punk
See also: -punk and Punk
English
Pronunciation
- (UK) IPA(key): /pʌŋk/
- (US) IPA(key): /pəŋk/
Audio (US) (file) - Rhymes: -ʌŋk
Etymology 1
Uncertain. Possibly from the application of the sense punk (“rotten wood dust used as tinder”) (attested since 1678) to anything worthless (attested since 1869) and then to any undesirable person (since 1908).
Noun
punk (countable and uncountable, plural punks)
- (countable) A person used for sex, particularly:
- (now historical and rare) Synonym of prostitute: a person paid for sex. [1575]
- c. 1603–1604 (date written), William Shakespeare, “Measure for Measure”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, OCLC 606515358, [Act V, scene i]:
- My lord, she may be a punk; for many of them are neither maid, widow, nor wife.
- 1662, [Samuel Butler], “[The First Part of Hudibras]”, in Hudibras. The First and Second Parts. […], London: […] John Martyn and Henry Herringman, […], published 1678; republished in A[lfred] R[ayney] Waller, editor, Hudibras: Written in the Time of the Late Wars, Cambridge: University Press, 1905, OCLC 963614346:
- […] And made them fight, like mad or drunk, / For Dame Religion, as for punk...
- 1671 March (first performance), [William] Wycherley, Love in a Wood, or, St James’s Park. A Comedy, […], London: […] J[ohn] M[acock] for H[enry] Herringman, […], published 1672, OCLC 1227572825, Act II, page 22:
- Flip [Lady Flippant]. I love, of my life men ſhould deal freely vvith me; there are ſo fevv men vvill deal freely with one— / Sir Sim[on Addlepot]. Are you not a Fireſhip? a Punk, Madam? / Flip. VVell, Sir, I love Raillery. / Sir Sim. Faith and troth I do not railly, I deal freely.
- 1936, Anthony Bertram, Like the Phoenix:
- However, terrible as it may seem to the tall maiden sisters of J.P.'s in Queen Anne houses with walled vegetable gardens, this courtesan, strumpet, harlot, whore, punk, fille de joie, street-walker, this trollop, this trull, this baggage, this hussy, this drab, skit, rig, quean, mopsy, demirep, demimondaine, this wanton, this fornicatress, this doxy, this concubine, this frail sister, this poor Queenie—did actually solicit me, did actually say 'coming home to-night, dearie' and my soul was not blasted enough to call a policeman.
-
- (LGBT, obsolete) Synonym of catamite: a boy or younger man used by an older as a (usually passive) homosexual partner. [1698]
- 1698, Womens Complaint to Venus:
- The Beaus...
At night make a Punk of him that's first drunk.
- The Beaus...
- 1698, Womens Complaint to Venus:
- (chiefly US, LGBT) Synonym of bottom: any passive or effeminate homosexual male.
- (US, LGBT, slang) A boy who accompanies a hobo, especially as used for sex. [1893]
- 1973, Barry Broadfoot, Ten Lost Years, 1929-1939: Memories of Canadians who survived the Depression, p. 137:
- They'd pick up youngsters as, well—as their playthings. These kids were called punks.
- 1973, Barry Broadfoot, Ten Lost Years, 1929-1939: Memories of Canadians who survived the Depression, p. 137:
- (US, LGBT, derogatory, chiefly African-American Vernacular) Synonym of faggot: any male homosexual. [1933]
- (US, LGBT, prison slang) Synonym of bitch: a man forced or coerced into a homosexual relationship, especially in prison. [1946]
- 1946, Mezz Mezzrow; Bernard Wolfe, Really the Blues, New York: Random House, page 15:
- A punk, if you want it in plain English, is a boy with smooth skin who takes the place of a woman in a jailbird's love life.
- 2001, Joseph T. Hallinan, Going Up the River: Travels in a Prison Nation, p. 106:
- If he is small and weak, he may decide to become a ‘punk’ and allow himself to be raped by the inmate most likely to protect him.
- Because he was so weak, Vinny soon became Tony's punk.
-
- (now historical and rare) Synonym of prostitute: a person paid for sex. [1575]
- (countable, US slang) A worthless person, particularly: [1904]
- 1933, Ernest Hemingway, "Winner Take Nothing", p. 94:
- This fellow was just a punk... a nobody.
- (humorous, rare) Synonym of fellow: any person, especially a male comrade. [1904]
- (derogatory) A petty criminal, especially a juvenile delinquent. [1908]
- 1908 October 18, New York Times, p. 9:
- He said the prisoner called them ‘punk’... He admitted that he shouted ‘punk’ to them.
