pokey
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Related to pokey: Hokey pokey
in the pokey
old-fashioned slang In prison or jail. The officer decided to put the drunken college student in the pokey for the night to sober up. A new sheriff arrived in town, and before long he had nearly all the local criminals thrown in the pokey.
See also: pokey
pokey hat
An ice cream cone. Primarily heard in Scotland. It's a nice day out—let's take the kids for pokey hats, huh?
poky
1. Small, cramped, or confined. Said of living or working accommodations. They gave me a poky office down in the basement of the building. Rent is so high in this city that we can only afford a poky one-bedroom apartment.
2. Slow, sluggish, or inefficient; tarrying or dawdling. The food was delicious, but the poky staff really put me off going there again to eat. My dad is still using the same poky old computer he bought in 1998. The thing can barely even boot up anymore!
3. Dull, plain, or unfashionable. I've only got these poky old dresses to wear to her wedding. He's been wearing the same poky blazer to work every day for the past 20 years.
the pokey
old-fashioned slang Prison or jail, or a cell within one. The officer decided to put the drunken college student in the pokey for the night to sober up. A new sheriff arrived into town, and before long the pokey was overrun with criminals.
See also: pokey
Farlex Dictionary of Idioms. © 2022 Farlex, Inc, all rights reserved.
poky
and pokey1. n. jail; a jail cell. (Usually with the.) She spent a day in the poky.
2. mod. slow; lagging and inefficient. Hurry up! Don’t be so poky.
pokey
verbSee poky
McGraw-Hill's Dictionary of American Slang and Colloquial Expressions Copyright © 2006 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.