perk

¹ American  

[purk] / pɜrk /

verb (used without object)

1. to become lively, cheerful, or vigorous, as after depression or sickness (usually followed byup ).

   The patients all perked up when we played the piano for them.

2. to act, or carry oneself, in a jaunty manner.

3. to put oneself forward briskly or presumptuously.

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verb (used with object)

1. to make smart, trim, or jaunty (sometimes followed by up orout ).

   to perk up a suit with a new white blouse.

2. to raise smartly or briskly (often followed by up orout ).

   to perk one's head up.

adjective

1. perky; jaunty.

   a perk manner.

perk ² American  

[purk] / pɜrk /

verb (used with or without object)

Informal.

1. to percolate.

   Has the coffee perked yet? The research team is perking with new ideas.

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perk ³ American  

[purk] / pɜrk /

Also perc

noun

Informal.

• perks
  plural

1. perquisite.

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perk ¹ British  

/ pɜːk /

adjective

1. pert; brisk; lively

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verb

1. See perk up

perk ² British  

/ pɜːk /

verb

1. (intr) (of coffee) to percolate

2. (tr) to percolate (coffee)

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perk ³ British  

/ pɜːk /

noun

1. informal short for perquisite

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• perkish
  adjective
• perkingly
  adverb

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• perks
  plural

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Etymology

Origin of perk¹

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English perken “(of a bird) to perch on a tree”; akin to perch ¹

Origin of perk²

An Americanism dating back to 1920–25; by shortening and respelling

Origin of perk³

First recorded in 1865–70; by shortening and respelling

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Explanation

A perk is something extra you get, in addition to a salary, in exchange for working. The major perk of your job at an ice cream shop might be all the hot fudge sundaes you can eat. Some fairly common job perks include health insurance, free gym memberships, and company cars. You can also talk about the perks, or benefits, of a situation: "I have to ride to school with my annoying neighbor, but the perk is she always brings donuts." As a verb, perk means "to become more energetic or cheerful." So that donut perk? It might be just the thing to perk you up on a Monday morning.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

perk perks

There are insurance products that offer inflation protection, such as annuities, but retirees have to pay for the perk, she said.

From MarketWatch ● Oct. 26, 2026

One of Beijing’s main efforts to perk up spending in the past couple of years has been a program offering subsidies for consumers to replace old household appliances and other products with new ones.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 19, 2026

But you should only consider that a genuine perk if you meet that requirement through your normal spending.

From MarketWatch ● Sep. 29, 2026

And speaking of Dodger Stadium, the No. 2 playoff seed carries another important perk: the home-field advantage for the Division Series — and possibly the World Series, if the Dodgers make it that far.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 25, 2026

You could see Mrs. Wheeler really perk up her ears at that, so Trotter meowed again.

From "Doing Time Online" by Jan Siebold

Is home-working under threat from the perks of office life?

From BBC ● Oct. 28, 2026

For a devoted class of credit-card holders, tracking sign-on bonuses and perks has become a full-time obsession.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 25, 2026

He said he hasn’t been influenced by perks, which have included wine tastings and steak dinners, to add investment products.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 22, 2026

Instead of surrendering to sticker shock, people are finding ways to gamify their daily expenses, hunt down hidden perks and even double down on their goals for the future.

From MarketWatch ● Oct. 20, 2026

Why shouldn’t I get to enjoy the perks that came with that?

From "Here to Stay" by Sara Farizan

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Related Words

• advantage
• bonus
• dividend
• extra
• fringe benefit
• gratuity
• perquisite

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