How to Use poke in a Sentence

poke

1 of 2 noun
  • Just like a poke in the eye with a sharp stick.
    — Kansas City Star, 23 Dec. 2025
  • Make this poke cake with pantry staples.
    — Alana Al-Hatlani, Southern Living, 2 Nov. 2025
  • Make this poke cake with pantry staples.
    — Alana Al-Hatlani, Southern Living, 18 May 2026
  • This poke cake has not one, but two fresh fruit fillings.
    — Lisa Cericola, Southern Living, 20 Apr. 2026
  • Few cake recipes are quite as beloved as a good, old-fashioned poke cake.
    — Alana Al-Hatlani, Southern Living, 2 Nov. 2025
  • Few cake recipes are quite as beloved as a good, old-fashioned poke cake.
    — Alana Al-Hatlani, Southern Living, 18 May 2026
  • This poke cake recipe is very easy to customize.
    — Sarah Martens, Better Homes & Gardens, 23 June 2026
  • Whether or not there’s a pig in the poke, most of us have at least some kind of rural roots.
    — Ike Morgan | [email protected], al, 5 Jan. 2023
  • But Zendaya didn’t seem to mind the friendly poke.
    — Morgan Evans, Vanity Fair, 13 Mar. 2026
  • Lunch gets a bit more fusion-y, with delicious poke on the menu.
    — Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 7 Apr. 2026
  • The 5-for-5 penalty kill also was quick with pokes and swipes.
    — Globe Staff, BostonGlobe.com, 16 Mar. 2023
  • Scoop the poke into a medium serving bowl.
    — Stella Fong, Outside, 10 Mar. 2026
  • Lemon and lime zest seeps directly into the base of the cake thanks to the poke cake method.
    — Amanda Favazza, Southern Living, 9 Apr. 2026
  • Lee was raised on Oahu, where her family dined on fresh poke at least once a week.
    — Stephanie Breijo, Los Angeles Times, 7 May 2026
  • The dough will be proofed to the correct level when a slight poke into the dough holds its shape.
    — Minerva Orduño Rincón, The Arizona Republic, 6 June 2022
  • Most mainlanders know that Hawaii is famous for poke and shave ice.
    — Tasha Zemke, Outside Online, 5 Dec. 2022
  • Landucci estimates that a poke bowl is equal to about two and a half to three sushi rolls.
    — Michael Deeds, Idaho Statesman, 13 Aug. 2025
  • This poke cake is reminiscent of a fluffy coffee cake.
    — Sarah Martens, Better Homes & Gardens, 23 June 2026
  • If art is in the eye of the beholder, then Gorman’s art is a poke in the eye.
    — Pat McDonogh, The Courier-Journal, 1 Aug. 2022
  • Keep things no-fuss with a six-ingredient pumpkin poke cake.
    — Lisa Cericola, Southern Living, 29 Oct. 2025
  • In the hands of the right provider, filler can enhance and even transform your face with just a few strategic pokes.
    — Kara Nesvig, Allure, 11 Nov. 2025
  • The poke was so slow the pitcher couldn’t field the ball and flip it home before the game-winning run crossed the plate.
    — Andrew Beaton, WSJ, 13 May 2021
  • The pit itself pops out easily with a finger poke and a gentle pull.
    — Sheri Castle, Southern Living, 9 June 2026
  • Schlier said a normal poke for the average person is about a half-inch.
    — Chilekasi Adele, CBS News, 12 Dec. 2025
  • This cinnamon roll poke cake would be delicious with a cream cheese icing as well.
    — Sarah Martens, Better Homes & Gardens, 23 June 2026
  • But the procedures, the protocols, the check-ins, the pokes, the prods—these are all new things.
    — Cat Jaffee, Outside Online, 21 Feb. 2023
  • Then referee Kelly Pfeifer stood on a chair and tried to give it a poke.
    — Scott Horner, The Indianapolis Star, 18 Mar. 2022
  • And Brady and Gronkowski made one small poke at Rodgers and his holdout.
    — BostonGlobe.com, 8 July 2021
  • The pointy-tip tweezer grips hair firmly without risking a sharp poke to the forehead.
    — Madison Yauger, Peoplemag, 28 Aug. 2022
  • Cone entered and set behind the counter a poke filled with as much as $3,000 worth of gold.
    — David Reamer | Alaska History, Anchorage Daily News, 18 June 2023

