pucker

American  

[puhk-er] / ˈpʌk ər /

verb (used with or without object)

1. to draw or gather into wrinkles or irregular folds, as material or a part of the face; constrict.

   Worry puckered his brow.

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noun

1. a wrinkle; an irregular fold.

2. a puckered part, as of cloth tightly or crookedly sewn.

3. Archaic. a state of agitation or perturbation.

pucker British  

/ ˈpʌkə /

verb

1. to gather or contract (a soft surface such as the skin of the face) into wrinkles or folds, or (of such a surface) to be so gathered or contracted

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noun

1. a wrinkle, crease, or irregular fold

Other Word Forms

• puckerer noun
• unpuckered adjective

Etymology

Origin of pucker

1590–1600; apparently a frequentative form connected with poke ²; -er ⁶ and for the meaning purse

Example Sentences

These compounds, which look like rings at the molecular level, interact with proteins in your saliva to produce a dry, astringent sensation that makes your mouth pucker.

From Salon • Nov. 25, 2024

Mattel should have considered traditional pucker toe moccasins, instead of black shoes, and included symbols on the basket that Cherokees use to tell a story, she said.

From Washington Times • Dec. 4, 2023

In other words, this complex dance between art, anatomy, and archaeology can bring the past almost to life—one eyelash, pucker, and pore at a time.

From National Geographic • Oct. 23, 2023

Hutchinson agrees this makes sense, because radial fascicles can change the tip’s cross sectional profile, allowing it to pucker and poke, for example.

From Science Magazine • Sep. 26, 2023

We head next door to the Asian grocery store for a bag of shrimp chips to share—delicious, crispy, salty, French fry-looking crackers that make my mouth pucker.

From "The House That Lou Built" by Mae Respicio

Related Words

• crinkle