Meanings
plural nosedives
- aeronauticsA drop in altitude with the nose of the craft angled downwards.
- usuallyeconomicsA rapid fall, e.g. in price or value.
Byers was frequently at odds with Rail Regulator Sir Tom Winsor, but quit after 11 months - his career took a nosedive when he admitted false claims for £125,000 expenses, and he was banned from the House of Commons for two years.
2022 April 6, Howard Johnston, “SRA: Lets not make the same mistakes with GBR”, in RAIL, number 954, page 34
present singular third person nosedives · participle present nosediving · past nosedived · US past nosedove · participle past nosedived
- intransitiveTo dive down in a steep angle.
- intransitiveeconomyTo perform a rapid fall in price or value.
With punctuality nosediving and both overcrowding and cancellations on the rise, a new simplified timetable was introduced in December amid threats from the Mayor that he would ask the Secretary of State for Transport to strip Abellio of the franchise.
2020 July 29, Paul Stephen, “A new collaboration centred on New Street”, in Rail, page 56
Synonyms & antonyms
Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.
Origin
Translations
Bulgarian срив, пикирам
- срив (sriv)a rapid fall in price or value
- пикирам (pikiram)to dive down in a steep angle
- сривам (srivam)to perform a rapid fall in price or value
Catalan capbussada, capbussó
- capbussadaa headfirst fall or jump
- capbussóa headfirst fall or jump
- salt m de capa headfirst fall or jump
- caiguda de preua rapid fall in price or value
- caiguda de valora rapid fall in price or value
- capbussarto dive down in a steep angle
- caure's el preuto perform a rapid fall in price or value
- caure's el valorto perform a rapid fall in price or value
Danish styrtdyk, styrtdykning
- styrtdyka headfirst fall or jump
- styrtdykninga rapid fall in price or value
- styrtdykketo dive down in a steep angle
- styrtdykketo perform a rapid fall in price or value
Dutch duikvlucht, een duikvlucht maken
- duikvluchtaviation: drop in altitude with nose angled downwards
- een duikvlucht makento dive down in a steep angle
Finnish syöksy pää edellä, hyppy pää edellä
- syöksy pää edelläa headfirst fall or jump
- hyppy pää edelläa headfirst fall or jump
- pystysyöksyaviation: drop in altitude with nose angled downwards
- romahdusa rapid fall in price or value
- syöksyä pystysyöksyssäto dive down in a steep angle
- romahtaato perform a rapid fall in price or value
Hungarian zuhanórepülés, bukórepülés
- zuhanórepülésa headfirst fall or jump
- bukórepülésa headfirst fall or jump
- mélyrepülésa rapid fall in price or value
- zuhanása rapid fall in price or value
- zuhanto perform a rapid fall in price or value
Italian picchiata, scendere in picchiata
- picchiataaviation: drop in altitude with nose angled downwards
- scendere in picchiatato dive down in a steep angle
- crollareto perform a rapid fall in price or value
Japanese 急降下, 急降下
- 急降下 (kyūkōka)a headfirst fall or jump
- 急降下 (kyūkōka)aviation: drop in altitude with nose angled downwards
- 急降下する (kyūkōka suru)to dive down in a steep angle
Māori tapakō
- tapakōto dive down in a steep angle
Polish skok na główkę, skoczyć na główkę
- skok na główkęa headfirst fall or jump
- skoczyć na główkęa rapid fall in price or value
Spanish salto m de cabeza, desplome de precio
- salto m de cabezaa headfirst fall or jump
- desplome de precioa rapid fall in price or value
- desplome de valora rapid fall in price or value
- sumergirseto dive down in a steep angle
- desplomarse el precioto perform a rapid fall in price or value
- desplomarse el valorto perform a rapid fall in price or value
Swedish störtdykning, störtdykning
- störtdykninga headfirst fall or jump
- störtdykningaviation: drop in altitude with nose angled downwards
- störtdykninga rapid fall in price or value
- störtdykato dive down in a steep angle
- störtdykato perform a rapid fall in price or value
Cite this entry
nosedive. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/nosedive
“nosedive.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/nosedive. Accessed November 3, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “nosedive,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/nosedive.
Source: nosedive on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.