Definition

1. Verb:

   • To drop or set something down heavily and abruptly, often with a dull, hollow sound: To place or let something fall with a sudden, solid impact.
   • To pull and release a stringed instrument's string sharply to produce a twanging sound: To play a stringed instrument by pulling and releasing a string with the fingers or a plectrum.
   • To fall or drop steeply and suddenly: To descend or decline rapidly.

2. Noun:

   • A hollow, twanging sound: The sound made by plucking a taut string or by something landing with a dull thud.
   • (In baseball) A hit that causes the ball to drop suddenly: A type of batted ball that descends sharply.

3. Adverb:

   • With a short, hollow, thudding sound: Describes the manner of a heavy, abrupt fall or impact.

Usage Examples

• Verb:

  • He plunked the heavy bag of groceries onto the kitchen counter. (He set the bag down heavily and abruptly.)
  • She plunked the banjo strings with her thumb. (She pulled and released the banjo strings to make a sound.)
  • The temperature plunked overnight as the cold front arrived. (The temperature fell sharply and suddenly.)

• Noun:

  • The plunk of the coin in the empty cup was the only sound. (The hollow, thudding sound of the coin.)
  • The batter hit a plunk into shallow left field. (He hit a baseball that dropped suddenly.)

• Adverb:

  • The ripe apple fell plunk into the bucket. (The apple fell with a short, hollow thud.)

Advanced Usage

• "to plunk (oneself) down": To sit or lie down heavily and without ceremony.

  • After the long hike, he plunked himself down on the nearest bench. (He sat down heavily and abruptly on the bench.)

• "to plunk down [money]": To pay for something, especially by putting the money on a surface in a decisive manner.

  • She plunked down fifty dollars for the concert tickets. (She paid the money in a direct, emphatic way.)

Variants and Related Words

• Plunking (n/adj): The act or sound of plunking. ()
• Plunker (n, informal): Someone or something that plunks. ()

Synonyms

• Verb: Thump, plop, drop, dump, pluck, strum.
• Noun: Thud, plop, twang.
• Adverb: Plop.

Related Phrasal Verbs

• Plunk for (informal): To choose or support someone or something.
  • I'm going to plunk for the candidate with the most experience. (I will choose to support that candidate.)

Related Idioms

• Plunk in the middle: Directly in the center; right in the most obvious or central position.
  • The statue was placed plunk in the middle of the town square. (The statue was positioned right in the center.)

Adverb

1. with a short hollow thud
   • plop came the ball down to the corner of the green

Noun

1. (baseball) hitting a baseball so that it drops suddenly
2. a hollow twanging sound

Verb

1. pull lightly but sharply with a plucking motion
   • he plucked the strings of his mandolin
2. drop steeply
   • the stock market plunged
3. set (something or oneself) down with or as if with a noise
   • He planked the money on the table
   • He planked himself into the sofa
4. make or move along with a sound as of a horse's hooves striking the ground