pop
Forms
- Plural
- pops
- present (v1)
- pop
- past (v2)
- popped
- past participle (v3)
- popped
- present participle
- popping
- 3rd person singular
- pops
Definitions
1.A loud, sharp sound, as of a cork coming out of a bottle, especially when the contents are pressurized by fizziness.
- Listen to the pop of a champagne cork.
2.A quantity dispensed; a portion; apiece.(colloquial)
- They cost 50 pence a pop.
3.Something that stands out or is distinctive to the mind or senses.
- Nothing screams fall like corduroy! I'm loving this deep seafoam green shacket, made of the thick, ribbed material, that'll give a fab pop of color to a muted ensemble.
4.A pop shot: a quick, possibly unaimed, shot with a firearm.
- The man with the gun took a pop at the rabbit.
1.To burst (something) with a popping sound.
- The boy with the pin popped the balloon.
- The waves came round her. She was a rock. She was covered with the seaweed which pops when it is pressed. He was lost.
- "To torture another metaphor, it would be the difference between slowly letting the air out of a balloon, and popping it. Though the dam metaphor is more apt, what with the excess magic flooding outward."
2.To enter, or issue forth, with a quick, sudden movement; to move from place to place suddenly; to dart.
- A rabbit popped out of the hole.
- I startled at his popping upon me unexpectedly.
- So, diving in a bottomless sea, they [the Roman Church] pop sometimes above water to take breath.
3.To place (something) (somewhere); to move or position (something) with a short movement.
- Just pop it in the fridge for now.
- He popped his head around the door.
4.To make a pop, or sharp, quick sound.
- The muskets popped away on all sides.
Frequency
Overall
Uncommon· #2384
By learning goal
- Everyday conversation
- Rare
- General reading & writing
- Uncommon
- Academic
- Rare
- Literature
- Rare
Related words
Etymology
From Middle English pop, poppe (“a blow; strike; buffet”) (> Middle English poppen (“to strike; thrust”, verb)), of onomatopoeic origin – used to describe the sound, or short, sharp actions.