lurch
1 of 5verb (1)
ˈlərch 
lurched; lurching; lurches
intransitive verb
1
: to move with a lurch
suddenly lurched forward
also : stagger
has lurched from crisis to crisis 
Jere Longman
Jere Longman 2
: to roll or tip abruptly : pitch
lurch
2 of 5noun (1)
1
: an abrupt jerking, swaying, or tipping movement
the car moved forward with a lurch
also : stagger sense 2
2
: a sudden roll of a ship to one side
lurch
3 of 5noun (2)
: a decisive defeat in which an opponent wins a game by more than double the defeated player's score especially in cribbage
lurch
4 of 5verb (2)
lurched; lurching; lurches
transitive verb
1
: to defeat by a lurch (as in cribbage)
2
archaic : to leave in the lurch
lurch
5 of 5verb (3)
lurched; lurching; lurches
intransitive verb
dialectal, chiefly England : to loiter about a place furtively : prowl
transitive verb
1
archaic : cheat
2
obsolete : steal
Synonyms
Verb (1)
- careen
- pitch
- rock
- roll
- seesaw
- sway
- toss
- wobble
- wabble
See all Synonyms & Antonyms 
Word History
Etymology
Noun (1)
origin unknown
Noun (2) and Verb (2)
Middle French lourche, adjective, defeated by a lurch, deceived
Verb (3)
Middle English lorchen, probably alteration of lurken to lurk
First Known Use
Verb (1)
circa 1828, in the meaning defined at sense 2
Noun (1)
1805, in the meaning defined at sense 2
Noun (2)
1598, in the meaning defined above
Verb (2)
circa 1651, in the meaning defined at sense 2
Verb (3)
15th century, in the meaning defined at intransitive sense
Phrases Containing lurch
Kids Definition
lurch 1 of 2
noun
ˈlərch
: a sudden swaying, tipping, or jerking movement
lurch
2 of 2verb
lurched; lurching
: to move with a sudden swaying, tipping, or jerking motion The boat lurched in rough seas.
lurching
verb
1
as in swaying
to make a series of unsteady side-to-side motions the room lurched with every jolt of the earthquake Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
- swaying
- rocking
- shaking
- wobbling
- rolling
- careening
- jerking
- tossing
- halting
- vibrating
- seesawing
- stumbling
- tumbling
- wabbling
- faltering
- jolting
- tottering
- waddling
- vacillating
- blundering
- hobbling
- staggering
- floundering
- wavering
- reeling
- toddling
- teetering
- bucking
- doddering
- weaving
- hitching
- pitching
- undulating
- oscillating
- waggling
- wagging
2
as in staggering
to move forward while swaying from side to side dressed in his zombie costume, the boy lurched down the street in his quest for Halloween candy Synonyms & Similar Words
- staggering
- shuffling
- stumbling
- careening
- rolling
- tottering
- stomping
- waddling
- weaving
- swaying
- reeling
- rocking
- doddering
- teetering
- wobbling
- wavering
- shambling
- seesawing
- blundering
- galumphing
- floundering
- wabbling
- clomping
- scuffling
- pounding
- lumbering
- clumping
- barging
- swagging
- tramping
- scuffing
- lumping
- stamping
- tromping