dive
dive Lexical Profile
dive Game Scores & Validity
• noun
A headfirst plunge into water, or a period of swimming underwater using breathing apparatus.
"She executed a graceful dive from the ten-meter platform into the pool below."
A sudden, steep downward movement, fall, or decline in value or level.
"Tech stocks took a sharp dive following the disappointing quarterly earnings report."
A shabby, unpretentious, or disreputable bar, pub, or nightclub.
"The musicians gathered at a dimly lit neighborhood dive after their late-night concert."
A deliberate and deceptive fall to the ground in sports to feign an injury or win a foul.
"The referee issued a yellow card after determining that the striker's fall in the penalty box was a dive."
• verb
To plunge headfirst into water, or to swim underwater using breathing equipment.
"Marine biologists dive along the coral reef every summer to monitor changes in biodiversity."
To drop, fall, or lunge steeply and rapidly through the air or toward the ground.
"The peregrine falcon can dive at speeds exceeding two hundred miles per hour to catch its prey."
To immerse oneself eagerly and thoroughly in an activity, topic, or task.
"Once the archival documents were digitized, the historians were eager to dive into the research."
To fall or drop suddenly and sharply in amount, value, or temperature.
"Temperatures are expected to dive below freezing as the Arctic front moves south tonight."
Word Nuance & Usage
Both 'dived' and 'dove' are accepted past tense forms of the verb 'dive': 'dived' is the older, regular form preferred in British English and formal writing, while 'dove' is widely standard in American and Canadian English.
• Rhymes for dive
Word Origin & Etymology
From Old English dȳfan ('to dip, submerge') and dūfan ('to sink, plunge'), both of Proto-Germanic origin and distantly related to 'deep' and 'dip'.