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winker

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winker¹

  • /ˈwɪŋkə/ UK
  • /ˈwɪŋkəɹ/ US

Rhymes with -ɪŋkə(ɹ)

Where it comes from

From wink (“blinking of only one eye”) + -er (suffix forming agent nouns).

noun winkers

  1. A person or an animal that winks (“blinks with one eye; blinks with one eye as a message, signal, or suggestion, usually with an implication of conspiracy”).
  2. A person who connives with another; a conniver. He [Joshua] vvas the pattern of a true Judge, he vvas no gift-taker, he vvas no vvinker, he vvas no by-vvalker.
  3. informal Synonym of turn signal (“each of the flashing lights on each side of a vehicle which is used to indicate that the vehicle is moving left or right”); a blinker, an indicator.

    Similar: turn signal

  4. also, attributive, figuratively, in plural Synonym of blinker (“a shield attached to the bridle of a horse or other domesticated animal to prevent it from seeing things behind it and to its side”). [T]his Censurer slaundereth manie men, another might say of him, he is the cōmon packhorse of the Papistes, to carrie any fardell of lyes deuised against any Christian man or booke that commeth in his way, and the rather because he weareth a paire of winkers ouer his eyes like a milhorse, being asha

    Similar: blinder, blinker

  5. A small bellows in an organ, regulated by a spring, which controls variations of wind pressure. Where the wind-trunk is short between the reservoir and wind-chests the tone will be steady; but when it is long, and with bends, the elasticity of the air causes an unsteadiness in the tone, which must be obviated by the use of concussion-bellows, sometimes called "winkers," or by an elastic diaphr
  6. The nictitating membrane (“transparent protective fold of skin acting as an inner eyelid”) of a birds's eye. There is a third inner eyelid, highly developed and of beautiful mechanism: this is the nictitating membrane, or "winker" (nictito, I wink), a delicate, elastic, translucent, pearly-white fold of the conjunctiva. While the other lids move vertically and have a horizontal commissure, the winker sweep
  7. UK, dialectal, slang An eye. [H]e has shell'd out the lour for the occasion, and is travelling down to keep a wakeful winker on his retailers, and to take care that however they may chuse to lush away the profit, they shall at least take care of the principal. [Footnote ǁ: “Wakeful winker—A sharp eye.”]
  8. UK, US, dialectal, slang An eyelash. We're like father and Aunt Nina, hanging on the wall in the library. Mother's got big black eyes, with winkers a rod long, and her hair shines like my velvet coat, and comes most to her feet.

    Similar: eye-winker

winker²

  • /ˈwɪŋkə/ UK
  • /ˈwɪŋkəɹ/ US

Rhymes with -ɪŋkə(ɹ)

Where it comes from

Clipping of tiddlywinker.

noun winkers

  1. abbreviation, clipping Clipping of tiddlywinker (“a player of the game of tiddlywinks”).

Winker³

Where it comes from

Borrowed from German Winker.

proper noun Winkers

  1. A surname from German.

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Cite this
MLA

"winker." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/winker. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026.

APA

winker. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/winker

Chicago

"winker." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/winker.

BibTeX
@misc{winker_2026,
  title = {winker},
  howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
  year = {2026},
  url = {https://micwyn.com/word/winker},
  urldate = {2026-11-06}
}