What does poxing mean?
Poxing is a rare noun meaning sexual intercourse, especially when used in deliberately coarse or vulgar language. It can also refer, in older informal British slang, to the act of stealing. The word is principally encountered in historical slang, literary works, comedy, and dictionaries rather than ordinary contemporary conversation. Its strong register restrictions make it unsuitable for formal or sensitive contexts, and a less explicit term is normally preferable unless the shock value or period character of the expression is intentional. Poxing also functions as a present-participle form of the verb pox, which accounts for its grammatical and semantic relationship with that older verb. Although its forms can sound familiar because of modern words such as poking and poisoning, poxing has a comparatively narrow and often archaic range of meanings.
nounSexual intercourse, especially in coarse or vulgar usage. In older slang, it could also mean the act of stealing.
- Sexual intercourse, especially in vulgar or coarse usage.
- The act of stealing, formerly used in informal British criminal slang.
"The satire refers to poxing in deliberately vulgar language."
"The comedian's routine relies on poxing as a deliberately crude term."
"The slang dictionary records poxing as an old expression for stealing."
Rare; the plural is chiefly found in dictionary and historical-language references.
"Several poxings are described in the memoir."
A blunt old word survives mainly in phrases intended to shock.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Where does poxing come from?
The word continues Middle English pox, originally recorded in the plural form pokes and inherited from Old English pocc, denoting a pock or pustule. Pock is commonly traced to a Proto-Germanic root also associated with pocket. The later extension of pox into coarse sexual vocabulary developed within the broader, often playful slang of the word.
Related word forms
How poxing is actually used
This is an uncommon, vulgar word. Its sexual sense may be deliberately coarse or comic, while its sense for theft belongs chiefly to older informal British usage.
Easily confused with poxing
Poking means prodding or jabbing, whereas poxing is a rare, coarse term for sexual intercourse or, historically, stealing.