lurch

Noun

A sudden or unsteady movement.

Verb

To make such a sudden, unsteady movement.

Verb

To swallow or eat greedily; to devour; hence, to swallow up.

Verb

1. (dialectal, intransitive) To evade by stooping; to lurk; lie in wait; go about in a sneaking way.
2. (dialectal, intransitive) To take by surprise; to unexpectedly detain.
3. (obsolete, transitive) To rob.

Verb

1. (transitive) To defeat in the game of cribbage with a lurch (double score as explained under noun entry).
2. (obsolete, transitive) To leave someone in the lurch; to cheat.

Pronounced as (IPA)

/lɝt͡ʃ/

Etymology

Inherited from Middle English: lorchen

Inherited from Middle English: *lurche

Cognate with English: lirt

In summary

Originally a nautical term, found in lee-larches (“the sudden and violent rolls of a ship to the leeward in high seas”), of unknown origin. Possibly the same as lurch (“to move stealthily, evade by stooping”) (see below), or from French lâcher (“to let go”).

Synonyms

stagger

reel

totter

sway

careen

pitch

teeter

swag

stumble

lunge

keel

roll

falter

be disposed to

list

incline toward

decline

rush

trend toward

be prone to

shift

skunk

🦨

sink

slant

flounder

tilt

tip

pitching

lean

leaning

wane

predicament

go down

prowl

wobble

whacking

whipping

heel over

rout out

swoop down

whap

trace a zigzag course

flip tail

heed over

seel

beating

lounge around

boggle

charge

dash

💨

Translations

taumeln

barcollare

tituber

τρικλίζω

schlingern

faire une embardée

αμηχανία

sendelemek

torkeln

tambalearse

sacudida

παραπάτημα

difficoltà

vacil·lar

trontollar