pokey

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po·key 1

also po·ky  (pō′kē)
n. pl. po·keys also po·kies Slang
A jail or prison.

[Origin unknown.]

poke·y 2

 (pō′kē)
adj. Informal
Variant of poky1.
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
ThesaurusAntonymsRelated WordsSynonymsLegend:
Noun1.pokey - a correctional institution used to detain persons who are in the lawful custody of the government (either accused persons awaiting trial or convicted persons serving a sentence)pokey - a correctional institution used to detain persons who are in the lawful custody of the government (either accused persons awaiting trial or convicted persons serving a sentence)
bastille - a jail or prison (especially one that is run in a tyrannical manner)
correctional institution - a penal institution maintained by the government
holding cell - a jail in a courthouse where accused persons can be confined during a trial
hoosegow, hoosgow - slang for a jail
house of correction - (formerly) a jail or other place of detention for persons convicted of minor offences
lockup - jail in a local police station
workhouse - a county jail that holds prisoners for periods up to 18 months
Adj.1.pokey - wasting time
slow - not moving quickly; taking a comparatively long time; "a slow walker"; "the slow lane of traffic"; "her steps were slow"; "he was slow in reacting to the news"; "slow but steady growth"
2.pokey - small and remote and insignificant; "a jerkwater college"; "passed a series of poky little one-horse towns"
provincial - characteristic of the provinces or their people; "deeply provincial and conformist"; "in that well-educated company I felt uncomfortably provincial"; "narrow provincial attitudes"
Based on WordNet 3.0, Farlex clipart collection. © 2003-2012 Princeton University, Farlex Inc.

pokey 1

also poky
noun
Slang. A place for the confinement of persons in lawful detention:
Informal: lockup, pen.
Chiefly Regional: calaboose.
The American Heritage® Roget's Thesaurus. Copyright © 2013, 2014 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
Translations
òröngur

poke

(pəuk) verb
1. to push something into; to prod. He poked a stick into the hole; He poked her in the ribs with his elbow.
2. to make (a hole) by doing this. She poked a hole in the sand with her finger.
3. to (cause to) protrude or project. She poked her head in at the window; His foot was poking out of the blankets.
noun
an act of poking; a prod or nudge. He gave me a poke in the arm.
ˈpoker noun
a (usually metal) rod for stirring up a fire.
ˈpoky, pokey adjective
(of a room etc) small, with not enough space.
poke about/around
to look or search for something among other things.
poke fun at
to laugh at unkindly. The children often poked fun at him because of his stammer.
poke one's nose into
to interfere with other people's business. He is always poking his nose into my affairs.
Kernerman English Multilingual Dictionary © 2006-2013 K Dictionaries Ltd.
References in classic literature ?
"Mamma, don't you think Pokey would like some of my shells?
Pokey unknowns, amazed to find how intimately they know Veneering, pluck up spirit, fold their arms, and begin to contradict him before breakfast.
He had been made to accept Saunders McNitre, Luke Waters, Giles Jowls, Podgers' Pills, Rodgers' Pills, Pokey's Elixir, every one of her Ladyship's remedies spiritual or temporal.