Word forms: plural, 3rd person singular presenttense lurches, present participle lurching, past tense, past participle lurched
1. verb
To lurch means to make a sudden movement, especially forwards, in an uncontrolled way.
As the car sped over a pothole she lurched forward. [VERB adverb/preposition]
Henry looked, stared, and lurched to his feet. [VERB adverb/preposition]
More and more frequently the vessel lurched into a sudden roll. [VERB adverb/preposition]
[Also VERB]
Synonyms: tilt, roll, pitch, list More Synonyms of lurch
Lurch is also a noun.
The car took a lurch forward but grounded in a deep rut.
2. verb
If you say that a person or organization lurchesfrom one thing to another, you mean they move suddenly from one course of action or attitude to another in an uncontrolled way.
[disapproval]
The state government has lurched from one budget crisis to another. [VERBfrom noun to noun]
The first round of multilateral trade talks has lurched between hope and despair. [VERB preposition/adverb]
Lurch is also a noun.
The property sector was another casualty of the lurch towards higher interest rates.
3.
See leave sb in the lurch
More Synonyms of lurch
lurch in British English1
(lɜːtʃ)
verb(intransitive)
1.
to lean or pitch suddenly to one side
2.
to stagger or sway
noun
3.
the act or an instance of lurching
Derived forms
lurching (ˈlurching)
adjective
Word origin
C19: origin unknown
lurch in British English2
(lɜːtʃ)
noun
1. leave someone in the lurch
2. cribbage
the state of a losing player with less than 30 points at the end of a game (esp in the phrase in the lurch)
Word origin
C16: from French lourche a game similar to backgammon, apparently from lourche (adj) deceived, probably of Germanic origin
lurch in British English3
(lɜːtʃ)
verb
(intransitive) archaic or dialect
to prowl or steal about suspiciously
Word origin
C15: perhaps a variant of lurk
lurch in American English1
(lɜːrtʃ)
noun
1.
an act or instance of swaying abruptly
2.
a sudden tip or roll to one side, as of a ship or a staggering person
3.
an awkward, swaying or staggering motion or gait
intransitive verb
4. (of a ship)
to roll or pitch suddenly
5.
to make a lurch; move with lurches; stagger
The wounded man lurched across the room
Derived forms
lurchingly
adverb
Word origin
[1760–70; orig. uncert.]
lurch in American English2
(lɜːrtʃ)
noun
1.
a situation at the close of various games in which the loser scores nothing or is far behind the opponent
2. See leave in the lurch
Word origin
[1525–35; ‹ MF lourche a game, n. use of lourche (adj.) discomfited ‹ Gmc; cf. MHG lurz left (hand), OE belyrtan to deceive]
lurch in American English3
(lɜːrtʃ)
transitive verb
1. archaic
to do out of; defraud; cheat
2. obsolete
to acquire through underhanded means; steal; filch
intransitive verb
3. Brit dialect
to lurk near a place; prowl
noun
4. archaic
the act of lurking or state of watchfulness
Word origin
[1375–1425; late ME lorchen, appar. var. of lurken to lurk]
More idioms containing
lurch
leave someone in the lurch
Examples of 'lurch' in a sentence
lurch
But then the lorry shuddered, lurching forward over branches on the road towards the port.
Times, Sunday Times (2016)
Instead it's a lurch from one graphic scene to another and this makes for a tough read.
The Sun (2016)
Your heart lurched watching the domestic and national violence unfold.
Times, Sunday Times (2008)
Or you can call it lurching about.
Times, Sunday Times (2012)
My stomach lurched at the sight of him.
The Sun (2006)
The report comes amid increasing fears that the economy is lurching back into crisis.
Times, Sunday Times (2011)
We lurch from one disastrous deal to the next.
Times, Sunday Times (2011)
Any such musings are abruptly brought to a halt by a sudden lurch downwards.
Richard Fortey THE EARTH: An Intimate History (2004)
Then without warning the truck lurched forward.
The Sun (2014)
My stomach lurched and my heart pounded.
The Sun (2013)
Is the world economy about to lurch downwards?
Times, Sunday Times (2014)
My stomach lurched as fear and adrenaline flooded me.
Christianity Today (2000)
Right now their season lurches from one massive disappointment to another.
