Etymologically
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pocket

This is the current revision of this entry, as edited by bogdan on 16 October 2026 at 00:34. This address is a permanent link to this version.
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Pronunciation

  • IPA: UK /ˈpɒk.ɪt/, US /ˈpɑː.kɪt/[1]

Etymology

It is inherited from Middle English pokete, borrowed from Anglo-Norman pokete,[2][3] a diminutive of Old North French poke, poque “bag”,[2][3][4] from a Germanic source akin to Frankish *pokka “bag”,[2] and related to poke “bag”, as in the phrase a pig in a poke.[3][5][6] Poach, to cook in a bag-like way, probably has the same source.[5]

Earliest recorded meaning

A bag or sack, sometimes a measure of quantity, as of hops or wool: 1280 in the OED,[7] as the surname Poket in 1210, and as a word 1350 in Barnhart.[3]

Semantic evolution

A small bag worn on the person, especially one sewn into a garment, is from the early 15th century (about 1430 in the OED).[2][7] One's money is called one's pocket from 1717,[2][7] and out of pocket is from the 1690s.[2] The pockets of a billiard table are from 1754,[2] a cavity of ore in mining from 1850,[2] and a nearly surrounded area held by troops from 1918.[2] The verb, to put in one's pocket, is from 1589,[7][3] and to take dishonestly for oneself from 1637.[3][7] The adjective, for or small enough for a pocket, is from 1612.[3][2] The American pocket veto is from 1842,[2] and a pocket borough in Britain, controlled by one family, by 1798.[2]

Timeline

  • 1280 – a bag or sack.[7]
  • c. 1430 – a pouch in a garment.[7]
  • 1589 – verb, to put in a pocket.[7][3]
  • 1612 – adjective, for the pocket.[3]
  • 1637 – to appropriate.[3]
  • 1717 – one's money.[2]
  • 1754 – a billiard-table pocket.[2]
  • 1842 – pocket veto.[2]

Modern meaning

Noun

  1. A small bag sewn into or onto a piece of clothing, used for carrying things.
  2. A small area or group that is different from what surrounds it: pockets of resistance.
  3. One's supply of money: prices to suit every pocket.
  4. A bag at the corner or side of a billiards or snooker table.

Verb

  1. To put something in one's pocket.
  2. To take something, especially money, dishonestly.

Adjective

  1. Small enough to carry in a pocket.

Word family

  • pocketable
  • pocketless
  • pocketful
  • pocketlike
  • pickpocket
  • pocketbook
  • pocketknife
  • air pocket
  • poke
  • pouch
  • poach

References

  1. ^ Jones, Daniel (2011), Cambridge English Pronouncing Dictionary, 18th ed., ed. Peter Roach, Jane Setter and John Esling, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Barnhart, Robert K. (1988), The Barnhart Dictionary of Etymology
  4. ^ Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
  5. ^ a b Cresswell, Julia (2021), Oxford Dictionary of Word Origins, 3rd ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press
  6. ^ Pearsall, Judy, ed. (1998), The New Oxford Dictionary of English, Oxford: Clarendon Press
  7. ^ a b c d e f g h Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press