bounce
Americanverb (used without object)
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to spring back from a surface in a lively manner.
The ball bounced off the wall.
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to strike the ground or other surface, and rebound.
The ball bounced once before he caught it.
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to move or walk in a lively, exuberant, or energetic manner.
She bounced into the room.
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to move along in a lively manner, repeatedly striking the surface below and rebounding.
The box bounced down the stairs.
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to move about or enter or leave noisily or angrily (followed by around, about, out, out of, into, etc.).
He bounced out of the room in a huff.
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(of a check or the like) to fail to be honored by the bank against which it was drawn, due to lack of sufficient funds.
verb (used with object)
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to cause to bound and rebound.
to bounce a ball; to bounce a child on one's knee; to bounce a signal off a satellite.
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to refuse payment on (a check) because of insufficient funds.
The bank bounced my rent check.
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to give (a bad check) as payment.
That's the first time anyone bounced a check on me.
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Slang. to eject, expel, or dismiss summarily or forcibly.
noun
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a bound or rebound.
to catch a ball on the first bounce.
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a sudden spring or leap.
In one bounce he was at the door.
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ability to rebound; resilience.
This tennis ball has no more bounce.
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vitality; energy; liveliness.
There is bounce in his step. This soda water has more bounce to it.
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the fluctuation in magnitude of target echoes on a radarscope.
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Slang. a dismissal, rejection, or expulsion.
He's gotten the bounce from three different jobs.
adverb
verb phrase
verb
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(intr) (of an elastic object, such as a ball) to rebound from an impact
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(tr) to cause (such an object) to hit a solid surface and spring back
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to rebound or cause to rebound repeatedly
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to move or cause to move suddenly, excitedly, or violently; spring
she bounced up from her chair
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slang (of a bank) to send (a cheque) back or (of a cheque) to be sent back unredeemed because of lack of funds in the drawer's account
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(of an internet service provider) to send (an email message) back or (of an email message) to be sent back to the sender, for example because the recipient's email account is full
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slang (tr) to force (a person) to leave (a place or job); throw out; eject
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(tr) to hustle (a person) into believing or doing something
noun
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the action of rebounding from an impact
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a leap; jump; bound
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the quality of being able to rebound; springiness
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informal vitality; vigour; resilience
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swagger or impudence
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informal a temporary increase or rise
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Australian rules football the start of play at the beginning of each quarter or after a goal
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informal to dismiss or be dismissed from a job
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informal in succession; one after the other
they have lost nine games on the bounce
Other Word Forms
- bounceable adjective
- bounceably adverb
Etymology
Origin of bounce
1175–1225; Middle English buncin, bounsen, variant of bunkin, apparently cognate with Dutch bonken to thump, belabor, bonzen to knock, bump
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.
It provided the seamers with movement and bounce, making batting treacherous, with England winning by four wickets inside two days.
From Barron's
Nearing 40, she quit acting and spent the rest of her life bouncing between her Saint-Tropez beach house and a farm — complete with a chapel — outside Paris.
From Los Angeles Times
Page and his team left 10 millimetres of grass on the wicket, providing fast bowlers with excessive seam movement and bounce which made batting treacherous.
From Barron's
"The constant bouncing of the pickleball is not only annoying but also subtly triggers stress, disrupts sleep, and increases the risk of cardiovascular disease," according to state-run VTC News website.
From Barron's
But bouncing from sky to dirt in a bipolar fashion loses its charms with endless repetition.
From Los Angeles Times
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.
