pore

¹ American  

[pawr, pohr] / pɔr, poʊr /

verb (used without object)

• pores,
  present (3rd person singular)
• pored,
  past participle,  past
• poring
  present participle

1. to read or study with steady attention or application.

   a scholar poring over a rare old manuscript.

2. to gaze earnestly or steadily.

   to pore over a painting.

3. to meditate or ponder intently (usually followed by over, on, orupon ).

   He pored over the strange events of the preceding evening.

   Synonyms:

   examine, peruse, scrutinize, ponder

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pore ² American  

[pawr, pohr] / pɔr, poʊr /

noun

• pores
  plural

1. a minute opening or orifice, as in the skin or a leaf, for perspiration, absorption, etc.

2. a minute interstice, as in a rock.

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pore ¹ British  

/ pɔː /

noun

1. anatomy zoology any small opening in the skin or outer surface of an animal

2. botany any small aperture, esp that of a stoma through which water vapour and gases pass

3. any other small hole, such as a space in a rock, soil, etc

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pore ² British  

/ pɔː /

verb

1. (foll by over) to make a close intent examination or study (of a book, map, etc)

   he pored over the documents for several hours

2. to think deeply (about)

   he pored on the question of their future

3. rare to look earnestly or intently (at); gaze fixedly (upon)

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pore Scientific  

/ pôr /

1. A tiny opening, as one in an animal's skin or on the surface of a plant leaf or stem, through which liquids or gases may pass.

2. A space in soil, rock, or loose sediment that is not occupied by mineral matter and allows the passage or absorption of fluids, such as water, petroleum, or air.

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• porelike
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• pores
  plural

Participles

• poring
  present
• pored
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• pore
  simple
• pores
  simple
• have pored
  perfect
• has pored
  perfect
• am poring
  progressive
• are poring
  progressive
• is poring
  progressive
• have been poring
  perfect progressive
• has been poring
  perfect progressive

Past

• pored
  simple
• had pored
  perfect
• was poring
  progressive
• were poring
  progressive
• had been poring
  perfect progressive

Future

• will pore
  simple
• will have pored
  perfect
• will be poring
  progressive
• will have been poring
  perfect progressive

Etymology

Origin of pore¹

1250–1300; Middle English pouren < ?

Origin of pore²

1350–1400; Middle English poore < Late Latin porus < Greek póros passage; see emporium, ford

Explanation

That trickle of sweat didn't just miraculously appear — it was secreted out of a pore, a really tiny opening on the surface of your skin. When used as a noun, pore means any tiny hole or opening that allows the passage of liquid. In humans, pores are the little holes that bring us such pleasures as armpit sweat and, when clogged, pimples. But when used as a verb, to pore means to concentrate your attention on or devote hours of focus to something: like poring over the overwhelming choices in the antiperspirant aisle.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

pore pores pored poring

The material consists of porous, hollow carbon spheres containing orderly radial nanochannels, along with substantial pore space and surface area.

From Science Daily ● Aug. 8, 2026

South East England relies more heavily on groundwater - where rainfall is stored beneath the surface in pore spaces and fractures in the rock.

From BBC ● Jul. 30, 2026

To get a full picture of Aidan’s health history, a clinician had to pore through paper records, relying on memory to weave disparate facts together.

From MarketWatch ● Jun. 27, 2026

With no earnings to pore over, investors will be focused on the economic data—and what they have seen recently looks troublesome.

From Barron's ● May 29, 2026

We et things that wood make you sick to think about and the pore horses and mules was as despert hongry as we was.

From "Across Five Aprils" by Irene Hunt

"Our findings show that hydrogen production depends not only on the amount of magnetite present, but also on how easily water can access fresh mineral surfaces through fractures, pores and permeable pathways."

From Science Daily ● Aug. 29, 2026

That means fractures, pores, and other pathways through the rock could play a critical role in determining whether natural hydrogen can be generated efficiently enough to become a practical energy resource.

From Science Daily ● Aug. 29, 2026

Its combination of larger pores, carefully organized pore sizes, and high surface area helped the catalyst overcome the usual tradeoff between activity and stability.

From Science Daily ● Aug. 8, 2026

That creates a prolonged suction effect, allowing oil to move into the newly opened pores.

From Science Daily ● Jul. 29, 2026

Her tone couldn’t have held more wonder and censure if Zooey’s pores had been exuding crude oil.

From "Franny and Zooey" by J. D. Salinger

To decide what to fund, staffers with deep expertise typically pored over reams of information on abuses under the most repressive regimes and held an open competition to fund groups to work in those countries.

From Salon ● Jul. 21, 2026

Market reaction: Stocks were mixed in premarket trading after investors pored over the CPI report with one eye while keep the other eye on Warsh’s congressional testimony with the other.

From MarketWatch ● Jul. 14, 2026

Investors are also gearing up for the latest earnings season, which will be pored over for an idea about the outlook for the AI industry.

From Barron's ● Jul. 13, 2026

We pored over every frame of the Spurs’ first-round series win over the Portland Trail Blazers to see just how many times Wembanyama had ruined his opponents’ plans.

From The Wall Street Journal ● May 2, 2026

Under flickering light, the two men pored through centuries-old ledgers, the pages beautifully preserved by the dry desert air.

From "1491" by Charles C. Mann

After weeks of poring over listings for a place for him and three roommates, Mallot finally found a four-bedroom in the historic and affluent Nob Hill district.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 10, 2026

Investors are poring over the details, looking for tidbits that can give them an edge in valuing Elon Musk’s rocket company.

From Barron's ● May 20, 2026

And while it’s not impossible that you actually have discovered something the rest of the market hasn’t seen, in fact there are millions of investors poring over the same data that you have.

From MarketWatch ● May 15, 2026

Darren England, the VAR for the Arsenal game, spent two minutes 41 seconds poring over every angle of the footage, checking the possible foul, and potential penalties.

From BBC ● May 14, 2026

While poring over old brochures, she noticed that sometimes it looked like an art museum, other times a grand hotel, occasionally a camp, and most often, a boarding school.

From "The Marvellers" by Dhonielle Clayton