popper

[ pop-er ]
See synonyms for popper on Thesaurus.com
noun
  1. a person or thing that pops.

  2. a utensil, as a covered pan, used for popping corn.

  1. Angling. chugger.

  2. a vial of amyl or butyl nitrite abused as a vasodilator for the effect of exhilaration.

Origin of popper

1
1740–50; pop1 + -er1; compare Middle English poppere a small dagger

Other definitions for Popper (2 of 2)

Popper
[ pop-er ]

noun
  1. Sir Karl (Rai·mund) [rey-muhnd], /ˈreɪ mənd/, 1902–1994, British philosopher, born in Austria.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use popper in a sentence

  • On top of this came the announcement of Myrtle Poppers engagement to Mr. Pomello, which sent the floor into a fever of excitement.

    The Woman Gives | Owen Johnson
  • In Costecalde's shop, his opinions gained no credence, for the cap-poppers renounced their chief!

    Tartarin of Tarascon | Alphonse Daudet
  • A general glance bestowed upon the good town of Tarascon, and a particular one on "the cap-poppers."

    Tartarin of Tarascon | Alphonse Daudet
  • "I can buy corn for you for seed, and I can order poppers enough to supply the city," suggested the Pop-corn man.

    The Pot of Gold | Mary E. Wilkins
  • People shook the poppers until their arms were tired, then gave them to others, and sat down to eat.

    The Pot of Gold | Mary E. Wilkins

British Dictionary definitions for popper (1 of 2)

popper

/ (ˈpɒpə) /


noun
  1. a person or thing that pops

  2. British an informal name for press stud

  1. mainly US and Canadian a container for cooking popcorn in

  2. slang an amyl nitrite capsule, which is crushed and its contents inhaled by drug users as a stimulant

British Dictionary definitions for Popper (2 of 2)

Popper

/ (ˈpɒpə) /


noun
  1. Sir Karl. 1902–94, British philosopher, born in Vienna. In The Logic of Scientific Discovery (1934), he proposes that knowledge cannot be absolutely confirmed, but rather that science progresses by the experimental refutation of the current theory and its consequent replacement by a new theory, equally provisional but covering more of the known data. The Open Society and its Enemies (1945) is a critique of dogmatic political philosophies, such as Marxism. Other works are The Poverty of Historicism (1957), Conjectures and Refutations (1963), and Objective Knowledge (1972)

Derived forms of Popper

  • Popperian (pɒˈpɪərɪən), noun, adjective

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012