plumb

See also: Plumb and plumb-

English

Pronunciation

• enPR: plŭm, IPA^(key): /plʌm/

• Audio (US):

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• Audio (General Australian):

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• Rhymes: -ʌm
• Homophone: plum

Etymology 1

From Middle English plumbe, plumme, from Old French *plombe, from Latin plumba, plural of plumbum.

Noun

plumb (plural plumbs)

1. A little mass of lead, or the like, attached to a line, and used by builders, etc., to indicate a vertical direction.
2. (nautical) A weight on the end of a long line, used by sailors to determine the depth of water.
3. The perpendicular direction or position.

Synonyms

• (construction): plummet, plumb bob (UK), plumb line (US)

Derived terms

Derived terms

• off plumb
• out of plumb
• plumb bob
• plumb line
• plumb rule

Translations

mass attached to a line to indicate vertical direction

• Bulgarian: отвес m (otves)
• Finnish: luoti (fi), lyijypaino
• Romanian: plumb (ro) n
• Spanish: plomada (es) f

nautical: mass attached to a line to indicate depth

• Bulgarian: лот (bg) m (lot)
• Finnish: luoti (fi)
• Spanish: plomada (es) f, sonda (es) f

Adjective

plumb (comparative more plumb, superlative most plumb)

1. Truly vertical, as indicated by a plumb line.
2. (cricket) Describing an LBW where the batsman is hit on the pads directly in front of their wicket and should be given out.

Synonyms

• (truly vertical): perpendicular

Translations

truly vertical

• Bulgarian: отвесен (bg) (otvesen)
• Danish: lodret (da), vater
• Dutch: loodrecht (nl), in het lood
• Finnish: kohtisuora (fi)
• German: lotrecht (de)
• Portuguese: prumo (pt) m
• Swedish: lodrät (sv)

Adverb

plumb (not comparable)

1. In a vertical direction; perpendicularly.
   • 1667, John Milton, “(please specify the page number)”, in Paradise Lost. […], London: […] [Samuel Simmons], and are to be sold by Peter Parker […]; [a]nd by Robert Boulter […]; [a]nd Matthias Walker, […], →OCLC; republished as Paradise Lost in Ten Books: […], London: Basil Montagu Pickering […], 1873, →OCLC:

     Plumb down he drops.

2. (informal) Squarely, directly; deeply, completely.

   It hit him plumb in the middle of his face.

   Years ago the well plumb dried out, not a drop of water in there since.

   • 1934, Agatha Christie, chapter 9, in Murder on the Orient Express, London: HarperCollins, published 2017, page 143:

     'Are you sure of that, M. Hardman?' 'I'm plumb certain.'.

Derived terms

• plumb crazy

Translations

in a vertical direction

• Bulgarian: отвесно (bg) (otvesno)
• Dutch: loodrecht (nl), in het lood
• Finnish: kohtisuoraan, kohtisuorasti, kohtisuorassa
• German: senkrecht (de), lotrecht (de)

squarely, completely

• Bulgarian: право (bg) (pravo), напълно (bg) (napǎlno)
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 正 (zh) (zhèng)

• Finnish: suoraan (fi) (squarely); täysin (fi), kokonaan (fi) (completely)

Verb

plumb (third-person singular simple present plumbs, present participle plumbing, simple past and past participle plumbed)

1. To determine the depth, generally of a liquid; to sound.
2. To attach to a water supply and drain.
3. (transitive, figurative) To think about or explore in depth, to get to the bottom of, especially to plumb the depths of.
   • 2011, Catherine Lanigan, The Texan:

     Delving to the core of her heart, his blue-green eyes plumbed her psyche, stripping it of all defenses, all resolve.

   • 2021 May 29, David Hytner, “Chelsea win Champions League after Kai Havertz stuns Manchester City”, in The Guardian‎^[1]:

     The pressure had been on City, on Guardiola, to deliver the trophy that Sheikh Mansour has craved since his takeover in 2008 but it was an occasion when the manager found a new way to lose, to plumb fresh depths of frustration.

4. To use a plumb bob as a measuring or aligning tool.
5. To accurately align vertically or horizontally.
6. (dated) To seal something with lead.
7. (intransitive) To work as a plumber.
8. (rare) To fall or sink like a plummet.
9. (US, colloquial, figuratively, obsolete) To trace a road or track; to follow it to its end.
10. (nautical) To position vertically above or below.

Translations

to determine the depth

• Bulgarian: определям дълбочината (opredeljam dǎlbočinata)
• Finnish: luodata (fi)
• Italian: appiombare
• Ottoman Turkish: شاقوللامق (şakullamak)
• Turkish: şakullemek (tr)

to attach to water supply or drain

• Finnish: liittää vesijohtoon, liittää viemäriin

to explore in depth

• Finnish: syväluodata

to use plumb bob

• Bulgarian: пускам отвес (puskam otves)
• Finnish: luodata (fi)
• Sicilian: acchiummari (scn)

to accurately align

• Finnish: rihdata

to seal with lead

• Finnish: juottaa lyijyllä

to work as plumber

• Finnish: olla putkimiehenä

to fall or sink like a plummet

• Finnish: pudota kuin kivi, upota kuin kivi

to trace a road or track

• Finnish: seurata (fi)

nautical: to position vertically above or below

Etymology 2

Noun

plumb (plural plumbs)

1. Obsolete form of plum (“the fruit”).
   • 1767, Select Essays on Husbandry:

     Without attending to sub-divisions, all the pears are of one species, as well as all the apples, plumbs, peaches, cherries, lemons, citrons, oranges […]

Albanian

Alternative forms

• plum — Gheg

Etymology

Borrowed through Vulgar Latin from Latin plumbum (“lead”).

Noun

plumb m (definite plumbi)

1. lead (metal)
2. bullet

Declension

Declension of plumb

	singular
	indefinite	definite
nominative	plumb	plumbi
accusative		plumbin
dat./abl.	plumbi	plumbit

Romanian

Chemical element
Pb
Previous: taliu (Tl)
Next: bismut (Bi)

Etymology

Inherited from Latin plumbum (“lead”).

Noun

plumb n (uncountable)

1. lead (metal)

   Plumbul este otrăvitor pentru oameni.

   Lead is poisonous to humans.

2. lead (chemical element)

Declension

singular only	indefinite	definite
nominative-accusative	plumb	plumbul
genitive-dative	plumb	plumbului
vocative	plumbule

Derived terms

• plumburiu
• plumbui
• plumbos

Related terms

• plumbar

Noun

plumb m (plural plumbi)

1. bullet, projectile

Declension

	singular			plural
	indefinite	definite		indefinite	definite
nominative-accusative	plumb	plumbul		plumbi	plumbii
genitive-dative	plumb	plumbului		plumbi	plumbilor
vocative	plumbule			plumbilor

Synonyms

• glonț

Noun

plumb n (plural plumburi)

1. (dated, chiefly Moldavia (region)) pencil

   Synonym: creion

Declension

	singular			plural
	indefinite	definite		indefinite	definite
nominative-accusative	plumb	plumbul		plumburi	plumburile
genitive-dative	plumb	plumbului		plumburi	plumburilor
vocative	plumbule			plumburilor