GULP

Pronunciation (US):

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IPA (US):

 Dictionary entry overview: What does gulp mean? 

• GULP (noun)
  The noun GULP has 2 senses:

1. a large and hurried swallow

2. a spasmodic reflex of the throat made as if in swallowing

  Familiarity information: GULP used as a noun is rare.

• GULP (verb)
  The verb GULP has 2 senses:

1. to swallow hurriedly or greedily or in one draught

2. utter or make a noise, as when swallowing too quickly

  Familiarity information: GULP used as a verb is rare.

 Dictionary entry details 

• GULP (noun)

Sense 1

Meaning:

A large and hurried swallow

Classified under:

Nouns denoting acts or actions

Synonyms:

draft; draught; gulp; swig

Context example:

he finished it at a single gulp

Hypernyms ("gulp" is a kind of...):

deglutition; drink; swallow (the act of swallowing)

Derivation:

gulp (to swallow hurriedly or greedily or in one draught)

Sense 2

Meaning:

A spasmodic reflex of the throat made as if in swallowing

Classified under:

Nouns denoting acts or actions

Synonyms:

gulp; gulping

Hypernyms ("gulp" is a kind of...):

inborn reflex; innate reflex; instinctive reflex; physiological reaction; reflex; reflex action; reflex response; unconditioned reflex (an automatic instinctive unlearned reaction to a stimulus)

Derivation:

gulp (to swallow hurriedly or greedily or in one draught)

• GULP (verb)

Present simple: I / you / we / they gulp    ... he / she / it gulps   
Past simple: gulped   
Past participle: gulped   
-ing form: gulping   

Sense 1

Meaning:

To swallow hurriedly or greedily or in one draught

Classified under:

Verbs of eating and drinking

Synonyms:

gulp; quaff; swig

Context example:

The men gulped down their beers

Hypernyms (to "gulp" is one way to...):

drink; imbibe (take in liquids)

"Gulp" entails doing...:

get down; swallow (pass through the esophagus as part of eating or drinking)

Sentence frame:

Somebody ----s something

Sentence example:

Sam and Sue gulp

Derivation:

gulp (a large and hurried swallow)

gulp (a spasmodic reflex of the throat made as if in swallowing)

gulper (a drinker who swallows large amounts greedily)

gulping (the drinking of large mouthfuls rapidly)

Sense 2

Meaning:

Utter or make a noise, as when swallowing too quickly

Classified under:

Verbs of telling, asking, ordering, singing

Context example:

He gulped for help after choking on a big piece of meat

Hypernyms (to "gulp" is one way to...):

mouth; speak; talk; utter; verbalise; verbalize (express in speech)

Sentence frame:

Somebody ----s something

Derivation:

gulping (a spasmodic reflex of the throat made as if in swallowing)

 Context examples 

He put the glass to his lips and drank at one gulp.

(The Strange Case Of Dr. Jekyll And Mr. Hyde, by Robert Louis Stevenson)

A hungry wolf sprang out, and swallowed up the whole stomach, with Tom in it, at one gulp, and ran away.

(Fairy Tales, by The Brothers Grimm)

“No need to be,” I gulped. It does me good.

(The Sea-Wolf, by Jack London)

Pike robbed him of half a fish one night, and gulped it down under the protection of Buck.

(The Call of the Wild, by Jack London)

Alleyne gave a gulp in his throat, for the yellow streak seemed to pass through the man; but he still ran forward.

(The White Company, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

Our visitor had gulped off the brandy and the colour had returned to his face.

(His Last Bow, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

A disorder characterized by repeated gulp sounds that result from an involuntary opening and closing of the glottis.

(Hiccough, NCI Thesaurus/CTCAE)

"I'll pay you back, Gertrude, a hundred times over," he gulped out, his throat painfully contracted and in his eyes a swift hint of moisture.

(Martin Eden, by Jack London)

She stared at him with an ashen face and gulped twice before she could speak.

(The Return of Sherlock Holmes, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

The bird gave a gulp, and I felt the stone pass along its gullet and down into its crop.

(The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)