dunk

1 of 2

verb

ˈdəŋk 

dunked; dunking; dunks

transitive verb

1

: to dip (something, such as a piece of bread) into a beverage while eating

2

: to dip or submerge temporarily in liquid

3

: to throw (a basketball) into the basket from above the rim see also dunk on

intransitive verb

1

: to submerge oneself in water

2

: to make a dunk shot in basketball

dunk

2 of 2

noun

: the act or action of dunking

especially : dunk shot

Synonyms of dunk

Verb

• dip
• duck

Examples of dunk in a Sentence

Verb

I like to dunk my doughnut in my coffee.

She dunked him while they were swimming.

He dunked the ladle into the soup.

He could dunk when he was 16.

Noun

The pass led to a dunk.

Recent Examples on the Web

Verb

Seattle is led by Dominique Malonga, a 6-foot-6 second-year center, who routinely dunks in pregame warmups and has made a 3-pointer in nine of the 14 games she’s played in this season. — John W. Davis, Oc Register, 5 July 2026

The feels-like temperature was 103 degrees ahead of the match, prompting many men to go shirtless outside the gates and a few to dunk their heads in a reflecting pool by the main entrance. — Anthony Chiang, Miami Herald, 4 July 2026

Noun

And White had a strong night, with 16 points (including a tomahawk dunk) and four rebounds. — Barry Jackson, Miami Herald, 7 July 2026

The second-round pick is 6-7 and can get his head at the rim on alley-oop dunks. — Joseph Dycus, Mercury News, 7 July 2026

Word History

Etymology

Verb

Pennsylvania German dunke, from Middle High German dunken, from Old High German dunkōn — more at tinge

First Known Use

Verb

1926, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1

Noun

1932, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing dunk

• dunk on
• dunk shot
• slam dunk

Rhymes for dunk

• bunk
• chunk
• clunk
• drunk
• hunk
• junk
• punk
• shrunk
• slunk
• spunk
• sunk
• trunk

Kids Definition

dunk

verb

ˈdəŋk

1

: to dip (as a doughnut) into liquid (as coffee)

2

: to plunge oneself into water