ENGLISH DICTIONARY

Lurch

Definition, Meaning & Examples

Pronunciation /lɜːt͡ʃ/ · Part of speech noun

Quick meaning: Lurch is a noun meaning A sudden or unsteady movement.

Meaning

A sudden or unsteady movement.

More Meanings

  1. To make such a sudden, unsteady movement.
  2. A predicament or difficult situation.
  3. (obsolete) To swallow or eat greedily; to devour; hence, to swallow up.
  4. (dialectal, intransitive) To evade by stooping; to lurk; lie in wait; go about in a sneaking way.
  5. (dialectal, intransitive) To take by surprise; to unexpectedly detain.
  6. (obsolete, transitive) To rob.
  7. (dialectal) A lift or heave.

Example Sentences

the lurch of a ship, or of a drunkard
Number One lurched forward, his arms outstretched toward the horror stricken girl.
He was looking for trouble. He lurched against a table at which three soldiers were sitting and knocked over a glass of beer.
Too far off from great cities, which may hinder business; too near them, which lurcheth all provisions, and maketh everything dear.

Word Forms

Synonyms for lurch

Depending on context, synonyms include desolate, shift, pitch, stagger, careen, stumble.

Related Words

Related dictionary entries include reel, stagger, stumble, swag, pitching, prowl.

Related Dictionary Tools

Sources & Attribution

FreeDictionaryAPI.com / Wiktionary · Original source · CC BY-SA 4.0

Dictionary data is provided by FreeDictionaryAPI.com and sourced from Wiktionary under its stated license.