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bobbing

SayBOB-ingUS/ˈbɑbɪŋ/UK/ˈbɒbɪŋ/

Noun pluralbobbings

2 meanings of bobbing

Practice

  1. 1
    verb
    Present participle and gerund of bob.

    Several orange buoys were bobbing in the harbor after the storm.

    Pigeons strutted along the sidewalk, bobbing their heads with every step.

    Note

    The doubled b follows the rule for a short-vowel verb ending in a single consonant. Bobbing carries every meaning of bob: floating up and down, moving something that way, a quick curtsy, a light tap, even catching eels on worms strung on thread. With on after it, the verb turns sexual, so mind the preposition. The same spelling is also a noun for the motion, plural bobbings.

  2. 2
    nouncountable or uncountable
    A gentle up-and-down movement, like that of something floating on water.

    The steady bobbing of the buoys marked the channel across the bay.

    There was a slight bobbing in her walk whenever she was happy.

    Similarbounce

bobbing is a form of bob

bob, verb: To move, or make something such as the head move, quickly and gently up and down, the way a floating object moves on water. Full entry

Forms
bobbobs he/she/itbobbing -ing formbobbed past tense, past participle
Spelling
bob → bobbing: double the b, add -ing

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