The Sun (2015)
It takes guts to stare down the barrel of a gun and lurch forward.
The Sun (2016)
It is unlikely that she will be fazed by the sudden lurch on to the global political scene.
Times, Sunday Times (2006)
But the long afternoon light that spilled from a different sun filled my eyes and made my heart lurch.
Times, Sunday Times (2015)
The car lurches to a halt.
Times, Sunday Times (2007)
He lurches back in his seat.
Times, Sunday Times (2014)
Mostly chronological, the action lurches suddenly forwards or backwards as the mood takes it.
Times, Sunday Times (2010)
It hit the car, which lurched into the bus shelter.
The Sun (2010)
At about 10pm we suddenly lurched to a halt.
Times, Sunday Times (2007)
Just a few hundred metres down the road, the car abruptly lurches to the right and back again.
Times, Sunday Times (2014)
We British don't care for military coups but there are two other bad ways we could lurch.
Times, Sunday Times (2011)
In other languages
lurch
British English: lurch VERB
To lurch means to make a sudden movement, especially forwards, in an uncontrolled way.
As the car sped over a pothole we lurched forward.
American English: lurch
Brazilian Portuguese: balançar
Chinese: > 打趔趄尤指向前
European Spanish: tambalearse
French: tituber
German: taumeln
Italian: balzare
Japanese: ガクンと揺れる
Korean: 휘청거리다
European Portuguese: balançar
Latin American Spanish: tambalearse
1 (verb)
Definition
to lean or tilt suddenly to one side
As the car sped over a pothole, she lurched forward.
Synonyms
tilt
The boat instantly tilted, filled and sank.
roll
The ship was still rolling in the troughs.
pitch
The ship was pitching and rolling as if in mid-ocean.
list
The ship listed again, and she was thrown back across the bunk.
rock
His body rocked from side to side.
lean
He leaned forward to take the glass from her.
heel
2 (verb)
Definition
to stagger
The men struggled to their feet and lurched out on to the veranda.
Synonyms
stagger
a government that staggered from crisis to crisis
reel
He lost his balance and reeled back.
stumble
It was dark by the time they stumbled into the farmyard.
weave
sway
The people swayed back and forth with arms linked.
totter
His legs were in pain and he had to totter home.
idiom
See leave someone in the lurch
Additional synonyms
in the sense of lean
Definition
to bend or make (something) bend from an upright position
He leaned forward to take the glass from her.
Synonyms
bend,
tip,
slope,
incline,
tilt,
heel,
slant
in the sense of list
Definition
(esp. of ships) to lean to one side
The ship listed again, and she was thrown back across the bunk.
Synonyms
lean,
tip,
heel,
incline,
tilt,
cant,
heel over,
careen
in the sense of pitch
Definition
(of a ship or plane) to dip and raise its back and front alternately
The ship was pitching and rolling as if in mid-ocean.
Synonyms
toss (about),
roll,
plunge,
flounder,
lurch,
wallow,
welter,
make heavy weather
Nearby words of
lurch
lunchtime
lung
lunge
lurch
lure
lurid
lurk
Related terms of
lurch
leave someone in the lurch
Synonyms of 'lurch'
lurch
Explore 'lurch' in the dictionary
Additional synonyms
in the sense of reel
Definition
to move unsteadily or spin round, as if about to fall
He lost his balance and reeled back.
Synonyms
stagger,
rock,
roll,
pitch,
stumble,
sway,
falter,
lurch,
wobble,
waver,
totter
in the sense of rock
His body rocked from side to side.
Synonyms
sway,
pitch,
swing,
reel,
toss,
lurch,
wobble,
roll
in the sense of roll
Definition
(of a ship or aircraft) to turn from side to side around the longitudinal axis
The ship was still rolling in the troughs.
Synonyms
toss,
rock,
lurch,
reel,
tumble,
sway,
wallow,
billow,
swing,
welter
in the sense of stumble
Definition
to walk in an unsteady or unsure way
It was dark by the time they stumbled into the farmyard.
Synonyms
totter,
reel,
stagger,
blunder,
falter,
flounder,
lurch,
wobble,
teeter,
move clumsily
in the sense of sway
Definition
to lean to one side and then the other
The people swayed back and forth with arms linked.