tuck
/tʌk
/verb
1 [with object and usually with adverbial of place] Push, fold, or turn (the edges or ends of something, especially a garment or bedclothes) so as to hide or secure them: he tucked his shirt into his trousers...
- She pulled the blankets tighter over her head, tucking the ends underneath herself to form a cocoon, to block out the noise.
- Place the fish on top, tucking any tail ends under to make neat parcels.
- Holding the pasta curved side up, tuck the edges under and pinch to secure.
Synonyms
push, ease, insert, slip;
thrust, stuff, stick, cram
informal pop
1.1 (tuck someone in/up) Make someone, especially a child, comfortable in bed by pulling the edges of the bedclothes firmly under the mattress: Emily was only too willing to be tucked up in bed by nine...
- Without my knowing, Terrence pulled back the silky covers of his bed and tucked me in, placing his soft lips on my forehead before leaving the room, closing the door with a soft click.
- In her home I ate my first real Aussie meal, and during a sleep-over I experienced her mother's kindness when she came into my room at night and with gentle hands straightened the coverlet on my bed and tucked me in.
- Then, I lied her in her clean bed and tucked her in.
Synonyms
make snug, make comfortable, settle in, cover up;
put to bed
1.2Draw (something, especially part of one’s body) together into a small space: she tucked her legs under her...
- His wings rustled and spread out, then tucked themselves back in.
- Some traffic passed on the other side of the road, Mac tucked himself in against the car and ignored it.
- His hands tucked themselves into his large pockets, almost as if of their own accord.
1.3Put or keep (something) in a specified place so as to be hidden, secure, comfortable, or tidy: the Colonel walked towards her, his gun tucked under his arm savers are turning to unit trusts as the best place to tuck away their money...
- Sometime while I was singing she had managed to wrap an arm around me and tucked her head under my chin.
- A signed recall proposal kept tucked in a drawer is a constant threat to the government.
- She carries a small wooden truncheon tucked up her sleeve in case her customers turn violent.
Synonyms
hide, conceal, secrete;
store, stow
informal stash
2 [with object] Make a flattened, stitched fold in (a garment or material), typically so as to shorten or tighten it, or for decoration: the suit was pinned and tucked all over
Synonyms
pleat, gather, fold, ruffle
noun
1A flattened, stitched fold in a garment or material, typically one of several parallel folds put in to improve the fit or for decoration: a dress with tucks along the bodice...
- There were tucks and folds and frills and bows and lace and rhinestones and embroidery and ribbons all over it.
- The idea is to complement a window's architectural style with innovative folds, fanciful tucks, or simple pleats set one behind the other.
- Mild Red stayed true to its trademark of uneven necklines and hemlines, idiosyncratic tucks and darting and the mixed media of wools and wovens
Synonyms
pleat, gather, fold, ruffle
1.1 [usually with modifier] informal A surgical operation to reduce surplus flesh or fat: a tummy tuck...
- USA Today reports that more and more men are trying to turn back the clock with cosmetic nips and tucks.
- Could sagging breasts be fixed, not with a nip or a tuck, but with an injection of Botox?
- That may be so, but why should someone suffer from society's slights if she can overcome them with a nip here and a tuck there?
2 [mass noun] British informal, dated Food eaten by children at school as a snack: our parents provided us with a bit of money to buy tuck with [as modifier]: they send me a tuck box every month...
- The Nutrition in Schools Bill, expected to be published within weeks, will give ministers powers to ban unhealthy foods from school tuck shops and canteens.
- The projects being piloted in 500 schools across the country include a crackdown on unhealthy foods in school tuck shops and vending machines.
- During the week there was a poster contest, a healthy food cook-off, and deliciously healthy snacks in the school tuck shop.
Synonyms
food
informal eats, grub, nosh, chow, feed
British informal scoff
North American informal chuck
archaic vittles, victuals, viands
3 (also tuck position) (In diving, gymnastics, downhill skiing, etc.) a position with the knees bent and held close to the chest, often with the hands clasped round the shins: Lenzi nailed a reverse 3-1/2 somersault tuck on his final dive...
- If the hill isn't fast enough for you, you can even use a tuck position like a downhill ski racer!
- Let's remember, for example, how much talk there was during the early 1970s when Olga Korbut performed the backward somersault in tuck position on the beam.
- The quadriceps - the muscles on the fronts of the thighs - are strengthened both from the sustained isometric contraction while gliding in a tuck position and from the repeated contractions and extensions of stroking.
Phrasal verbs
tuck something away
tuck in (or into)
Origin
Old English tūcian 'to punish, ill-treat': of West Germanic origin; related to tug. Influenced in Middle English by Middle Dutch tucken 'pull sharply'.