punk

1 of 3

noun (1)

plural punks
1
: a usually petty gangster, hoodlum, or ruffian
2
a
b
: a punk rock musician
c
: one who affects punk styles
3
a
: a young inexperienced person : beginner, novice
especially : a young man
b
slang : a young man used as a sexual partner by another man especially in a prison
4
[probably partly from punk entry 3] : nonsense, foolishness
5
archaic : prostitute

punk

2 of 3

adjective

1
a
: of or relating to punk rock
b
: relating to or being a style (as of dress or hair) inspired by punk rock
2
: very poor : inferior
played a punk game
3
: being in poor health
said that she was feeling punk
punkish adjective

punk

3 of 3

noun (2)

1
: wood so decayed as to be dry, crumbly, and useful for tinder
2
: a preparation (as of a stick of coated wood) that burns slowly and is used to ignite fuses especially of fireworks

Examples of punk in a Sentence

Adjective she plays a punk game of tennis, so you won't have any trouble beating her the acting in the movie ranged all the way from poor to punk
Recent Examples on the Web
Adjective
There was no one like me in his classroom, not the oversexed women with their careful, edited looks, not the punk and post-punk kids. Hazlitt, 10 May 2023 In the late ’70s and early ’80s, Sire presciently signed or distributed music by a variety of top-flight punk and post-punk groups from the U.S. and abroad. Chris Morris, Variety, 2 Apr. 2023 Absolutely, particularly in 1976 and ’77 when all those English punk bands were genuinely punk. George Varga, San Diego Union-Tribune, 22 Aug. 2021 What began as a penchant for a slightly punk aesthetic soon became the perfect partner to her own brand of old-school glamour. Hannah Coates, Vogue, 12 Jan. 2023 Paramore have shifted their sound before, trying out post-punk and even synth-pop, and This Is Why showcases yet another major vibe change. Sydney Bucksbaum, EW.com, 11 Feb. 2023 For January 1 This is a post-punk and new wave song. Kris Holt, Forbes, 6 Jan. 2023 During a day that saw no less than Dolly Parton make her SXSW debut, the hottest ticket was arguably for Wet Leg, the Isle of Wight duo whose charmingly post-punk songs have made their upcoming album one of the most anticipated of the year. Christian Hoard, Rolling Stone, 19 Mar. 2022 Kincaid programmed much of the station’s regular playlist, a musical soup blending everything from blues, bluegrass, post-punk and other forms of rock to jazz, classical and big band selections. Mark Woolsey, ajc, 13 Jan. 2022
Noun
The musician — who found major success during the 1980s with his Irish Celtic punk band — was diagnosed with viral encephalitis in 2022, according to Sky News. Nicholas Rice, Peoplemag, 23 Nov. 2023 Mexican psychedelic punk band Bastidas!, psychedelic Latin exotica pop band Hidden Gems and DJ Santi help make dreams come true. Kamren Curiel, Los Angeles Times, 17 Nov. 2023 Thirty years later, Azerrad (also the author of the beloved indie/punk history Our Band Could Be Your Life) has a new version of his Nirvana book out. Brian Hiatt, Rolling Stone, 2 Nov. 2023 The world of Spider-Punk was influenced by ‘70s London punk, as the artists used razor blades to cut up newspapers, album covers and posters to give that world its edge. Jazz Tangcay, Variety, 10 Nov. 2023 To promote the new tour dates, Blink did one of the most online things any punk band can do: played a set at a Denny’s. Jon Blistein, Rolling Stone, 27 Oct. 2023 When all my friends were getting into their first rebellious punk music, that’s what Eminem was for me. Sam Sodomsky, Pitchfork, 31 Oct. 2023 The punk group reflected on the surprise club show — opened by the frontman’s 25-year-old son Jakob Armstrong’s group Ultra Q — on Instagram. Sadie Bell, Peoplemag, 21 Oct. 2023 And that night, as a punk band played, Teran, Lyman, and friends bobbed their heads to the music. Hilary Beaumont, Rolling Stone, 16 Oct. 2023 See More

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'punk.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Noun (1)

origin unknown

Noun (2)

perhaps alteration of spunk

First Known Use

Noun (1)

circa 1575, in the meaning defined at sense 5

Adjective

1896, in the meaning defined at sense 2

Noun (2)

1678, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of punk was circa 1575

Dictionary Entries Near punk

Cite this Entry

“Punk.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/punk. Accessed 30 Nov. 2023.

Kids Definition

punk

1 of 2 noun
1
: a petty gangster or hoodlum
2
a
b
: a punk rock musician
c
: a person who wears punk styles

punk

2 of 2 adjective
1
: very poor in quality
played a punk game
2
: being in poor health
feeling punk today
3
a
: of or relating to punk rock
b
: relating to or being a style (as of clothing or hair) first inspired by punk rock
Etymology

Noun

origin unknown

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