dunk
1 of 2verb
ˈdəŋk 
dunked; dunking; dunks
transitive verb
1
: to dip (something, such as a piece of bread) into a beverage while eating
2
: to dip or submerge temporarily in liquid
3
: to throw (a basketball) into the basket from above the rim
intransitive verb
1
: to submerge oneself in water
2
: to make a dunk shot in basketball
dunk
2 of 2noun
: the act or action of dunking
especially : dunk shot
Synonyms
Verb
- dip
- douse
- dowse
- duck
- immerse
- sop
- souse
- submerge
- submerse
See all Synonyms & Antonyms 
Example Sentences
Verb I like to dunk my doughnut in my coffee. She dunked him while they were swimming. He dunked the ladle into the soup. He could dunk when he was 16. Noun The pass led to a dunk.
Recent Examples on the Web
Ben Bolch, Los Angeles Times, 25 Mar. 2022 Second-seeded Duke didn’t seize the lead for good against Michigan State until Paolo Banchero’s dunk with 2 minutes 5 seconds left, extending Coach Mike Krzyzewski’s career at least a few more days. New York Times, 21 Mar. 2022 Missing some key offensive players, Utah controlled much of the game with its defense before New York trimmed it to 93-89 on Obi Toppin’s dunk with 5:19 left. The Salt Lake Tribune, 20 Mar. 2022 Missing some key offensive players, Utah controlled much of the game with its defense before New York trimmed it to 93-89 on Obi Toppin’s dunk with 5:19 left. Brian Mahoney, courant.com, 20 Mar. 2022 But Chapman scored nine straight Vanderbilt points after Holt’s dunk with 5:21 left -- the last of which gave the Commodores the lead for good with 3:13 left. Michael Casagrande | Mcasagrande@al.com, al, 10 Mar. 2022 After a Tre Gomillion dunk with 2.3 seconds left, Cohill’s heave from 75 feet bounced off the rim as time expired at the Wolstein Center. Joe Noga, cleveland, 21 Jan. 2022 To extend its life, blanch broccoli in boiling water for 3 minutes, rinse with cold water, or dunk in an ice bath, then drain and dry well. Karla Walsh, Better Homes & Gardens, 23 Aug. 2022 The 2021 Summer League MVP had the highlight of the night with a transition dunk in the second half that got the fans out of their seats. Duane Rankin, The Arizona Republic, 12 July 2022 The Courier-Journal, 14 Aug. 2022 The Suns ran a play right out the gate that Olivier Sarr finished with a lob dunk. Duane Rankin, The Arizona Republic, 12 July 2022 The 11-year veteran started in her seventh All-Star Game on Sunday and highlighted the weekend with a dunk, but was not seen at practice Monday and missed the shootaround Tuesday morning. Los Angeles Times, 12 July 2022 Chesterton’s Grayson and Pike’s Ryan Conwell both missed point-blank attempts before Cathedral’s Tayshawn Comer finally took care of it with a dunk in the final seconds. Kyle Neddenriep, The Indianapolis Star, 12 June 2022 Iguodala ended the 9-0 Celtics run with a dunk, but Brown followed that by drilling a corner 3-pointer (94-92). Globe Staff, BostonGlobe.com, 3 June 2022 Mathurin is also athletic enough to finish at the rim in traffic with a thunderous dunk. oregonlive, 20 May 2022 The 6-foot, 3-inch guard leapt to corral it with his right hand and, in one motion, landed on the Bulls logo at halfcourt and skipped a perfect bounce pass ahead to Jordan Nwora who finished with a dunk of his own. Jim Owczarski, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, 6 May 2022 Maybe the most memorable block of Mobley’s career so far was his 100th career block against the Clippers’ Ivica Zubac, who tried to put an offensive rebound back with a dunk on March 14 against the Cavs. Ashley Bastock, cleveland, 14 Apr. 2022 See More
Verb
