Meaning & use
a pogo
Last updated
Meanings
nouncountableinformal
A short pole with a spring and footrests that you stand on and bounce up and down with.
Grammar: Countable: say a pogo or two pogos; in full it is a pogo stick.
Patterns
- ride a pogo
- bounce on a pogo
- a pogo stick
My little brother got a pogo for his birthday and has been bouncing around the yard all afternoon.
She can hop over small cones on a pogo without losing her balance.
The toy shop sells a pogo in three colors, but the blue one is always sold out.
noununcountableinformal
A style of dancing or jumping in which people bounce up and down to fast music.
Grammar: Uncountable here: you do pogo, not a pogo, when talking about the dance.
Patterns
- do the pogo
- pogo to music
When the band played their loudest song, the whole crowd started to pogo.
He learned to pogo at punk shows long before he could afford a real pogo stick.
Word forms
| plural | pogos |
|---|
Common combinations
- pogo stick
- He balanced on the pogo stick and jumped as high as the fence.
- bounce on a pogo
- The kids took turns bouncing on a pogo in the driveway.
- pogo up and down
- The children pogoed up and down until they were out of breath.
- ride a pogo
- You need strong legs to ride a pogo for very long.
Synonyms and how they differ
- pogo stick
- The full, standard name for the bouncing toy; use it in writing and formal speech.
- spring pole
- A rare, descriptive way to refer to the same kind of bouncing pole; not the usual term.
Word family
- pogo verb
- To jump or bounce up and down, especially to music.
- pogoer noun
- A person who dances by bouncing up and down.
Commonly confused: a pogo or pogo stick? a pogo or trampoline?
a pogo vs pogo stick
This is the full name of the toy; "a pogo" is just a shortened, casual version of it.
a pogo vs trampoline
A trampoline is a large mat on springs that you jump on with both feet; a pogo is a pole you stand on and bounce with.
Practice
Which sentence uses "a pogo" in the most natural way?
Choose one answer.
A pogo is a springy pole you bounce on, so "bounced across the playground on a pogo" fits. The other options use the word with actions that make no sense for a bouncing toy.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “a pogo”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.