pockmark

American  

[pok-mahrk] / ˈpɒkˌmɑrk /

noun

1. Usually pockmarks. scars or pits left by a pustule in smallpox or the like.

2. a small pit or scar.

   a tabletop full of pockmarks.

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verb (used with object)

1. to mark or scar with or as with pockmarks.

   gopher holes pockmarking the field.

pockmark British  

/ ˈpɒkˌmɑːk /

noun

1. Also called: pock.  a pitted scar left on the skin after the healing of a smallpox or similar pustule

2. any pitting of a surface that resembles or suggests such scars

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verb

1. (tr) to scar or pit (a surface) with pockmarks

Other Word Forms

• pockmarked
  adjective

Etymology

Origin of pockmark

First recorded in 1665–75; pock + mark ¹

Explanation

A pockmark is a small, concave scar on a person's skin. Pockmarks can be caused by severe acne. People who have a lot of pimples as teenagers sometimes end up with pockmarks on their faces as adults. Any serious skin condition — including chickenpox or insect bites — can result in a pockmark. You can also use this word as a verb, either to mean "mark with scars," or to describe something that reminds you of pockmarked skin: "The rain pockmarks the smooth sand on the beach."

Example Sentences

The tortoises pockmark the desert floor with burrows that other animals use for shelter, and disperse the seeds of native plants in their waste.

From Los Angeles Times • Dec. 21, 2024

It appears these flows erode the pockmark centers, leaving behind sandy deposits across multiple pockmarks in the region at the same time.

From Science Daily • May 21, 2024

They pockmark downtowns with stretches of asphalt that separate businesses and spread out cities, leading to more driving, and more parking, even in areas with mass transit.

From New York Times • Mar. 7, 2023

So many uranium mines, mills and waste piles pockmark the Navajo Nation that the Environmental Protection Agency created a comic book superhero, Gamma Goat, to warn Diné children away from the sites.

From Salon • Dec. 6, 2022

I investigated a nearby pockmark and saw, in the ring of impact, the fat coil of a caterpillar.

From "Endangered" by Eliot Schrefer