poke

2 of 2 verb
  • I accidentally poked my finger right through the old fabric.
  • Throwing pencils is not allowed because someone's eye could get poked out.
  • Who else pokes holes in this claim?
    — U T Editorial Board, San Diego Union-Tribune, 20 Oct. 2025
  • But don’t poke or prod too deeply.
    — The Washington Post, San Diego Union-Tribune, 8 Oct. 2025
  • At work, a head pokes in and gives me a smile.
    — Shane Kowalski, Harpers Magazine, 30 Dec. 2025
  • Joshua poked me in the shoulder.
    — Chang-Rae Lee, New Yorker, 3 May 2026
  • Remove or poke holes in the foil wrap for drainage.
    — Clarence Schmidt, San Diego Union-Tribune, 11 Feb. 2026
  • Mark or poke a hole in your painter’s tape where your nails need to go.
    — Maryal Miller Carter, USA TODAY, 19 Aug. 2023
  • In the roadside planters, green sprouts poked up.
    — Eleanor Nash, Kansas City Star, 3 June 2026
  • Chmelař saw a chance to poke fun at the new draft pick.
    — Peter Baugh, New York Times, 10 Apr. 2026
  • One of the cats even came down the aisle to poke Kudrow.
    — Kory Grow, Rolling Stone, 17 June 2026
  • Only its brown head and white face poke out from the nest.
    — Aspen Pflughoeft, Miami Herald, 16 Sep. 2025
  • Low branches poked at the roof of our boat and brushed our arms.
    — Idra Novey, Travel + Leisure, 5 Nov. 2025
  • The Lakers guard reached and poked the ball away.
    — Los Angeles Times, 22 Apr. 2026
  • Trey Pipkins got poked in the eye in the fourth.
    — Nick Canepa, San Diego Union-Tribune, 21 Sep. 2025
  • While Cake cools, poke top all over using a fork.
    — Tricia Manzanero Stuedeman, Southern Living, 23 Dec. 2025
  • All of this might sound like a roast of open marriages—and the movie does poke fun.
    — Faith Hill, The Atlantic, 28 Aug. 2025
  • Any attempt to poke the bear seemed fruitless.
    — Joel Lorenzi, New York Times, 20 Apr. 2026
  • Just use your fingers to poke a hole in the soil, and drop the seed in the hole.
    — Lynn Coulter, Better Homes & Gardens, 18 Jan. 2022
  • Galloway pokes a single to left field.
    — Caleb Yum, Austin American Statesman, 24 Feb. 2026
  • Cover the jar with plastic wrap and poke a few holes in the top.
    — Meghan Overdeep, Southern Living, 16 June 2026
  • Nail heads are poking through the gym’s thin hardwood floors.
    — Jennifer Smith Richards, ProPublica, 22 Oct. 2025
  • When they were proven right, some poked fun on social media.
    — Susannah Bryan, Sun Sentinel, 16 Apr. 2026
  • Tatis reached out to poke the ball into right field and drive in the game’s first run.
    — Kevin Acee, San Diego Union-Tribune, 29 Mar. 2026
  • The second is a vent which pokes out above your clothes, to move warm air away from you.
    — David Phelan, Forbes.com, 23 June 2026
  • The second is a vent which pokes out above your clothes, to move warm air away from you.
    — David Phelan, Forbes.com, 26 June 2026
  • Leah pokes her head out around his legs, her eyes wild with excitement.
    — Literary Hub, 23 Mar. 2026
  • If their edges are poking out from your ice sphere, your ice will melt and break apart faster.
    — Sophia Beams, Better Homes & Gardens, 27 June 2026
  • Cut out shapes with cookie cutters and poke a hole in the top with a straw.
    — Emily Vanschmus, Better Homes & Gardens, 13 Nov. 2023
  • Tonight, after poking the bear, this bear roared.
    — ABC News, 9 Nov. 2025

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

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