Skip to the word

Added 10 October 2026

popcorn

/ˈpɒp.kɔːn/ noun

noun Definition from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA). Pronunciation from Wiktionary, via Kaikki.org. More about popcorn at Wordnik → Where our words come from →

A snack food made from corn or maize kernels popped by dry heating.
My friends and I ordered popcorn during the interval of the movie.
A variety of corn or maize with a hard outer hull that, along with the type of starch it contains, makes it suitable for popping.
That farm grows popcorn.
A serving of popcorn.
I'll have a small popcorn.

verb

To stand or jump up quickly.
To pop repeatedly, like popcorn cooking.
To use the popcorn stitch.

Origin

Short for popped corn. By surface analysis, pop + corn.

From Wiktionary, via Kaikki.org (CC BY-SA)

Back to today's word