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
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of pokey
The Embraceable Bra provides the support of underwire cups without an uncomfortably firm or pokey feeling.
—
Theresa Holland, Travel + Leisure, 15 Dec. 2023
Dropping the hammer from a stop gets it to 60 mph in just 4.1 seconds, which opens plenty of opportunities for maneuvering around traffic's pokey dullards.
—Austin Irwin, Car and Driver, 31 May 2023
Sir Paul Smith, one of London’s most respected menswear designers and tailors, started his eponymous label in a pokey shop in Nottingham in 1970 but now has 130 boutiques and counting across the globe.
—Mario Abad, Robb Report, 26 May 2023
That harks back to the stagecoach or pokey train eras when a governor could be incommunicado for days or weeks.
—George Skelton, Los Angeles Times, 27 Apr. 2023
See All Example Sentences for pokey
Theresa Holland, Travel + Leisure, 15 Dec. 2023
Dropping the hammer from a stop gets it to 60 mph in just 4.1 seconds, which opens plenty of opportunities for maneuvering around traffic's pokey dullards.
—Austin Irwin, Car and Driver, 31 May 2023
Sir Paul Smith, one of London’s most respected menswear designers and tailors, started his eponymous label in a pokey shop in Nottingham in 1970 but now has 130 boutiques and counting across the globe.
—Mario Abad, Robb Report, 26 May 2023
That harks back to the stagecoach or pokey train eras when a governor could be incommunicado for days or weeks.
—George Skelton, Los Angeles Times, 27 Apr. 2023
See All Example Sentences for pokey
Recent Examples of Synonyms for pokey
Noun
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More than 21,000 people died in local jails and state prisons in four years, according to records the government has hidden from public view since 2021.—
Gina Barton,
USA Today,
26 Apr. 2025
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David Castro, with a long history of drug use, has been in Santa Clara County jail awaiting trial since he was arrested in 2023.—
Julia Prodis Sulek,
Mercury News,
25 Apr. 2025
Noun
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He was not immediately remanded and will report to prison at a future date.—
Aaron Katersky,
ABC News,
25 Apr. 2025
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Related article Even for an administrative hearing, Luigi Mangione draws crowds at New York City courthouse Mangione’s top federal charge, murder through use of a firearm, could land him a death sentence or life in prison, according to the US Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York.—
Michelle Watson,
CNN Money,
25 Apr. 2025
Noun
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Barnes, 67, was convicted and sentenced to 21 years in a Russian penitentiary in February 2024.—
Tanya Stukalova,
ABC News,
18 Apr. 2025
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The first penitentiaries weren’t built until the late 1700s, so more extreme sentences were deemed necessary to prevent discord.—
Brenna Ehrlich,
Rolling Stone,
29 Mar. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Pokey.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/pokey. Accessed 28 Apr. 2025.
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