lurch

¹ American  

[lurch] / lɜrtʃ /

noun

1. an act or instance of swaying abruptly.

2. an awkward, swaying or staggering motion or gait.

3. a sudden tip or roll to one side, as of a ship or a staggering person.

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verb (used without object)

1. to make a lurch; move with lurches; stagger.

   The wounded man lurched across the room.

   Synonyms:

   totter, reel, lunge

2. (of a ship) to roll or pitch suddenly.

lurch ² American  

[lurch] / lɜrtʃ /

noun

1. a situation at the close of various games in which the loser scores nothing or is far behind the opponent.

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idioms

1. leave in the lurch, to leave in an uncomfortable or desperate situation; desert in time of trouble.

   Our best salesperson left us in the lurch at the peak of the busy season.

lurch ³ American  

[lurch] / lɜrtʃ /

verb (used without object)

1. British Dialect. to lurk near a place; prowl.

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verb (used with object)

1. Archaic. to do out of; defraud; cheat.

2. Obsolete. to acquire through underhanded means; steal; filch.

noun

1. Archaic. the act of lurking or state of watchfulness.

lurch ¹ British  

/ lɜːtʃ /

verb

1. to lean or pitch suddenly to one side

2. to stagger or sway

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noun

1. the act or an instance of lurching

lurch ² British  

/ lɜːtʃ /

noun

1. to desert someone in trouble

2. cribbage the state of a losing player with less than 30 points at the end of a game (esp in the phrase in the lurch )

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lurch ³ British  

/ lɜːtʃ /

verb

1. archaic (intr) to prowl or steal about suspiciously

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lurch More Idioms  

1. see leave in the lurch.

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• lurchingly
  adverb
• lurching
  adjective

Etymology

Origin of lurch¹

First recorded in 1800–10; origin uncertain

Origin of lurch²

First recorded in 1525–35; from Middle French lourche a game, noun use of lourche (adjective) “defeated,” from a Germanic language; compare Middle High German lurz “left (hand); wrong,” lürzen “to deceive,” Old English belyrtan “to deceive”

Origin of lurch³

First recorded in 1400–50; late Middle English lorchen “to skulk,” apparently variant of lurken lurk

Explanation

To lurch is to suddenly move — usually forward. If you are on a ship that lurches a lot during a storm, you may find your body lurching in one direction and your stomach going in the opposite one. The verb lurch can refer to any abrupt movement, but it often has the sense of a sharp turn up, down, or sideways. If you invest in the stock market, you have to be prepared for sudden losses and gains as the stock market can lurch up or down on a whim. The verb also means to make sudden jerking movements when walking, as if you cannot control your movements.

Example Sentences

Country Lurch breaks his pledge to never enter her old apartment so he can tell Carrie he can't move into her new palace either.

From Salon • Aug. 25, 2023

In 2015, she was mocked and bullied by online trolls who said her court sketch from the "Deflate-gate" trial had made NFL star quarterback Tom Brady look like Lurch from the Addams Family.

From BBC • Jun. 16, 2023

Son Pugsley, too, had white space surrounding his pupils, as did Grandmama and Uncle Fester — and even their butler Lurch.

From Washington Post • Jan. 31, 2023

The most charming dates to a vintage scene from the 1960s series in which Loring’s Wednesday teaches Lurch how to dance “the Drew.”

From New York Times • Dec. 9, 2022

Lurch after lurch, nostrils flaring, Belle tries to move forward.

From "Will’s Race for Home" by Jewell Parker Rhodes

Related Words

• bumble
• careen
• falter
• flounder
• heave
• jerk
• lean
• reel
• seesaw
• stagger
• stumble
• sway
• teeter
• tilt
• totter
• wallow
• wobble