- 1963, Thomas Pynchon, w:V., p. 145:
- There was nothing so special about the gang, punks are punks.
- 1971, Harry Julian Fink & al., Dirty Harry, spoken by Harry Callahan (Clint Eastwood):
- I know what you're thinking. "Did he fire six shots or only five?" Well, to tell you the truth, in all this excitement I've kinda lost track myself. But being as this is a .44 Magnum, the most powerful handgun in the world, and would blow your head clean off, you've got to ask yourself one question: Do I feel lucky? Well, do ya, punk?
- 1908 October 18, New York Times, p. 9:
- (derogatory) Synonym of sissy: a weak, timid person. [1939]
- 1950, Hal Ellson, Tomboy, p. 12:
- Do you think a little thing like a scratch would bother me? I'm no punk.
- 2006, Kali James, Can U Get Away? (page 17)
- Taking him home she hemmed him up soon as they stepped in the door. Now Tony was a bad dude in the streets but when it came to his mama, he was a punk. A few cuss words on her part had him spilling everything.
- 1950, Hal Ellson, Tomboy, p. 12:
- Synonym of amateur. [1923]
- (circus slang) A young, untrained animal or worker. [1926]
- 1933, Ernest Hemingway, "Winner Take Nothing", p. 94:
- (uncountable, music) Short for punk rock, a genre known for short, loud, energetic songs with electric guitars and strong drums. [1970]
- 1972 November, L. Bangs, Creem, p. 68:
- Who else... would have the nerve to actually begin a song with the line ‘Whatchew gonna do, mama, now that the roast beef's gone...?’ Man, that is true punk; that is so fucked up it's got class up the ass.
- 1972 November, L. Bangs, Creem, p. 68:
- (countable) Short for punk rocker, a musician known for playing punk rock or a fan of the genre. [1976]
- (uncountable) The larger nonconformist social movement associated with punk rock and its fans.
Usage notes
In its sense as a punk rocker, sometimes given the informal plural form punx.
Synonyms
- (male homosexual senses): See Thesaurus:male homosexual
- (hobo's boy companion): gunsel
- (juvenile delinquent): trouble-maker, hoodlum, hooligan
Derived terms
- punker (as a prostitute's client)
Translations
prostitute — see prostitute, whore
the bottom in a male-male sexual relationship — See also translations at bottom
|
worthless person
|
petty criminal
|
short form of punk rock — See also translations at punk rock
|
punk rocker
|
punk social movement
|
Adjective
punk (comparative punker, superlative punkest)
- (US, colloquial) Worthless, contemptible, particularly [1907]
- Bad, substandard.
- 1922, Sinclair Lewis, “3”, in Babbitt, page 30:
- Babbitt boomed on: "Pretty punk service the Company giving us on these car-lines. Nonsense to only run the Portland Road cars once every seven minutes. Fellow gets mighty cold on a winter morning, waiting on a street corner with the wind nipping at his ankles."
-
- Thuggish, criminal.
- (chiefly African-American Vernacular) Cowardly. [1930]
- 2018, Damon Jones, “Just Remember That Your Punk-Ass President Would Never, Ever, Ever Call LeBron James Dumb to His Face”, in The Root:
- ... Donald Trump is also a coward. For all of his tough talk and bluster, the president of the United States is a punk ass bitch.
-
- Poorly, sickly.
- 1922, Sinclair Lewis, “1”, in Babbitt, page 10:
- With the subtleties of dressing ran other complex worries. "I feel kind of punk this morning," he said. "I think I had too much dinner last evening. You oughtn't to serve those heavy banana fritters."
-
- Inexperienced.
- Bad, substandard.
- Of or concerning punk rock or its associated subculture. [1971]
- You look very punk with your t-shirt, piercing, and chains.
Verb
punk (third-person singular simple present punks, present participle punking, simple past and past participle punked)
- To pimp.
- To forcibly perform anal sex upon an unwilling partner.
- Ricky punked his new cell-mates.
- 1934, James T. Farrell, The Young Manhood of Studs Lonigan, Ch. 19:
- "Hell, Haggerty, with that caved-in chest you got, and with your guts pickled in alcohol, and a leg and a half in the grave, the Navy wouldn't even take you for punkin', Barney sourly said.
- To prank.
- I got expelled when I punked the principal.
- (especially with "out") To give up or concede; to act like a wimp.
- Jimmy was going to help me with the prank, but he punked (out) at the last minute.
- (often with "out" or "up") To adapt or embellish in the style of the punk movement.
