Meaning

(intransitive) To move gently and vertically, in either a single motion or repeatedly up and down, at or near the surface of a body of water, or similar medium..

Definitions by Sense

1. (intransitive) To move gently and vertically, in either a single motion or repeatedly up and down, at or near the surface of a body of water, or similar medium.
2. (transitive) To move (something) as though it were bobbing in water.
3. To curtsy.
4. To strike with a quick, light blow; to tap.
5. (intransitive) Synonym of blob (“catch eels using worms strung on thread”).
6. A bobbing motion; a quick up and down movement.
7. A curtsy.
8. A bobber (buoyant fishing device).

Example Sentences

The cork bobbed gently in the calm water.

The ball, which we had thought lost, suddenly bobbed up out of the water.

The flowers were bobbing in the wind.

I bobbed my head underwater and saw the goldfish.

bob one’s head

And if any man hapned, by longe sittynge, to slepe, or, by any other countenance, to shewe him selfe to be weary, he was sodaynly bobbed on the face by the seruantes of Nero, […]

Lo, lo, lo, lo, what modicums of wit he vtters, his euaſions haue eares thus long, I haue bobd his braine more then he has beate my bones.

After they had had supper Frank said, Do you remember those men whom we saw near Norwich, who sat in small boats all the night long, and with a line in each hand, bobbed for eels?

Word Forms

• bobs
• bobbing
• bobbed
• bob

Synonyms for bob

Related Words

When Should You Use Bob?

Use bob when its meaning, tone and grammar fit the full sentence. A synonym is not always a direct replacement.

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