To Stab
To Poke, To Jab
transitive verb, godan verb
Because the hiragana ends with an う sound, you know this word is a verb. The kanji itself means stab so the verb vocab version must also be to stab.
Wondering how it’s different from 刺す? 突く refers to the act of pushing or pressing something with a tip of an object, often done forcefully and swiftly. So when you use 突く as in “to stab,” your focus is on the forcefulness of the action. On the other hand, 刺す focuses more on the actual act of piercing into something or someone with a sharp thing.
This is why 突く can be be translated many ways, like to poke, to jab, and many more.
If you're going to get stabbed, don't get stabbed two (つ) times. You can remember that this is the "two time stab" stab because it has a hole that's big. The hole is big because you got stabbed twice.
フェンシングのフルーレで突かれると痛いですか？
Does it hurt to get stabbed with a fleuret in fencing?
「それじゃあ、いくらお金があれば幸せになれるっていうの？」 「う～ん。痛いところを突かれたな。」
"Well then, how much money do you need to be happy?" "Ah. You can really poke at my sore spots."
妻は、急いでいるのに全然話を終わらせようとしない夫の脇腹を、肘で突きました。
The wife jabbed her husband in the ribs with her elbow because he didn't seem like he was going to stop talking at all, and they were in hurry.