plop
Americanverb (used without object)
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to make a sound like that of something falling or dropping into water.
A frog plopped into the pond.
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to fall with such a sound.
Big raindrops plopped against the window.
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to drop or fall with full force or direct impact.
He plopped into a chair.
verb (used with object)
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to drop or set down heavily.
She plopped her books on the desk.
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to cause to plop.
The fisherman plopped the bait into the river.
noun
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a plopping sound or fall.
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the act of plopping.
adverb
noun
verb
interjection
Other Word Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
plopsimple
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plopssimple
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have ploppedperfect
-
has ploppedperfect
-
am ploppingprogressive
-
are ploppingprogressive
-
is ploppingprogressive
-
have been ploppingperfect progressive
-
has been ploppingperfect progressive
Past
-
ploppedsimple
-
had ploppedperfect
-
was ploppingprogressive
-
were ploppingprogressive
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had been ploppingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of plop
First recorded in 1815–25; imitative
Explanation
To plop is to drop something (or yourself) with a short sound. The sound itself is also a plop — like something landing in water without much of a splash. The sound of a plop is abrupt and hollow — you could also call it a plunk or a or a plonk. You might plop an ice cube in your glass of water, or watch a flock of bird plop themselves on the surface of a pond. Plop is imitative or onomatopoeic (it sounds like its meaning), and it first appeared in the 1820s after the brief popularity of the alternative word plap.
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Plop me pool-side and place one of these in my hand, please and thank you.
From Salon • Jul. 2, 2022
Plop right in and prepare yourself for a full-immersion experience.
From Seattle Times • Jun. 29, 2022
She has chosen to read The Owl Who Was Afraid of the Dark. which follows the story of Plop, a baby barn owl and aligns with this year's theme of 'Growing Together'.
From BBC • Feb. 11, 2022
Plop him onto Antarctica, he thinks, or maybe even parts of Europe, and he might as well be Bob Gibson.
From Washington Post • Sep. 23, 2021
Plop followed plop, as the big fellows rose, snatched at their food, and vanished into the depths.
From The Wolves of God And Other Fey Stories by Blackwood, Algernon
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.
