Link Centre Dictionary

plunge

UK/plʌnd͡ʒ/ US/ˈplʌndʒ/ fairly common slang
verb (8) noun (2)

verb

1.

thrust or throw into

  • “Immerse yourself in hot water”
Synonyms
2.

drop steeply

  • “the stock market plunged”
Synonyms
3.

dash violently or with great speed or impetuosity

  • “She plunged at it eagerly”
4.

begin with vigor

  • “He launched into a long diatribe”
  • “She plunged into a dangerous adventure”
Synonyms
5.

cause to be immersed

  • “The professor plunged his students into the study of the Italian text”
Synonyms
6.

fall abruptly

  • “It plunged to the bottom of the well”
Synonyms
7.

immerse briefly into a liquid so as to wet, coat, or saturate

  • “dip the garment into the cleaning solution”
  • “dip the brush into the paint”
Synonyms
8.

engross (oneself) fully

  • “He immersed himself into his studies”
Synonyms

noun

1.

a brief swim in water

Synonyms
2.

a steep and rapid fall

Origin

From Middle English plungen, ploungen, Anglo-Norman plungier, from Old French plongier, (Modern French plonger), from unattested Late Latin frequentative *plumbicō (“to throw a leaded line”), from plumbum (“lead”). Compare plumb, plounce.

Phrases

  • bus plunge
  • plunge bath
  • plunge bra
  • plunge in
  • plunge into
  • plunge pool
  • plunge waterfall
  • polar bear plunge
  • take the plunge

Related words

Word family

Broader terms

Narrower terms

Related verbs

Causes

WordNet 2.1 (Princeton University). Wiktionary (CC BY-SA). CMU Pronouncing Dictionary. WordNet 2.1 Copyright Princeton University. All rights reserved. Wiktionary content is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike Licence.