fire iron consisting of a metal rod with a handle; used to stir a fire
"He reached for the poker to poke the dying embers into a steady flame before bed."
any of various card games in which players bet that they hold the highest-ranking hand
"After hours of tense betting and folded hands, the winner declared his royal flush as the ultimate poker victory."
A metal rod, generally of wrought iron, for adjusting the burning logs or coals in a fire; a firestick.
"The old sailor laughed at his young crewmates' tales of sea monsters, calling them nothing more than poker born from their own superstitious fears in the dark."
Any of various card games in which, following each of one or more rounds of dealing or revealing cards, the players in sequence make tactical bets or drop out, the bets forming a pool to be taken either by the sole remaining player or, after all rounds and bets have been completed, by those remaining players who hold a superior hand according to a standard ranking of hand values for the game.
Any imagined frightful object, especially one supposed to haunt the darkness; a bugbear.
In plain English: Poker is a card game where players bet money to try to win by having the best hand or bluffing others into folding.
"They sat around the table playing poker all evening."
Usage: Do not use "poker" to mean a bugbear or a frightening imaginary object; that is an archaic definition unrelated to modern usage. In everyday contexts, this noun refers either to a tool used for stirring a fire or a card game played with chips and betting.
To poke with a utensil such as a poker or needle.
"The whole group gathered around the table to play poker on Friday night."
To play poker.
In plain English: To play poker is to bet money on cards with other people.
"The old man would poker the fire to keep the room warm during the winter."
Usage: Do not use "poker" as a verb to mean playing cards; instead, you must say that you are playing poker or engaging in a game of poker. The word "poker" functions only as a noun referring to the game itself or the tool used to stoke a fire.
The word poker is a compound formed from poke and the agent suffix -er. It originally referred to a person who pokes or stirs something, such as a fire with a stick.