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Synonyms

puke

American  
[pyook] / pyuk /

verb (used with or without object)

puked, puking

  1. to vomit.

noun

  1. vomit.

    1. any food or drink that is repulsive.

    2. anything or anyone that is contemptible or worthless.

puke British  
/ pjuːk /

verb

  1. to vomit

"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

noun

  1. the act of vomiting

  2. the matter vomited

"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

Usage

What does puke mean? Puke is one of the many informal ways to refer to vomit.

Etymology

Origin of puke

First recorded in 1590–1600; perhaps imitative of the sound

Vocabulary lists containing puke

Excerpt from "Brothers"

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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.

It’s going to be a long, hot summer for getting COVID, the measles, and milk-borne puke diseases!

From Slate • Apr. 26, 2025

I was telling my caddie Austin that I felt pretty calm coming down the stretch and he said he was about to puke on the 18th tee!

From BBC • Jul. 21, 2024

“Just remember if everything hurts and you want to puke, you’re doing it right,” an instructor helpfully tells him.

From Seattle Times • Apr. 17, 2024

The scene is bookended by puke and social/professional humiliation, as the extremely Americanized Audrey struggles to keep down Thousand Year Egg shots, nevermind her guilt about being unable to adequately assimilate into Chinese culture.

From Salon • Jul. 5, 2023

"Go slow or you'll puke," Alys told her.

From "Son" by Lois Lowry

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.