dive

B1 · Intermediate

v. to swim deep under the surface of the water, often using special equipment.

v. to swim or remain under the surface of a body of water, often with breathing apparatus.

“We want to dive near the coral reef to see the tropical fish.”

“They planned to dive to the wreck of the sunken ship, which lay thirty metres below the surface.”

B2 · Upper Intermediate Aviation

v. to move down very fast, like a bird, a plane, or even a price.

v. to descend or fall steeply and rapidly, used of physical objects or abstract values like prices.

“The hawk suddenly dived from the sky to catch a mouse.”

“Stock prices dived following the news of the company's unexpected quarterly losses.”

B2 · Upper Intermediate Informal

v. to start doing something with a lot of interest and energy.

v. to begin an activity or task with great enthusiasm or without hesitation; often used with 'in' or 'into'.

“I'm ready to dive into this new project and get to work.”

“Without waiting for instructions, the new intern dived into the data and found the error within minutes.”

A2 · Elementary Countable noun Sports

n. an act of jumping into water head-first.

n. an instance of plunging headfirst into water.

“His first dive of the competition earned him a very high score.”

“The judge noted that the diver's entry into the water was slightly angled during his final dive.”

C1 · Advanced Countable noun Informal · Slang

n. a cheap bar or club that is not very clean or respectable.

n. a disreputable or shabby bar, nightclub, or similar establishment.

“It looks like a dive from the outside, but they serve the best burgers in town.”

“The private investigator met his contact in a dimly lit dive on the edge of the waterfront.”

B2 · Upper Intermediate Countable noun Sports Informal

n. in sports, when a player falls down on purpose to try to get a penalty.

n. a deliberate fall by a player, intended to deceive the referee into awarding a foul.

“The referee gave him a yellow card for taking a dive in the penalty area.”

“The replay clearly showed that there was no contact, and the striker had taken a blatant dive to win a penalty.”