Jaquez finished with 10 points on five-for-18 shooting, missing his final nine shots after a steal and breakaway dunk with nearly 17 minutes left. Ben Bolch, Los Angeles Times, 25 Mar. 2022 Second-seeded Duke didn’t seize the lead for good against Michigan State until Paolo Banchero’s dunk with 2 minutes 5 seconds left, extending Coach Mike Krzyzewski’s career at least a few more days. New York Times, 21 Mar. 2022 Missing some key offensive players, Utah controlled much of the game with its defense before New York trimmed it to 93-89 on Obi Toppin’s dunk with 5:19 left. The Salt Lake Tribune, 20 Mar. 2022 Missing some key offensive players, Utah controlled much of the game with its defense before New York trimmed it to 93-89 on Obi Toppin’s dunk with 5:19 left. Brian Mahoney, courant.com, 20 Mar. 2022 But Chapman scored nine straight Vanderbilt points after Holt’s dunk with 5:21 left -- the last of which gave the Commodores the lead for good with 3:13 left. Michael Casagrande | Mcasagrande@al.com, al, 10 Mar. 2022 After a Tre Gomillion dunk with 2.3 seconds left, Cohill’s heave from 75 feet bounced off the rim as time expired at the Wolstein Center. Joe Noga, cleveland, 21 Jan. 2022 To extend its life, blanch broccoli in boiling water for 3 minutes, rinse with cold water, or dunk in an ice bath, then drain and dry well. Karla Walsh, Better Homes & Gardens, 23 Aug. 2022 The 2021 Summer League MVP had the highlight of the night with a transition dunk in the second half that got the fans out of their seats. Duane Rankin, The Arizona Republic, 12 July 2022 Noun
Kentucky scored its first points Saturday when Cason Wallace came up with a steal and finished the play off with a dunk. The Courier-Journal, 14 Aug. 2022 The Suns ran a play right out the gate that Olivier Sarr finished with a lob dunk. Duane Rankin, The Arizona Republic, 12 July 2022 The 11-year veteran started in her seventh All-Star Game on Sunday and highlighted the weekend with a dunk, but was not seen at practice Monday and missed the shootaround Tuesday morning. Los Angeles Times, 12 July 2022 Chesterton’s Grayson and Pike’s Ryan Conwell both missed point-blank attempts before Cathedral’s Tayshawn Comer finally took care of it with a dunk in the final seconds. Kyle Neddenriep, The Indianapolis Star, 12 June 2022 Iguodala ended the 9-0 Celtics run with a dunk, but Brown followed that by drilling a corner 3-pointer (94-92). Globe Staff, BostonGlobe.com, 3 June 2022 Mathurin is also athletic enough to finish at the rim in traffic with a thunderous dunk. oregonlive, 20 May 2022 The 6-foot, 3-inch guard leapt to corral it with his right hand and, in one motion, landed on the Bulls logo at halfcourt and skipped a perfect bounce pass ahead to Jordan Nwora who finished with a dunk of his own. Jim Owczarski, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, 6 May 2022 Maybe the most memorable block of Mobley’s career so far was his 100th career block against the Clippers’ Ivica Zubac, who tried to put an offensive rebound back with a dunk on March 14 against the Cavs. Ashley Bastock, cleveland, 14 Apr. 2022 See More Word History
Etymology
Verb
Pennsylvania German dunke, from Middle High German dunken, from Old High German dunkōn — more at tinge
First Known Use
Verb
1926, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1
Noun
circa 1944, in the meaning defined above
Phrases Containing dunk
Kids Definition
dunk
verb
ˈdəŋk
dunked; dunking
1
: to dip into liquid
I like to dunk my cookies in milk.
2
: to jump and push the ball down through the basket in basketball
dunks
verb
as in dips
to sink or push (something) briefly into or as if into a liquid dunking a doughnut in one's morning coffee Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
- dips
- ducks
- drowns
- immerses
- souses
- submerges
- douses
- submerses
- floods
- sops
- wets
- soaks
- dowses
- dives
- bathes
- thrusts
- moistens
- drenches
- steeps
- plunges