| 释义 |
plunge
I. \ˈplənj\ verb
(-ed/-ing/-s)
Etymology: Middle English plungen, plongen, from Middle French plonger, plongier, from (assumed) Vulgar Latin plumbicare, from Latin plumbum lead — more at plumb
transitive verb
1.
a. : to cause to penetrate or enter quickly and forcibly into some material medium : thrust or force into or in liquid, a penetrable substance, or a cavity : immerse, submerge
< plunge the body into water >
< plunge a dagger into the breast >
b. obsolete : to baptize by immersion
c. : to sink (a potted plant) in the ground or in a bed of prepared material
2.
a. : to cause to enter or force into some state or course of action usually suddenly, unexpectedly, or violently and against opposition
< scoundrels that plunged the nation into needless war >
< plunging himself into dissipation >
b. obsolete : to harass or overwhelm especially with difficulties
3.
a. : to set (as the horizontal cross hair of a theodolite) in the direction of a grade in plunging a grade
b. : to turn over (as the telescope of a transit) on its horizontal transverse axis
intransitive verb
1. : to thrust or cast oneself into or as if into water : submerge oneself : dive or rush in : penetrate, sink, or enter suddenly or impetuously (as into a forest)
2.
a.
(1) : to pitch or throw oneself headlong or violently forward and downward (as of a horse or ship)
(2) : to execute a football plunge
b. : to act with reckless haste : enter into some state or course of action usually suddenly, unexpectedly, or unreasonably
< plunged into debt >
c. : to bet or gamble heavily and with seeming recklessness : risk large sums in hazardous enterprises
3.
a. : to descend or dip suddenly
< the road plunges along the slope >
b. : to incline downward — used especially of a pipelike ore deposit, an anticline, or a syncline
Synonyms:
plunge, dive, and pitch can mean in common to throw oneself or cause something to be thrown or thrust forward and downward with force into or as if into deep water. plunge stresses the force of the movement forward and downward, often suggesting lack of intention and usually implying a final total immersion
< to plunge bodily into the water after a forty-foot drop — C.S.Forester >
< the schooner's bows rose dizzily to dip, then plunge — I.L.Idriess >
< we are plunged once more into the war of nerves — Times Literary Supplement >
< horses plunged and tugged — Stephen Crane >
< the singer drew breath and plunged into a new stanza — Florette Henri >
dive, usually implying intention, suggests a certain skill in execution, less heaviness, and more grace
< an enormous water rat dived down from the bank — J.C.Powys >
< the sun dived suddenly into the confusion of low, wooded islands along the western shore — Walter O'Meara >
< she dove into the red pocketbook and, burrowing among the debris, came up at last with what she was after — Helen Howe >
< dive a plane into the sea >
pitch, in this comparison, usually implies total absence of control
< pitch headlong over a cliff >
< stumble and pitch forward on his face >
It can often apply to a plunging or tossing from side to side
< the ship began to pitch suddenly as the storm hit >
< a horse pitching and plunging to dislodge a rider >
•
- plunge a grade
II. noun
(-s)
Etymology: Middle English, from plungen, plongen, v.
1. : a place for plunging or diving (as a swimming pool) : a deep place in water : a deep pool
2. : a dive, leap, rush, or pitch into or as if into water : an act of pitching oneself headlong or violently forward and usually downward
< take the water with a plunge >
as
a. : a breaking of a wave
b. : a heavy fall (as of rain)
c. : a quick thrust into the line in a football game
d. : a brief swim
3.
a. chiefly dialect : involvement in a difficult or dangerous situation : strait, dilemma
b. : an act or instance of engaging in heavy and reckless betting or hazardous speculation or expenditure : splurge
4. : the vertical angle between the lineation of a linear structural or textural fissure in rocks and a horizontal plane — used especially of ore bodies, folds, or mineral orientations; compare pitch IV 2a (8) |