suck
Americanverb (used with object)
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sucks,
present (3rd person singular)
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sucked,
past participle, past
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sucking
present participle
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to draw into the mouth by producing a partial vacuum by action of the lips and tongue.
to suck lemonade through a straw.
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to draw (water, moisture, air, etc.) by or as if by suction.
Plants suck moisture from the earth. The pump sucked water from the basement.
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to apply the lips or mouth to and draw upon by producing a partial vacuum, especially for extracting fluid contents.
to suck an orange.
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to put into the mouth and draw upon.
to suck one's thumb.
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to take into the mouth and dissolve by the action of the tongue, saliva, etc..
to suck a piece of candy.
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to render or bring to a specified condition by or as if by sucking.
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Slang: Vulgar. to perform fellatio on (sometimes followed byoff ).
verb (used without object)
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sucks,
present (3rd person singular)
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sucked,
past participle, past
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sucking
present participle
-
to draw something in by producing a partial vacuum in the mouth, especially to draw milk from the breast.
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to draw or be drawn by or as if by suction.
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(of a pump) to draw air instead of water, as when the water is low or a valve is defective.
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Slang. to be repellent or unpleasant.
Poverty sucks.
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Slang. to be inferior, as in quality or execution; be poor.
Everyone says the show sucks. She sucks at tennis.
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Slang. to behave in a fawning manner (usually followed byaround ).
noun
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an act or instance of sucking.
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a sucking force.
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the sound produced by sucking.
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that which is sucked; nourishment drawn from the breast.
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a small drink; sip.
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a whirlpool.
verb phrase
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suck in to deceive; cheat; defraud.
The confidence man sucked us all in.
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suck up to be obsequious; toady.
The workers are all sucking up to him because he's the one who decides who'll get the bonuses.
idioms
verb
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to draw (a liquid or other substance) into the mouth by creating a partial vacuum in the mouth
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to draw in (fluid, etc) by or as if by a similar action
plants suck moisture from the soil
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to drink milk from (a mother's breast); suckle
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(tr) to extract fluid content from (a solid food)
to suck a lemon
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(tr) to take into the mouth and moisten, dissolve, or roll around with the tongue
to suck one's thumb
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(tr; often foll by down, in, etc) to draw by using irresistible force
the whirlpool sucked him down
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(intr) (of a pump) to draw in air because of a low supply level or leaking valves, pipes, etc
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(tr) to assimilate or acquire (knowledge, comfort, etc)
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slang (intr) to be contemptible or disgusting
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informal doing very well; successful
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informal to try something to find out what it is, what it is like, or how it works
noun
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the act or an instance of sucking
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something that is sucked, esp milk from the mother's breast
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to give (a baby or young animal) milk from the breast or udder
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an attracting or sucking force
the suck of the whirlpool was very strong
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a sound caused by sucking
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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sucksimple
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suckssimple
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have suckedperfect
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has suckedperfect
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am suckingprogressive
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are suckingprogressive
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is suckingprogressive
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have been suckingperfect progressive
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has been suckingperfect progressive
Past
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suckedsimple
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had suckedperfect
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was suckingprogressive
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were suckingprogressive
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had been suckingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of suck
First recorded before 900; (verb) Middle English souken, Old English sūcan, cognate with Latin sūgere; (noun) Middle English souke “act of suckling,” derivative of the noun; akin to soak
Explanation
To suck is to draw something by force. Vacuum cleaners suck dirt from the floor and milkshake drinkers suck this liquid, tasty liquid through a straw. Drinking something by pulling it into your mouth is to suck it. You can also suck on something, like a peppermint or a thumb, by holding it in your mouth. Objects can suck too — a fan sucks warm air out the window. You can also suck someone into your plans, meaning you force them to participate. The word suck comes from the Proto-Indo-European sug, from the sound your mouth makes when you suck on something.
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.
See Examples For:
The state also helped local agencies bring in diesel-powered pumps and other equipment to suck water out of rivers and into canals.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 26, 2026
He also cautioned against the technology concentrating wealth, saying OpenAI did not want to be the only company in the field or to "suck up all the value."
From Barron's ● Sep. 2, 2026
Should I just suck it up, pay the $80 and go?
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 31, 2026
That can be tricky, too, since women have likewise been socialized to expect men to suck it up.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 30, 2026
Garrett just groans and tells me I suck at driving.
From "Dry" by Neal Shusterman and Jarrod Shusterman
Plus, his music sucks, and most people would find it impossible that useful public discourse would ever emerge from an Ed Sheeran concert.
From Slate ● Sep. 16, 2026
“One of the biggest reasons why people think renting sucks is because they’re not being strategic about it,” she said.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 2, 2026
“It does suck. But, it sucks a lot less than other options,” the caption from Compliant Technologies reads.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 13, 2026
“People have basically become resigned to the fact that healthcare sucks, it’s going to get more expensive, access will get worse.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 19, 2026
She sucks a sharp breath over her teeth.
From "Red Flags and Butterflies" by Sheryl Azzam
Everyone has sucked it up to go to the wedding of a couple they disapprove of, or a family dinner that will inevitably turn into an argument.
From Salon ● Sep. 9, 2026
I’m preparing myself now for the hours of sleep I’ll lose getting sucked into the TikTok discourse about it.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 1, 2026
The offer of credit, with few conditions attached, has also sucked in workers from the gig economy, with the platforms for which they work sometimes acting as their lenders.
From Barron's ● Aug. 18, 2026
Broken engine fragments smashed a cabin window of a Ryanair plane last month causing a man's head and right shoulder to be sucked into the hole, US investigators have said.
From BBC ● Aug. 13, 2026
I was so hungry I sucked on bits of straw, and then I was dying of thirst.
From "Rump: The (Fairly) True Story of Rumpelstilskin" by Liesl Shurtliff
The researchers identified this pattern as a new bioarchaeological marker linked to a previously unrecognized behavior: repeatedly sucking whole betel nuts.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 10, 2026
Both of the hunter-gatherers showed an unusual dental wear pattern with deep, rounded tooth grooves, which the researchers found was caused by sucking whole betel nuts.
From BBC ● Sep. 10, 2026
The war has also continued to spread, sucking in and reigniting Yemen's smouldering civil war.
From Barron's ● Aug. 20, 2026
To be sure, AI might be sucking up so many resources that it is actually crowding out other parts of the economy.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 4, 2026
When I open the door, she’s standing there doing the potty dance, sucking on her fingers.
From "Isaiah Dunn Is My Hero" by Kelly J. Baptist
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.