- 1992, Dana Stabenow, A Cold Day for Murder, →ISBN, page 60:
- Suzy, a pump young woman with sparkling brown eyes and punked hair tucked behind her ears, said blankly, "What?"
- 2011, David Nichols, The Go-Betweens, →ISBN, page 60:
- Like the Apartments, the supports hadn't written many songs of their own. They ran on that old standby, “fun,” in the form of “punked up” versions of pop songs like “It's my Party,” alongside obscure new wave/punk covers such as Lene Lovich's “Cuckoo Clock.”
- 2016, Michael Croland, Oy Oy Oy Gevalt! Jews and Punk: Jews and Punk, →ISBN, page 59:
- Their raucous take on the beloved, iconic Israeli folk song allegedly drew the ire of the songwriter, Naomi Shemer, and inspired Yidcore to punk up Jewish culture in myriad ways over the course of the next decade.
-
Usage notes
The relatively tame 21st century usage of punk to mean "prank" was popularized by the American television show Punk'd. Until as recently as the late 20th century, punk still connoted rape or submitting to anal rape (punk out). The second use of the term punk-out is now comparable to acting like a pussy and mildly implies submissive behavior in general.
Synonyms
- (to pimp): hustle, prostitute; see also Thesaurus:pimp out
Derived terms
- Afropunk
- anarcho-punk
- antipunk
- art punk
- atompunk
- bindle punk
- biopunk
- Celtic punk
- clockpunk
- cowpunk
- crust punk
- cyberpunk
- cypherpunk
- deathpunk
- dieselpunk
- edupunk
- electropunk
- folk punk
- folk-punk
- garage punk
- garage-punk
- genderpunk
- glam punk
- hardcore punk
- hinkypunk
- horror punk
- hunky punk
- industrial punk
- mannerpunk
- neopunk
- pickled punk
- pop punk
- pop-punk
- positive punk
- post-punk
- postpunk
- post-punk revival
- prepunk
- protopunk
- punkabilly
- punkadelic
- punk-ass
- punk-blues
- punkdom
- punked
- punkette
- punkily
- punking
- punkish
- punkitude
- punk jazz
- punk-jazz
- punk-like
- punklike
- punkling
- punk music
- punk out
- punk rock
- punk rocker
- punks out
- punkster
- punky
- punkzine
- punk zine
- sailpunk
- sandalpunk
- seapunk
- ska punk
- ska-punk
- skatepunk
- skate punk
- splatterpunk
- steampunk
- surfpunk
- synthpunk
- technopunk
- unpunk
Etymology 2
Unclear; first attested circa 1680 in writings about Native American practices,[1][2] probably from Unami punkw (“dust”),[3][4] though it has also been suggested it could be an alteration of spunk (“tinder”) (compare funk (“rotten wood”)).[2]
Noun
punk (countable and uncountable, plural punks)
- (uncountable) Any material used as tinder for lighting fires, such as agaric, dried wood, or touchwood, but especially wood altered by certain fungi.
- 1707, John Clayton (botanist), Virginia in Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society of London XLI, page 149:
- As the East-Indians use Moxa, so these burn with Punk, which is the inward Part of the Excrescence or Exuberance of an Oak.
- 1756, John Bartram, in William Darlington (ed.), Memorials of John Bartram and Humphry Marshall (1849):
- If they attack a house that is pretty well manned, they [Indians in Pennsylvania] creep behind some fence, or hedge, or tree, and shoot red-hot iron slugs, or punk, into the roof, and fire the house […]
- 1899, H. B. Cushman, History of the Choctaw, Chickasaw and Natchez Indians, page 271:
- On one occasion a venerable old Indian man, who, in order to light his pipe, was trying to catch a spark upon a piece of punk struck from his flint and steel; ...
- 1922, Harry Ignatius Marshall, The Karen People of Burma, page 61:
- The oil is mixed with bits of dry wood or punk and moulded into sticks about a cubit long and an inch in diameter by putting it into joints of small bamboo.
- 2001, William W. Johnstone, War of the Mountain Man, page 116:
- He made him a little smoldering pocket of punk to light the fuses and waited.
- 1707, John Clayton (botanist), Virginia in Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society of London XLI, page 149:
- (countable) A utensil for lighting wicks or fuses (such as those of fireworks) resembling stick incense.
- 1907, Jack London, The Road, :
- On the end a coal of fire slowly smouldered. It would last for hours, and my cell-mate called it a "punk."
- 1994, Ashland Price, Viking Tempest, page 353:
- Then, without another word, he rose and left the shelter, apparently in order to light the vessel's wick with a punk from the dying campfire.
