Meaning & use
dived
Last updated
“dived” is a form of “dive”. See that entry for the full set of meanings.
Meanings
verbintransitive
Past tense and past participle of dive: jumped into water head first, or went under water to swim or explore.
Grammar: No object; usually followed by into, off or from: she dived into the pool.
Patterns
- dive into something
- dive off something
- dive for something
The children dived into the lake as soon as the sun came out.
He dived off the rocks and swam to the boat.
Last summer we dived on a coral reef near the island.
verbintransitive
Moved suddenly and quickly downward or forward, often to avoid danger or to catch something.
Grammar: Followed by a direction word: he dived behind the sofa.
Patterns
- dive for something
- dive behind something
The goalkeeper dived to his left and saved the shot.
She dived under the table when the thunder cracked.
The bird dived toward the water and came up with a fish.
verbintransitiveinformal
Fell sharply in amount or value.
Grammar: Often used about prices or numbers: shares dived after the news.
Patterns
- dive by an amount
- dive to a level
Share prices dived after the company lost its biggest customer.
Ticket sales dived in the second week of the show.
Temperatures dived overnight to well below freezing.
Word forms
| base form | dive |
|---|---|
| third person singular | dives |
| -ing form | diving |
| past tense (US also) | dove |
Common combinations
- dived into the water
- He dived into the water without testing how deep it was.
- dived for cover
- Everyone dived for cover when the dog burst through the gate.
- dived head first
- She dived head first into the pool.
- dived to the ground
- The striker dived to the ground and claimed a foul.
- dived sharply
- Oil prices dived sharply on Monday.
Synonyms and how they differ
- plunged
- Plunged suggests a more forceful or deeper drop, and it is more common for prices and dramatic movements than dived.
- jumped
- Jumped is general and need not be head first, while dived specifically means going in head first or going under.
- plummeted
- Plummeted is stronger and only describes a fast fall, usually in value or height, whereas dived can also be a deliberate act.
- swooped
- Swooped describes a bird or plane coming down in a smooth sweeping curve, while dived is steeper and more direct.
Opposites
Word family
Commonly confused: dived or dove? dived or dive?
dived vs dove
Dove is the common American past tense of dive, but it is also the bird; dived works everywhere.
dived vs dive
Dive is the present tense, so dived is needed for the past: yesterday she dived, not dive.
Practice
Yesterday the goalkeeper ___ to his right and stopped the penalty.
Choose one answer.
Yesterday points to the past tense, which is dived. Dives is present tense and does not fit a past time word.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “dived”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.