cheek

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cheek^¹

/t͡ʃiːk/

Rhymes with -iːk

Where it comes from

From Middle English cheeke, cheke, cheoke, choke, from Old English ċēce, ċēace, ċēoce (“cheek; jaw”), from Proto-West Germanic *kākā, *keukā (“jaw, cheek”), from Proto-Germanic *kēkǭ, *keukǭ (“jaw; palate; pharynx”), perhaps from Proto-Indo-European *ǵyewh₁- (“to chew”).

Cognate with Saterland Frisian Sooke (“cheek”), West Frisian tsjeak (“jaw”), Dutch kaak (“jaw; cheek”), Swedish käke (“jaw; jowl”), Norwegian kjake (“jaw”), Old Norse kók (“mouth; gullet”).

noun cheeks

countable, uncountable The soft skin on each side of the face, below the eyes; the outer surface of the sides of the oral cavity. There are some shrewd contents in yon same paper, / That steals the colours from Bassanio's cheek: / Some dear friend dead; else nothing in the world / Could turn so much the constitution / Of any constant man. What, worse and worse!— […]
Similar: wang
countable, informal, plural normally, uncountable The lower part of the buttocks that is often exposed beneath very brief underwear, swimwear, or extremely short shorts.
Similar: arsecheek, asscheek, butt cheek, nether cheek
figuratively, informal, uncountable Impudence. You’ve got some cheek, asking me for money!
Similar: impertinence, impudence, brass neck, nerve, sass, chutzpah
countable, informal, uncountable One of the genae, flat areas on the sides of a trilobite's cephalon.
countable, uncountable One of the pieces of a machine, or of timber or stonework, that form corresponding sides or a similar pair. the cheeks of a vice
countable, uncountable pump-cheek, pump-cheeks, a piece of wood cut out fork-shaped in which the brake is fastened by means of a bolt and can thus move around and move the upper box of the pump up and down
countable, in plural, uncountable The branches of a bridle bit.
countable, uncountable Either side of an axehead.
countable, uncountable The middle section of a flask, made so that it can be moved laterally, to permit the removal of the pattern from the mould.

verb cheeks · cheeking · cheeked

To be impudent towards. Don't cheek me, you little rascal!
To pull a horse's head back toward the saddle using the cheek strap of the bridle. Such horses might need to be "cheeked" for a while.
To put or keep something in one’s cheek. The squirrel cheeked some nuts before heading back to its nest.

Cheek^²

proper noun

A pre-Norman surname. Titusvlle's Aleah Davis passes around the guard of Rockledge player Tatyana Cheek during Tuesday's game.
An unincorporated community in Carter County, Oklahoma, United States.
An unincorporated community in Jefferson County, Texas, United States, established by John R. Cheek.

Thesaurus

Closest in meaning: face, buccal, oral, nerve, buttock, brass, impudence, effrontery, boldness, impertinence, jaw, jowl, gall, butt, toupee, pellet

Translations

Every language

noun part of face

Español	mejilla, cacha, cachete, carrillo
한국어	볼 bol, 뺨 ppyam
日本語	頬, ほっぺた hoppeta, ほっぺ hoppe
中文	臉頰 /脸颊 liǎnjiá, 腮 sāi, 腮幫子 /腮帮子 sāibāngzi, 臉蛋 /脸蛋 liǎndàn, 臉蛋子 /脸蛋子 liǎndànzi, 面頰 /面颊 miànjiá
हिन्दी	गाल gāl
Kiswahili	shavu
Português	bochecha
Français	joue
Deutsch	Backe, Wange
Italiano	guancia, gota
Ελληνικά	μάγουλο mágoulo, ζυγωματικά zygomatiká
Română	bucă, obraz
Русский	щека́ ščeká
Tiếng Việt	má
العربية	خَدّ ḵadd, وَجْنَة wajna
עברית	לֶחִי lekhí, lékhi

noun colloquial: buttock

Español	nalga, glúteo
한국어	볼기 bolgi
Kiswahili	tako
Português	nádega, bunda
Français	fesse
Deutsch	Backe
Italiano	chiappa
Ελληνικά	κωλομέρι koloméri
Română	bucă
Русский	щека́ ščeká, полупо́пие polupópije
Tiếng Việt	đít

noun colloquial: impudence

Español	descoco, papo, descaro
한국어	뻔뻔 ppeonppeon
Français	culot, toupet
Deutsch	Stirn
Italiano	faccia tosta, sfrontatezza, impudenza
Ελληνικά	θράσος thrásos
Русский	наха́льство naxálʹstvo, на́глость náglostʹ

noun nautical: a piece of wood cut out fork-shaped in which the brake is fastened

Español	picota
Português	picota
Français	potence de bringuebale
Deutsch	Mick, Pumpenmick
Italiano	braccio, braccio della tromba
Русский	мик mik

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Cite this

MLA

"cheek." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/cheek. Accessed 5 Nov. 2026.

APA

cheek. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/cheek

Chicago

"cheek." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 5, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/cheek.

BibTeX

@misc{cheek_2026,
  title = {cheek},
  howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
  year = {2026},
  url = {https://micwyn.com/word/cheek},
  urldate = {2026-11-05}
}