What does puke mean?
Puke is an informal verb meaning to vomit, usually with some force or repetition. It is especially common in everyday North American English and is generally more direct and less formal than words such as vomit or regurgitate. The noun puke can refer to an act of vomiting or to the material expelled from the stomach. People use the expression to puke when describing nausea, illness, food poisoning, or the sudden need to empty the stomach. Although puke can sound harsh or childish, it is also straightforward and familiar, and its brevity makes it useful in conversation. In careful or formal writing, vomit is usually the more appropriate choice, while describe someone as nauseated or feeling sick to vomit may sound less blunt.
To vomit, especially forcefully or repeatedly.
"He woke up feeling sick and began to puke."
Informal; common in everyday conversation.
An act of vomiting, or the material expelled from the stomach.
"There was a small puke beside the bed."
Informal and somewhat blunt; the plural pukes is possible but uncommon.
The plural is possible but uncommon; puke is normally used in the singular or with an indefinite article.
"The floor was covered in pukes."
Puke is a blunt, immediate word for vomiting, and it has a distinctly informal, conversational tone.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Where does puke come from?
The origin of puke is not securely established. It is an English word whose history is poorly documented, and etymologists generally avoid assigning it a confident source or precise first-attested date. The related verb form puked and the gerund puking follow the ordinary English pattern of adding -ed and -ing.
Related word forms
How puke is actually used
This is informal and often somewhat blunt. It is common in everyday speech, including North American English, but is less suitable in formal writing. As a noun, it can refer both to the act of vomiting and to what has been vomited.
Easily confused with puke
Puke means to vomit; puke can also refer to the material expelled from the stomach.