POKEY Synonyms: 51 Similar and Opposite Words

pokey

noun

ˈpō-kē

Definition of pokey

slang

as in jail

a place of confinement for persons held in lawful custody joked about the time he passed out on the street and woke up in the pokey

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

outside

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Recent Examples of pokey Both systems made the GeForce RTX 40 GPUs in the Dell and MSI systems look a little pokey by comparison (though those systems are definitely no slouches, in a bigger-picture sense). — PC Magazine, 12 May 2025 Put the reader on (watch out for the surprisingly pokey earpieces at the ends of the arms), and those displays merge into a single 271 ppi E Ink display. — Anthony Karcz, Forbes.com, 7 May 2025 There are reasons people are afraid of the dentist; all of those pokey instruments going into soft, sensitive places. — Erin Qualey, Vulture, 14 Feb. 2025 Thirty-three years since its founder began cutting up fabrics in a pokey South London flat, the house of McQueen’s headquarters now inhabit a six-story, 30,000-square-foot building in London’s Clerkenwell. — Hayley Maitland, Vogue, 16 Dec. 2024 See All Example Sentences for pokey

Recent Examples of Synonyms for pokey

Noun

Matus’ death took place at the height of the fentanyl epidemic in 2022, when Riverside County jails experienced close to 100 inmate drug overdoses, seven of which resulted in death, according to court documents.

— Clara Harter, Los Angeles Times, 27 Aug. 2026
In 2025, a Kentucky man was killed after he was hit 27 times with a GLOVE by jail employees, on top of 13 jabs from a taser, which ultimately sent him into cardiac arrest.

— Joe Wilkins, Futurism, 27 Aug. 2026

Definition of jail

Noun

Adan Osman Salat, 23, was sentenced to two years fixed and a possible 15 years on probation or in prison by 3rd District Judge Gabriel McCarthy, according to online court records and audio obtained by the Idaho Statesman.

— Rachel Roberts, Idaho Statesman, 27 Aug. 2026
When the brothers arrived in court two days later, the jewel tones were ditched, and each wore a drab tan prison jumpsuit.

— Jonny Hallam, CNN Money, 27 Aug. 2026

Definition of prison

Browse Nearby Words

pokes fun at

pokey

pokeys

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Style

“Pokey.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/pokey. Accessed 2 Sep. 2026.

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Synonyms of pokey

noun

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