bob1

 
Pronunciation: /bɒb/

verb (bobs, bobbing, bobbed)

[no object, with adverbial of direction]
  • make a quick, short movement up and down: I could see his head bobbing about the boat bobbed up and down
  • [with object] cause (something) to make a bobbing movement: she bobbed her head
  • [no object, with adverbial of direction] make a sudden move so as to appear or disappear: a lady bobbed up from beneath the counter
  • [no object] make a brief curtsy: she bobbed and turned away

noun

  • a quick, short movement up and down: she could only manage a slight bob of her head
  • a brief curtsy: the maid scurried away with a bob

Phrases

bob and weave

make rapid bodily movements up and down and from side to side, for example as an evasive tactic by a boxer: Freddie bobbed and weaved, jabbing the air

bob for apples

try to catch floating or hanging apples with one’s mouth alone, as a game.

Origin:

late Middle English: of unknown origin