plummet

• POS: Noun, Verb (intransitive)
• HYPHEN: plum=met

CIDE DICTIONARY

plummet, n. [OE. plommet, OF. plommet, fr. plom, plum, lead, F. plomb. See Plumb.].

•  A piece of lead attached to a line, used in sounding the depth of water.  [1913 Webster]

  "I'll sink him deeper than e'er plummet sounded."  [1913 Webster]
•  A plumb bob or a plumb line. See under Plumb, n.  [1913 Webster]
•  Hence, any weight.  [1913 Webster]
•  A piece of lead formerly used by school children to rule paper for writing.  [1913 Webster]

Plummet line, a line with a plummet; a sounding line.

OXFORD DICTIONARY

plummet, n. & v.
--n.
1 a plumb or plumb-line.
2 a sounding-line.
3 a weight attached to a fishing-line to keep the float upright.
--v.intr. (plummeted, plummeting) fall or plunge rapidly.

Etymology

ME f. OF plommet dimin. (as PLUMB(1))

THESAURUS

plummet

T square, abate, ablate, bate, be eaten away, beat down, bob, break, cascade, cataract, cheapen, cheapening, collapse, come down, consume, consume away, corrode, crash, crumble, cut, cut prices, decline, decrease, deflate, deflation, deliquesce, depreciate, depreciation, descend, devaluate, devaluation, die away, diminish, dip, dip down, dive, down, drop, drop down, drop off, dump, dwindle, ebb, erode, fall, fall away, fall down, fall in price, fall off, give way, go down, go downhill, gravitate, jew down, languish, lead, lessen, let up, lose altitude, lower, lowering, mark down, markdown, melt away, nose dive, nose-dive, parachute, pare, pitch, plop, plumb, plumb bob, plumb line, plumb rule, plummeting, plump, plunge, plunk, pounce, pounce on, pounce upon, pour down, precipitate, price cut, price fall, price reduction, rain, reduce, reduction, run low, sag, sandbag, set square, shave, shrink, sink, sinker, skid, skin-dive, sky-dive, slash, slump, soar, sound, square, stoop, subside, swoop, swoop down, tail off, take a header, trend downward, trim, try square, tumble, wane, waste, waste away, wear, wear away, weight

ROGET THESAURUS

plummet

Depth

N depth, deepness, profundity, depression, hollow, pit, shaft, well, crater, gulf, bowels of the earth, botttomless pit, hell, soundings, depth of water, water, draught, submersion, plummet, sound, probe, sounding rod, sounding line, lead, bathymetry, sonar, side-looking sonar, bathometer, deep, deep seated, profound, sunk, buried, submerged, subaqueous, submarine, subterranean, subterraneous, subterrene, underground, bottomless, soundless, fathomless, unfathomed, unfathomable, abysmal, deep as a well, bathycolpian, benthal, benthopelagic, downreaching, yawning, knee deep, ankle deep, beyond one's depth, out of one's depth, over head and ears, mark twine, mark twain.

Verticality

N verticality, erectness, perpendicularity, right angle, normal, azimuth circle, wall, precipice, cliff, elevation, erection, square, plumb line, plummet, vertical, upright, erect, perpendicular, plumb, normal, straight, bolt, upright, rampant, standing up, rectangular, orthogonal, vertically, up, on end, up on end, right on end, a plomb, endwise, one one's legs, at right angles.

Descent

N descent, descension, declension, declination, fall, falling, slump, drop, plunge, plummet, cadence, subsidence, collapse, lapse, downfall, tumble, slip, tilt, trip, lurch, cropper, culbute, titubation, stumble, fate of Icarus, avalanche, debacle, landslip, landslide, declivity, dip, hill, rappel, descending, descendent, decurrent, decursive, labent, deciduous, nodding to its fall, downhill, downwards, the bottom fell out.

VB descend, go down, drop down, come down, fall, gravitate, drop, slip, slide, rappel, settle, plunge, plummet, crash, decline, set, sink, droop, come down a peg, slump, dismount, alight, light, get down, swoop, stoop, fall prostrate, precipitate oneself, let fall, tumble, trip, stumble, titubate, lurch, pitch, swag, topple, topple over, tumble over, topple down, tumble down, tilt, sprawl, plump down, come down a cropper.