sucker

B2 Topic:People & Society

US /ˈsʌkɚ/ UK /ˈsʌkə/ See IPA manual

Homophones

succor /ˈsʌkɚ/ succour /ˈsʌkɚ/

Minimal pairs

Sounds like soccer /ʌ/ vs /ɑ/

Freq #4964

Meanings

1

noun
a gullible person who is easily deceived or exploited; informal and disapproving

The scammer assumed every newcomer was a sucker.
2

noun
a person who is especially fond of or unable to resist something; informal, usually in 'a sucker for'

I am a sucker for old detective stories.
3

noun
an organ or device that grips, feeds, or attaches by suction

Each tentacle ends in a sucker that can grip the rock.
4

noun
a hard candy on a stick; chiefly North American

The child chose a cherry sucker from the jar.

Thesaurus

Synonyms

1 noun · a gullible person who is... dupe pushover

2 noun · a person who is especially... enthusiast devotee

3 noun · an organ or device that... suction cup

4 noun · a hard candy on a stick;... lollipop

Word family

Forms suckers

Related forms suck suction

Appears in

Phrases (1)

See all

sucker punch
a punch delivered unexpectedly to someone who is unprepared

Noun + noun

Proverbs (2)

See all

Etymology

From Middle English souker or sukkere, formed from suck + the agent suffix -er. The literal senses name a person, organ, or object that sucks; the gullible-person sense probably reflects the idea of someone drawn in or easily taken advantage of.

Topics

People & Society Register & Style

External links

# sucker

**Type:** Word
**Level:** B2
**Part of speech:** noun
**IPA (US):** /ˈsʌkɚ/
**IPA (UK):** /ˈsʌkə/
**Frequency rank:** 4964

## Meanings
1. a gullible person who is easily deceived or exploited; informal and disapproving
2. a person who is especially fond of or unable to resist something; informal, usually in 'a sucker for'
3. an organ or device that grips, feeds, or attaches by suction
4. a hard candy on a stick; chiefly North American

## Examples
- The scammer assumed every newcomer was a sucker.
- I am a sucker for old detective stories.
- Each tentacle ends in a sucker that can grip the rock.
- The child chose a cherry sucker from the jar.

## Synonyms
- dupe
- pushover
- suction cup
- lollipop

## Related Forms
- suck
- suction

## Etymology
From Middle English souker or sukkere, formed from suck + the agent suffix -er. The literal senses name a person, organ, or object that sucks; the gullible-person sense probably reflects the idea of someone drawn in or easily taken advantage of.

## Topics
- People & Society
- Register & Style

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