puke
Meaning
-
- (colloquial) vomit.
- (colloquial) A drug that induces vomiting.
- (colloquial) A worthless, despicable person.
- (slang) A person from Missouri.
Synonyms
spue
vomit up
dirty dog
scum bag
spew out
toss one’s cookies
flat solid
Frequency
Pronounced as (IPA)
/pjuːk/
Etymology
Probably imitative; or, alternatively from Proto-Germanic *pukaną (“to spit, puff”), from Proto-Indo-European *bew- (“to blow, swell”). If so, then cognate with German pfauchen, fauchen (“to hiss, spit”). Compare also Dutch spugen (“to spit, spit up”), German spucken (“to spit, puke, throw up”), Old English spīwan (“to vomit, spit”). More at spew. Attested as early as 1581, first mention is the derivative pukishness (“the tendency to be sick frequently”). In 1600, "to spit up, regurgitate", recorded in the Seven Ages of Man speech in Shakespeare's As You Like It.
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Notes