Punged

Part of speech: verb

Definitions

1. To have thrust or jabbed suddenly and forcefully; to have plunged or dipped quickly into a substance; to have fallen or dropped sharply in position or value
2. The act of moving rapidly and abruptly forward or downward by piercing or immersing; describing a swift descent or insertion; actively driving or sending with force
3. Characterizing a sudden and forceful motion inward or downward; indicating a quick immersion or decline; conveying an action of sharp or violent penetration or decrease

Etymology: "Punged" is the past tense of "to punge," a verb of uncertain origin. The Oxford English Dictionary records "punge" in the sense of "to thrust, drive, or push" in Middle English, and the word's history is murky: scholars have connected it to Old Norse and to other Germanic forms, but no single source is firmly established. Its surviving pronunciations and meanings suggest a sense of forceful pushing or sudden downward motion, which fits the modern sense of dropping sharply. Because the record is thin, its exact path into English remains uncertain.

Synonyms: stabbed, pierced, jabbed, pricked, thrust

Antonyms: withdrew, pulled, retreated, retracted, removed