Definitions
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.
- noun A mischievous spirit in Irish folklore.
from The Century Dictionary.
- noun In Irish tradition, a spirit or spook in the form of a horse.
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.
- noun A
fairy that appears inanimal form, often large. It appears only to some people. - noun A convenient storage location or hiding spot created by the arrangement or form of surrounding objects
- verb The act of storing an object in a pooka
Etymologies
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License
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Examples
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A winding narrative told the tale of a pooka who had spent an eternity of watching writers twist and burn under the weight of their own words.
Automatic Typewriter Brianne Baxtali 2011
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A lot of the time it's leanan sidhe, although once in a while you might hear something about a pooka.
Automatic Typewriter Brianne Baxtali 2011
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I don't understand what you're doing here with this pooka nonsense.
Automatic Typewriter Brianne Baxtali 2011
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I do know that the story involves the legendary Phinn McCool, some American cowboys, a pooka a species of human Irish devils endowed with magical powers named Fergus MacPhellimey and a cellar full of leprechauns.
Flann O'Brien: Tall Tales, Long Drink Allen Barra 2011
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Then he picked up an acoustic guitar for “Lovelier Than Thou,” a pooka-shell-ready beach ballad.
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It would make less sense though for one of the most powerful folks in the Marvel-verse to wear a pooka shell necklace and really long shorts.
I've Lost my Faith in Superman wendigomountain 2008
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I am especially fond of the lyrics. . . pooka pooka pooka, pooka pooka poo.
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Let me attempt to provide a synopsis: A black kid picks up one of those picture-viewer dealies and sees some orange dudes with frosted tips and pooka shells singing a song on the beach singing… to him? what the hell is going on?
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A pooka grazes peacefully where the river meets the sea
Pooka in the Summer Sun Geraldine Moorkens Byrne 2007
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A pooka grazes peacefully where the river meets the sea
Archive 2007-06-01 Geraldine Moorkens Byrne 2007
thinkcharlene commented on the word pooka
Harvey
February 14, 2007
bluemartian commented on the word pooka
"P O O K A - Pooka - from old Celtic mythology - a fairy spirit in animal form - always very large. The pooka appears here and there - now and then - to this one and that one - a benign but mischievous creature - very fond of rumpots, crackpots, and how are you, Mr. Wilson?"
September 23, 2007
palooka commented on the word pooka
Palooka need to add pooka!
September 24, 2007
bilby commented on the word pooka
"'Phat’s the Pooka? Well, that’s not aisy to say. It’s an avil sper’t that does be always in mischief, but sure it niver does sarious harrum axceptin’ to thim that desarves it, or thim that shpakes av it disrespictful. I never seen it, Glory be to God, but there’s thim that has, and be the same token, they do say that it looks like the finest black horse that iver wore shoes. But it isn’t a horse at all at all, for no horse ’ud have eyes av fire, or be breathin’ flames av blue wid a shmell o’ sulfur, savin’ yer presince, or a shnort like thunder, and no mortial horse ’ud take the lapes it does, or go as fur widout gettin’ tired."
- D. R. McAnally, Jr., 'Irish Wonders', 1938.
July 15, 2012
WanderlustDreamer commented on the word pooka
Elwood P. Dowd's invisible friend was named Harvey in the 1950 movie bearing that pooka's name.
March 27, 2015