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Added 10 October 2026

sucker

/ˈsʌk.ə/ noun

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

A person or animal that sucks, especially a breast or udder; especially a suckling animal, young mammal before it is weaned. .mw-parser-output .defdate{font-size:smaller}
An undesired stem growing out of the roots or lower trunk of a shrub or tree, especially from the rootstock of a grafted plant or tree.
A parasite; a sponger.

verb

To strip the suckers or shoots from; to deprive of suckers.
to sucker maize
To produce suckers; to throw up additional stems or shoots.
To move or attach oneself by means of suckers.

noun

Any thing or object.
See if you can get that sucker working again.
A person.

Origin

From Middle English souker, sokere, sukkere, soukere, equivalent to suck (verb) + -er. Compare Saterland Frisian Suuger, West Frisian sûker (“sucker”), Dutch zuiger (“sucker”), German Sauger (“dummy; vacuum”).

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

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