popcorn

Meanings

1. 1
   noun

   small kernels of corn that burst open when exposed to heat

   I ate two whole bags of popcorn last night while I watched the movie you recommended.

2. 2
   noun

   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.

3. 3
   noun

   A serving of popcorn.

   Warner Bros has offered the two executives less than dollars 1m as an out-of-court settlement, a sum dismissed by Mr [Pierce] O'Donnell as 'two popcorns and two Cokes'.

4. 4
   noun

   A piece of popcorn.

   Some popcorns silently flicked off like face peelings on his shoe.

5. 5
   noun

   A kind of stitch similar to a bobble.

   From the top the sample shows four stitch popcorns, five stitch bobbles, two rows of bells and a central leaf with leaves sloping to the left and right each side.

6. 6
   noun

   A form of brainstorming in which participants call out their ideas immediately, instead of waiting for an assigned turn to speak.

   With the "popcorn" method, all team members in the session spontaneously call out ideas and a facilitator writes them on a flip chart.

7. 7
   noun

   Entertainment for observers.

   And not at all about how a state picks which group of electors to send, which is the whole basis of the NaPoVoInterCo plan, and will yield plenty more Supreme Court popcorn if it ever gets enacted.

8. 8
   verb

   To stand or jump up quickly.

   Popcorning behavior is a fun sight—as long as you know what it is. Otherwise, it can scare you. During this action a pig runs around very fast and suddenly leaps straight up in the air, twitching and squeaking. It then lands and takes off again, often in another direction. This activity shows pure joy. Babies start to popcorn when they are about two weeks old or so—they may try it earlier, but they usually fall down instead.

Etymology

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