dive
Americanverb (used without object)
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to plunge into water, especially headfirst.
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to go below the surface of the water, as a submarine.
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to plunge, fall, or descend through the air, into the earth, etc..
The acrobats dived into nets.
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Aeronautics. (of an airplane) to descend rapidly.
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to penetrate suddenly into something, as with the hand.
to dive into one's purse.
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to dart.
to dive into a doorway.
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to enter deeply or plunge into a subject, activity, etc.
verb (used with object)
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to cause to plunge, submerge, or descend.
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to insert quickly; plunge.
He dived his hand into his pocket.
noun
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an act or instance of diving.
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a jump or plunge into water, especially in a prescribed way from a diving board.
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the vertical or nearly vertical descent of an airplane at a speed surpassing the possible speed of the same plane in level flight.
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a submerging, as of a submarine or skin diver.
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a dash, plunge, or lunge, as if throwing oneself at or into something.
He made a dive for the football.
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a sudden or sharp decline, as in stock prices.
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Slang.
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a dingy or disreputable bar or nightclub.
Grab a beer with some locals at the dive on the corner.
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any shabby, run-down place, especially a residence.
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Boxing. a false show of being knocked out, usually in a bout whose result has been prearranged.
to take a dive in an early round.
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Also called simulated contact. Soccer. a dramatic fall or feigned injury intended to persuade officials to penalize the opposing team.
His dive fooled the ref into giving his team a free kick.
verb
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to plunge headfirst into water
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(of a submarine, swimmer, etc) to submerge under water
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(also tr) to fly (an aircraft) in a steep nose-down descending path, or (of an aircraft) to fly in such a path
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to rush, go, or reach quickly, as in a headlong plunge
he dived for the ball
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(also tr; foll by in or into) to dip or put (one's hand) quickly or forcefully (into)
to dive into one's pocket
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to involve oneself (in something), as in eating food
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slang soccer (of a footballer) to pretend to have been tripped or impeded by an opposing player in order to win a free kick or penalty
noun
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a headlong plunge into water, esp one of several formalized movements executed as a sport
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an act or instance of diving
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a steep nose-down descent of an aircraft
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slang a disreputable or seedy bar or club
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slang boxing the act of a boxer pretending to be knocked down or out
he took a dive in the fourth round
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slang soccer the act of a player pretending to have been tripped or impeded
Usage
Both dived and dove are standard as the past tense of dive. Dived, historically the older form, is somewhat more common in edited writing, but dove occurs there so frequently that it also must be considered standard: The rescuer dove into 20 feet of icy water. Dove is an Americanism that probably developed by analogy with alternations like drive, drove and ride, rode. It is the more common form in speech in the northern United States and in Canada, and its use seems to be spreading. The past participle of dive is always dived.
Other Word Forms
- postdive adjective
- predive adjective
- underdive noun
Etymology
Origin of dive
First recorded before 900; Middle English diven “to dive, dip,” Old English dȳfan “to dip” (causative of dūfan “to dive, sink”); cognate with Old Norse dȳfa “to dip,” German taufen “to baptize”; akin to dip 1
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.
But the stock is unusually inexpensive when doing a deeper dive, according to a Bernstein analyst.
From MarketWatch
The traditionalist’s beloved pastime of dictionary diving has been enhanced in subtle ways, too.
Unlike many investors, if one of his company’s stocks weakened, Buffett would dive in and buy more, he added.
From MarketWatch
If he’s serving up the trash, then call me a raccoon, because I’m ready to dive in.
From Los Angeles Times
The Nasdaq on Wall Street dived 1.8 percent and the broader S&P 500 was off more than one percent.
From Barron's
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.
