plummet

[pluhm-it]

noun

1. Also called plumb bob. a piece of lead or some other weight attached to a line, used for determining perpendicularity, for sounding, etc.; the bob of a plumb line.

2. something that weighs down or depresses.

verb (used without object)

1. to plunge.

   Synonyms: swoop, drop, dive, fall

plummet

/ ˈplʌmɪt /

verb

1. (intr) to drop down; plunge

noun

1. another word for plumb bob

2. a lead plumb used by anglers to determine the depth of water

Other Word Forms

• unplummeted adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of plummet¹

1350–1400; (noun) Middle English plommet < Middle French, diminutive of plomb lead; (v.) derivative of the noun See plumb, -et

Word History and Origins

Origin of plummet¹

C14: from Old French plommet ball of lead, from plomb lead, from Latin plumbum

Example Sentences

But official gold production plummeted after the fighting broke out, with underground mining and trafficking networks taking over, according to a recent Chatham House study.

Read more on Barron's

The reserve’s wildlife population, including wildebeest, has already plummeted to less than a third of its 1970s levels.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

The Obayifo blinks out of the air once more and plummets to the ground.

Read more on Literature

Budgets have been slashed, layoffs have been rampant, production costs have soared and morale has plummeted as audiences have been recalibrating their entertainment options.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

Under new coach Ben Johnson, who had been the coordinator of the Lions’ high-octane offense, those sacks have plummeted.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

Related Words

• collapse 
• crash 
• decline 
• decrease 
• descend 
• dip 
• dive 
• drop 
• drop down www.thesaurus.com
• fall 
• nose-dive 
• plunge 
• sink 
• skid 
• tumble