What does "plonk" mean?
The sound of something solid landing.
Plonk
/plɑŋk/ adv, intj, name, noun, verb, slang
adv, intj, name, noun, verb, slang ·Common ·High school level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: The sound of something solid landing.
- Grammar: plonk is listed as adv, intj, name, noun, verb, slang.
- Nearest alternatives: cheap wine, clang, clunk, drop.
- Useful contrasts: fine wine, premium wine, quiet.
- Usage evidence: This plonk is surprisingly gluggable.
How to use "plonk"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "plonk" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
- Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.
Meaning check
- Does the word fit the sentence's grammar?
- Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
- Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
- Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?
Source and review context
This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "plonk" in a final draft.
If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.
Before you rely on this definition
Read the first definition as a starting point, then check the example, synonyms, and part of speech before treating "plonk" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "plonk" with a nearby alternative so the final choice matches both meaning and reader expectation.
Compare nearby meanings
- Use synonyms when you need a softer, stronger, simpler, or more specific word.
- Use antonyms to check the boundary of the meaning and avoid accidental contrast.
- Use the example sentence to confirm the word behaves naturally in context.
- Keep the original wording when a replacement adds complexity without improving precision.
Definition decision workflow
1. Identify the role
Check whether "plonk" is acting as adv, intj, name, noun, verb, slang in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.
2. Test the nearest option
Compare it with "cheap wine" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.
3. Confirm with context
Use the example sentence below as an evidence check, then read your own sentence out loud to catch tone or rhythm problems.
Review note: Definition pages are checked for source coverage, sentence evidence, synonym support, and editorial insight before they are treated as approval-ready pages. If the evidence is too thin, the page remains available to users but is kept out of the approval-facing indexed inventory.
Final meaning check
Before publishing a sentence with "plonk", ask whether the word helps the reader understand the idea faster. A precise word should reduce confusion, not simply make the sentence look more polished.
When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.
Definitions
Noun
- 1 The sound of something solid landing. countable
"I just heard a plonk – did something fall down in the kitchen?"
- 2 Cheap or inferior everyday wine. Commonwealth, Ireland, UK, informal, uncountable
"The third category of wines is highly unattractive as these may only be sold as generic wines (white, red or rosé), without reference to any geographical location. Only surplus plonk and cooking wine would aspire to fall in this segment, which can be blended with any other wine - to any extent."
- 3 A female police constable. Ireland, UK, countable, derogatory, slang
"Chris and that plonk had better be flushing the scum out."
- 4 the noise of something dropping (as into liquid) wordnet
- 5 AC Plonk historical, slang, uncountable
Show 1 more definition
- 6 a cheap wine of inferior quality wordnet
Verb
- 1 To set or toss (something) down carelessly. transitive
"When you’ve finished with the sponge, just plonk it back in the sink."
- 2 set (something or oneself) down with or as if with a noise wordnet
- 3 To sit down heavily and without ceremony. reflexive
"Using a tractor fan, shock absorbers, PVC pipes, a bicycle frame and anything else he could lay his hands on, he then built a rudimentary wooden tower, plonked his home-made generator on the top, and eventually got one, and then four bulbs to light up."
- 4 To automatically ignore a particular poster. Internet, transitive
"I got tired of his trolling and ad hominem attacks, so I plonked him."
Adverb
- 1 Precisely and forcefully. not-comparable
"He dropped his bag of tools plonk in the middle of the table."
Intj
- 1 The sound made by something solid landing.
- 2 The supposed sound of adding a user to one's kill file. Internet
Proper Noun
- 1 A solution stack consisting of Prometheus (metrics and time-series), Linkerd (service mesh), OpenFaaS (management and auto-scaling of compute), NATS (asynchronous message bus/queue), and Kubernetes (declarative, extensible, scale-out, self-healing clustering).
Example
"This plonk is surprisingly gluggable."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "plonk"?
Common synonyms include: cheap wine, clang, clunk, drop, dump, flump.
How do you use "plonk" in a sentence?
This plonk is surprisingly gluggable.
How do you pronounce "plonk"?
Pronounced /plɑŋk/.
Etymology
Etymology 1
Onomatopoeic. Compare plunk.
Etymology 2
From WWI military slang, derived by alteration of French vin blanc (“white wine”) by the law of Hobson-Jobson. Recorded earliest in the playful rhyming slang form plinketty-plonk. Possibly influenced by the sound of wine being poured into a glass.
Etymology 3
Probably a shortening of plonker.