- 2004, Shawn Shiflett, Hidden Place, page 221:
- He raised the cylinder high in the air with his bare hand, used a punk to light the fuse, and KABOOM!
- 1907, Jack London, The Road, :
Noun
punk (plural punks)
- Any of the punk genres: dieselpunk, solarpunk, steampunk etc.
References
- “punk”, in Dictionary.com Unabridged, Dictionary.com, LLC, 1995–present.
- “punk”, in Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary
- Lenape Talking Dictionary, punkw
- Robert K. Barnhart (editor), The Barnhart Dictionary of Etymology (H. W. Wilson, 1988), page 864: "Probably borrowed from Algonquian (Delaware) ponk, literally, living ashes."
- “punk, n.¹ and adj.².”, in OED Online
, Oxford, Oxfordshire: Oxford University Press, 2007.
Catalan
Etymology
Unadapted borrowing from English punk.
Pronunciation
- (Balearic, Valencian) IPA(key): /ˈpaŋk/
- (Central) IPA(key): /ˈpaŋ/
Noun
punk m (plural punks)
- punk (“punk rock, punk rocker”)
Related terms
- ciberpunk
Dutch
Etymology
Borrowed from English punk.
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /pʏŋk/
Audio (file) - Hyphenation: punk
Noun
punk m (uncountable)
- (music) punk, punk rock (rock genre)
- Synonym: punkrock
Derived terms
- punkband
- punker
- punkkapsel
Noun
punk m (plural punks)
- (uncommon, music) a punk (member of the punk subculture, fan of punk rock)
- Synonym: punker
French
Etymology
Borrowed from English punk.
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /pœŋk/
Noun
punk m (plural punks)
- punk
Adjective
punk (feminine punke, masculine plural punks, feminine plural punkes)
- punk
Norwegian Bokmål
Alternative forms
- pønk
Etymology
Borrowed from English punk.
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /pøŋk/
Noun
punk m (definite singular punken, uncountable)
- punk music
Portuguese
Etymology
Unadapted borrowing from English punk.
Pronunciation
- (Brazil) IPA(key): /ˈpɐ̃.ki/, /ˈpɐ̃k/
- (Southern Brazil) IPA(key): /ˈpɐ̃k/, /ˈpɐ̃.ki/
- (Portugal) IPA(key): /ˈpɐ̃k/
Noun
punk m (uncountable)
- punk (a social and musical movement)
- punk; punk rock (a subgenre of rock music)
Quotations
For quotations using this term, see Citations:punk.
Noun
punk m or f by sense (plural punks)
- punk (a member of the punk movement or fan of punk rock)
Quotations
For quotations using this term, see Citations:punk.
Adjective
punk (invariable)
- (relational) punk (relating to punk music or culture)
- (Brazil, slang, of a thing or situation) complicated, difficult, tense
- Hoje o dia vai ser punk.
- Today is going to be complicated.
Romanian
Etymology
Unadapted borrowing from English punk.
Adjective
punk m or f or n (indeclinable)
- punk
Declension
Declension of punk (invariable)
| singular | plural | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| masculine | neuter | feminine | masculine | neuter | feminine | ||
| nominative/ accusative | indefinite | punk | punk | punk | punk | ||
| definite | — | — | — | — | |||
| genitive/ dative | indefinite | punk | punk | punk | punk | ||
| definite | — | — | — | — | |||
Spanish
Etymology
English punk.
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /ˈpunk/ [ˈpũŋk]
- Rhymes: -unk
- Syllabification: punk
- IPA(key): (nonstandard) /ˈpank/ [ˈpãŋk]
Noun
punk m (plural punks)
- punk (a member of the punk movement or fan of punk rock)
Derived terms
- anarcopunk
Related terms
- punki
Further reading
- “punk”, in Diccionario de la lengua española, Vigésima tercera edición, Real Academia Española, 2014
- Diccionario panhispánico de dudas
Swedish
Etymology
Borrowed from English punk.
Noun
punk c
- punk rock
- De lirar punk ― They play punk rock
- Synonym: punkrock
- punk (nonconformist social movement)
Declension
| Declension of punk | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Uncountable | ||||
| Indefinite | Definite | |||
| Nominative | punk | punken | — | — |
| Genitive | punks | punkens | — | — |
Derived terms
- punkare (“member of the punk subculture”)
See also
- trallpunk
References
- punk in Svensk ordbok (SO)
- punk in Svenska Akademiens ordlista (SAOL)