gulp
Americanverb (used without object)
verb (used with object)
noun
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the act of gulping.
He drank the whole bottle of beer in one gulp.
-
the amount swallowed at one time; mouthful.
verb
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to swallow rapidly, esp in large mouthfuls
to gulp down food
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to stifle or choke
to gulp back sobs
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(intr) to swallow air convulsively, as while drinking, because of nervousness, surprise, etc
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(intr) to make a noise, as when swallowing too quickly
noun
-
the act of gulping
-
the quantity taken in a gulp
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Conjugated Forms
Present
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has gulpedperfect 3rd person singular
-
have gulpedperfect
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has been gulpingperfect progressive 3rd person singular
-
are gulpingprogressive
-
am gulpingprogressive 1st person singular
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gulpingparticiple
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is gulpingprogressive 3rd person singular
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have been gulpingperfect progressive
-
gulpssingular 3rd person
Past
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had gulpedperfect
-
had been gulpingperfect progressive
-
were gulpingprogressive plural
-
was gulpingprogressive singular
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gulpedsimple
-
gulpedparticiple
Future
Etymology
Origin of gulp
1400–50; late Middle English gulpen (v.); compare Dutch gulpen, Norwegian glupa
Explanation
To gulp is to loudly and quickly swallow food, drink, or air. You might gulp nervously before you stand up to make a speech. When you gulp down your breakfast so you can run and catch your bus, or gulp air upon rising to the surface of a swimming pool, you can say you take a gulp — or many gulps. The word dates from the 1300s, but its origin is somewhat uncertain. Most experts link it to the imitative Dutch gulpen, "to gush, guzzle, or swallow."
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
