plunge

I

(New American Roget's College Thesaurus)

v. dip, submerge; dive; sink, fall, drop; douse, go or put under water; gamble, bet heavily, go off the deep end (inf.); fling, jump. —n. dive, swim, dip; submersion; informal, venture. See water, haste.

II

(Roget's IV) n.

Syn. dive, leap, fall; see dive 1 , fall 1 .

• take the plunge*,

Syn. start, commence, attempt; see begin 1 .

v.

Syn. fall, throw oneself, rush; see dive , jump 1 .

III

(Roget's 3 Superthesaurus)

I

n.

drop, fall, dive, descent, nosedive, jump.

II

v.

1. dive rush, descend, fall, drop, nosedive, plummet, hustle, pitch, swoop.

2. throw oneself into charge, lunge, dash, leap, shoot, surge, pounce, spring, jump headlong.

ANT.: 1. ascend, rise, go up. 2. proceed slowly, move with caution

IV

(Roget's Thesaurus II) I verb 1. To move or thrust at, under, or into the midst of with sudden force: dive, lunge, wade in (or into). See ENTER. 2. To cause to penetrate with force: dig, drive, ram, run, sink, stab, stick, thrust. See PUT IN. 3. To come to the ground suddenly and involuntarily: drop, fall, go down, nose-dive, pitch, spill, topple, tumble. Idiom: take a fall (or header or plunge or spill or tumble). See RISE. 4. To move or advance against strong resistance: drive, forge2, lunge. See MOVE. 5. To undergo a sharp, rapid descent in value or price: dive, drop, fall, nose-dive, plummet, sink, skid, slump, tumble. Idiom: take a sudden downtrend (or downturn). See INCREASE. II noun 1. The act of plunging suddenly downward into or as if into water: dive, nosedive, swoop. Informal: header. See ENTER. 2. A sudden involuntary drop to the ground: dive, fall, nosedive, pitch, spill, tumble. Informal: header. See RISE. 3. A usually swift downward trend, as in prices: decline, descent, dip, dive, downslide, downswing, downtrend, downturn, drop, drop-off, fall, nosedive, skid, slide, slump, tumble. See INCREASE. 4. The act of swimming: dip, duck, dunk, swim. See WORK.