it poked up from his skull.· We pass some strangely shaped mountains that must have been volcanic plugs poking up through vast panoramas.· I looked up then and saw the head of a wasp poking up from the top of a candle on the altar.· There were ends of broken rattan poking up.
NOUN· It felt like somebody was trying to poke his eye out from the inside with a pencil.· Then one day doctors saw no corneal reflex when they poked her eye with a cotton tip.· I decided to poke his eye too if he shouted or smacked me.· He cut her throat, stabbed her in the stomach and tried to poke out her eyes with his fingers.· And then, when I was really unconscious, he poked my eyes out.· To make his intentions clear he will point energetically at your car and then poke himself in the eye.
· Suddenly inspired, she leaped at him and poked her fingers into his eyes.· Fakhru went to the wastebasket and poked around with his finger.· She poked a finger into the luggage beneath her eyes, stretching the skin, trying to make it look young again.· Getting feedback about your writing can be as pleasant as poking your finger into a food grinder.· Okay, he poked a finger at me in Czecho.· I poked my finger into his fist and felt him close his hand around it.· We stroked the silky Rue de Rivoli lining, poked our fingers into exit wounds.· I poke a finger into it; still cold.
· Others, abandoning the usual Republican reverence for big money, poked fun at his inherited millions.· A whole category of jokes has been created to poke fun at Microsoft and its operating system, Windows 95.· He spoke often of Eliot, trying from time to time to poke gentle fun at him.· My friends poke fun at me by calling me a bully.
· Some shuffle and bustle along, with stiff, tense movements, head poking forward.· A giant cat's head poked out.· I looked up then and saw the head of a wasp poking up from the top of a candle on the altar.· Don't allow your head to poke forward.
· Or maybe they resented a stranger poking his nose into their affairs?· He merely watched the obscure corners of the busy planet and poked his stubby nose into dusty crannies.· So he poked his nose through the letterbox.· I didn't really want her poking her nose in anyway.· Not like you to poke your big nose into areas that don't concern you.· Not her national monument I told her, and she shouldn't come poking her nose in where it wasn't wanted.· He poked his nose outside to see if he could tie off the cord.· Didn't he ever stop talking, poking his nose in?
· Ted said, poking Petey in the ribs.· Bobby poked him in the ribs.· Polly poked me in the ribs and I nodded at her and smiled.
PHRASES FROM THE ENTRY► poke the fire► poke a hole► poke holes in somethingPHRASES FROM OTHER ENTRIES► pig in a poke
1- Or maybe they resented a stranger poking his nose into their affairs?
- After that he'd spent a lot of time with Jekub, poking around, finding out about it.
- By its light, he poked around in the charred remains of the nestboxes.
- Charles sat on the windowsill as Ward poked around the room.
- Fakhru went to the wastebasket and poked around with his finger.
- Have to find out for himself, no other way, poke around, listen, ask, play it carefully.
- I used to poke around the Internet and see what was new online.
- In the harsh air she poked around in the flowerpots and bushes by the front door.
- Why not let me poke around quietly?
- A whole category of jokes has been created to poke fun at Microsoft and its operating system, Windows 95.
- Again and again these feminist lexicographers refuse and indeed poke fun at the authoritative pronouncements of mainstream lexicography.
- At the moment he cheerily condemns protesters or pokes fun at the Tories.
- He carries on conversations with the fans, jokes with refs, and pokes fun at his own players.
- I was even afraid lest any-one poke fun at me.
- In fact, one of his most endearing qualities was his ability to puncture his own pomposity and poke fun at himself.
- It's time you scrapped your overwritten early loves and learned to poke fun at the real thing.
- Newspapers started to defy the strict censorship imposed during the coup and to poke fun at Mr Serrano.
- No one wants the government sticking its nose into the personal business of citizens.
- Or maybe they resented a stranger poking his nose into their affairs?
with a finger/stick etc [intransitive, transitive] to quickly push your finger or some other pointed object into something or someonepoke somebody/something with something Andy poked the fish with his finger to see if it was still alive.poke somebody in the eye/arm/ribs etc Be careful with that umbrella or you’ll poke someone in the eye.poke at He was poking at the dust with a stick, making little patterns.► see thesaurus at push2through a space/hole [transitive always + adverb/preposition] to move or push something through a space or openingpoke something in/into/through something He poked a hand into one of his pockets. One of the nurses poked her head around the door.3be seen [intransitive always + adverb/preposition] if something is poking through or out of something else, you can see part of it but not all of itpoke out Ella looked at the tiny face poking out of the blanket.poke through Weeds had started poking through the cracks in the patio.4poke a hole to make a hole or hollow area in something by pushing something pointed into or through itpoke into/in/through Poke a hole in the dough, and then form it into a rounded shape.5poke holes in something to find mistakes or problems in a plan or in what someone has said: Defense attorneys tried to poke holes in Rodger’s story.6poke fun at somebody to make fun of someone in an unkind way: Some of the kids were poking fun at Judy because of the way she was dressed.7poke your nose into something informal to take an interest or get involved in someone else’s private affairs, in a way that annoys them: I’m sick of your mother poking her nose into our marriage.8poke the fire to move coal or wood in a fire with a stick to make it burn better9on the Internet [transitive] to show someone on a social networking site that you want to communicate with them10sex [transitive] spoken not polite to have sex with a womanpoke along phrasal verb American English informal to move very slowly: He kept the car in the slow lane, poking along at about 40 miles an hour.poke around (also poke about British English) phrasal verb informal1to look for something, especially by moving a lot of things aroundpoke around in James began poking about in the cupboard, looking for the sugar.2to try to find out information about other people’s private lives, business etc, in a way that annoys thempoke around in Stop poking around in my business!3poke around (something) to spend time in shops, markets etc looking at nothing in particular SYN browse: I spent Sunday afternoon poking around an old bookshop.poke into something phrasal verb informal to try to find out information about other people’s private lives, business etc, in a way that annoys thempoke1 verbpoke2 noun
pokepoke2 noun [countable] EXAMPLES FROM OTHER DICTIONARIES
- I gave dad a poke to wake him up.
COLLOCATIONS FROM THE ENTRY Bennett took a poke at the president’s refusal to sign the bill.COLLOCATIONS FROM OTHER ENTRIES What if the car you buy turns out to be a pig in a poke?COLLOCATIONS FROM THE CORPUSNOUN
Bennett took a poke at the president’s refusal to sign the bill. What if the car you buy turns out to be a pig in a poke?· In fact, one of his most endearing qualities was his ability to puncture his own pomposity and poke fun at himself.
PHRASES FROM THE ENTRYPHRASES FROM OTHER ENTRIES► pig in a poke
1give somebody/something a poke to quickly push your fingers, a stick etc into something or someone: - Vanessa gave me a poke in the ribs.
- No one wants the government sticking its nose into the personal business of citizens.
- Or maybe they resented a stranger poking his nose into their affairs?
Vanessa gave me a playful poke in the ribs.2American English informal a criticism of someone or something: Bennett took a poke at the president’s refusal to sign the bill.3the act of showing someone on a social networking site that you want to communicate with them