plunk
/plʌŋk/
Word Rarity
Very rare
Frequency: Zipf frequency 2.11 in modern English
11
Scrabble Score
5
Letters
1
Syllables
5
Unique Chars
Meaning
noun
A brief, dull sound, such as the sound of a string of a stringed instrument being plucked, or the thud of something landing on a surface.
intj
Often reduplicated: used to represent a brief, dull sound, such as the sound of a string of a stringed instrument being plucked, or the thud of something landing on a surface.
Informal
Example Sentences
- "They listened and could hear the steady plunk, plunk of an axe somewhere far above them."
- "Den I gives him a five-plunk piece, and he gins me the shange."
- "Dere's a loidy here […] dat's got a necklace of jools what's wort' a hundred t'ousand plunks. Honest, boss. A hundred t'ousand plunks."
- ""Bang!" went a gun behind me. I heard the whistle of shot. Something stung me sharply on the cheek, and I fell forward on my face, giving myself up for lost. […] "Oh, ye will never dee o' a chairge o' guid saft garden peas!" said the daft lassie, scornfully. "Maybe no," retorted I, for my choler was raised. "They are a' vera weel in broth, but if you got them plunk on the jaw, wi' a strong chairge o' powder ahint them, they might bring the water to your e'en as well as mine.""
- "[I]t's one thing to be buried with all your pleasures, like Sardanapalus; it's another to be buried right plunk in front of them, where you can see them."
- "Look at me; is my eye dilated? do you notice a quiver anywhere? Feel my pulse: plunk—plunk—plunk—same as if I were asleep."
Etymology
Onomatopoeic; the noun is attested earlier than the verb. Noun etymology 1, noun sense 3 (“dollar; large sum of money”) may refer to the sound of a coin hitting a surface. Compare plonk, plink. As regards verb etymology 1, verb sense 1.4 (“(transitive) to drop, set, or throw (something, or oneself) abruptly and/or heavily”) and etymology 1, verb sense 2.4 (“(intransitive) to drop, land, or set abruptly and/or heavily”), compare French plonquer (Picardy), a variant of plonger (“to plunge”).
Origin
Word Breakdown
- Root: plenken
Regional Pronunciation
- American English: /plʌŋk/
- British English: /plʌŋk/