adjective
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informal (esp of rooms) small and cramped
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without speed or energy; slow
noun
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Etymology
Origin of poky
Explanation
Someone who moves very slowly is poky. When you try to take your poky dog on a jog, she'll stop to sniff every bush and blade of grass along the way. Wasting time, dawdling, or being annoying and boring are all ways to get called poky: "I need a new computer — my poky old laptop takes forever to do anything." In Britain this adjective is sometimes used in a completely opposite way, to mean "speedy" or "quick to accelerate": "Her car is much more poky than it looks!"
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
But by the poky standards of corporate restaurant culture, the response to the cheese-pull moment really did represent a miracle of nimble pivoting.
From Slate • Aug. 11, 2025
In a world of cautious Catalans and poky Petroffs, the King’s Gambit can guarantee an interesting outing.
From Washington Times • Jan. 17, 2023
Almost all runners, whether veterans or newcomers, poky or fleet, youthful or antique, share one bond.
From Washington Post • Oct. 19, 2022
Sometimes you cut your finger on a poky throne.
From Salon • Sep. 4, 2022
Her face had gone so white, the freckles stood out like tiny brown poky dots.
From "Cold Sassy Tree" by Olive Ann Burns
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
