nosedive
/ˈnəʊzdʌɪv
/noun
1A steep downward plunge by an aircraft: the pilot put the plane in a nosedive and ejected...
- I had to pull back hard on the stick as my wounded victory drops into a steep nosedive.
- The Renegade plummeted into the atmosphere in a steep nosedive.
- Ramirez flung the gargantuan vessel into a steep nosedive.
Synonyms
dive, drop, plunge, descent, plummet
1.1A sudden dramatic deterioration: the player’s fortunes took a nosedive...
- According to estimates, Indian agriculture, which showed high rates of production prior to the 19th century took a nosedive.
- Even though I was a good student, my grades took a nosedive because of my lack of class participation.
- The dollar soared, the euro dropped, and gold and its shares took a nosedive.
Synonyms
sharp fall, drop, plunge, plummet, tumble, decline, slump
informal crash
verb [no object]
1(Of an aircraft) make a nosedive: the plane nosedived into the ground and exploded...
- The airliner nosedived into Rockaway, about five miles from the airport, just after 9am.
- The pilot appeared to fight for control before the little plane nosedived to the ground with a resounding crash on a hill near today's Western Institute of Technology.
- For a split second, ugly scenes try to squeeze into my brain: planes nosediving, twirling, horrific screeching, explosions on impact.
Synonyms
dive, plunge, pitch (down), drop rapidly, swoop, plummet, crash-dive
1.1Deteriorate suddenly and dramatically: massive strikes caused the economy to nosedive...
- But he came unstuck with the Kobe earthquake in mid-January, which killed more than 5,000 people, wrecked one of Japan's major commercial cities, and sent Japanese share prices nosediving.
- In August, it sold £7.4 billion worth of European government bonds and then, after prices had nosedived on the back of the huge sale, bought a portion back at a profit.
- In the last six months alone, the companies have seen their values collapse by 34% as global share prices have nosedived.
Synonyms
fall sharply, take a nosedive, take a header, drop, sink, plunge, plummet, tumble, slump, go down, decline, subside
informal crash