sucker

1 of 2

noun

suck·​er ˈsə-kər How to pronounce sucker (audio)
1
a
: one that sucks especially a breast or udder : suckling
b
: a device for creating or regulating suction (such as a piston or valve in a pump)
c
: a pipe or tube through which something is drawn by suction
d(1)
: an organ in various animals for adhering or holding
(2)
: a mouth (as of a leech) adapted for sucking or adhering
2
: a shoot from the roots or lower part of the stem of a plant
3
: any of numerous chiefly North American freshwater bony fishes (family Catostomidae) closely related to the carps but distinguished from them especially by the structure of the mouth which usually has thick soft lips compare hog sucker, white sucker
4
5
a
: a person easily cheated or deceived
b
: a person irresistibly attracted by something specified
a sucker for ghost stories
c
used as a generalized term of reference
see if you can get that sucker working again

sucker

2 of 2

verb

suckered; suckering ˈsə-k(ə-)riŋ How to pronounce sucker (audio)

transitive verb

1
: to remove suckers from
sucker tobacco
2

intransitive verb

: to send out suckers
corn suckers abundantly

Examples of sucker in a Sentence

Noun He's just a con artist looking for another sucker. That kid is a mean little sucker. Verb a notorious imposter who at one time suckered a lot of people into believing that she was the Grand Duchess Anastasia suckered millions of desperate dieters with their grossly inflated claims of successful weight loss
Recent Examples on the Web
Noun
Jean-Pierre said the nation's veterans are heroes, not losers or suckers. Kaia Hubbard, CBS News, 23 Oct. 2024 The researchers zeroed in on the suckers’ structure and were soon struck by a sucker’s outer ring. Paul Smaglik, Discover Magazine, 10 Oct. 2024
Verb
Meanwhile, after Hanani Publishing attempted to sucker Yas into becoming the face of her late father’s scandal, Yas tells the company head that HP is going to pay the restitution to the embezzlement claimants and then leave her the F alone. Nick Caruso, TVLine, 29 Sep. 2024 The Celtics – losers of four of their last five games and 10 of 15 – have been playing an annoying brand of basketball lately, the kind that makes a fan want to sucker-punch the panic button and trade everyone whose first name doesn’t begin with J for Andre Drummond. Globe Staff, BostonGlobe.com, 16 Feb. 2021 See all Example Sentences for sucker 

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

Word History

First Known Use

Noun

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Verb

1607, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of sucker was in the 14th century

Dictionary Entries Near sucker

Cite this Entry

“Sucker.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/sucker. Accessed 5 Nov. 2024.

Kids Definition

sucker

noun
suck·​er
ˈsək-ər
1
a
: one that sucks
b
: a part of an animal's body used for sucking or for clinging by suction
2
: a shoot from the roots or lower part of the stem of a plant
3
: any of numerous freshwater fishes related to the carps that usually have thick soft lips for sucking in food
4
5
: a person easily fooled or cheated
6
: a person irresistibly attracted to something
a sucker for historical novels

Medical Definition

sucker

noun
suck·​er ˈsək-ər How to pronounce sucker (audio)
1
: an organ in various animals (as a trematode or tapeworm) used for adhering or holding
2
: a mouth (as of a leech) adapted for sucking or adhering

More from Merriam-Webster on sucker

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