tumble

tumble
\ \ [13] Tumble was borrowed from Middle Low German tummelen, which has other relatives in modern German tummelnbustle, hurry’ and taumelnreel, stagger’. All were formed from a base that also found its way into the Romance languages, producing French tomberfall’ (source of English tumbrel [14], which in Old French denoted a ‘chute’ or ‘cart that could be tipped up’) and Italian tombolaretumble, turn somersaults’ (source of English tombola [19]). The derivative tumbler [14] originally denoted an ‘acrobat’; the application to a ‘drinking glass’, which emerged in the mid 17th century, comes from the fact that such glasses were originally made with rounded bottoms, so that they could not be put down until they were empty.
\ \ Cf.TOMBOLA

Word origins - 2ed. . 2005.

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  • tumble — tum‧ble [ˈtʌmbl] verb [intransitive] JOURNALISM if prices, figures etc tumble, they go down suddenly and by a large amount: • Stock market prices have tumbled over the past week. tumble noun [countable usually singular] : • The announcement… …   Financial and business terms

  • tumble — [tum′bəl] vi. tumbled, tumbling [ME tumblen, freq. of tumben < OE tumbian, to fall, jump, dance; akin to Ger tummeln, taumeln < OHG * tumalon, freq. of tumon, to turn < IE base * dheu , to be turbid > DULL] 1. to do somersaults,… …   English World dictionary

  • Tumble — Tum ble, v. i. [imp. & p. p. {Tumbled}; p. pr. & vb. n. {Tumbling}.] [OE. tumblen, AS. tumbian to turn heels over head, to dance violently; akin to D. tuimelen to fall, Sw. tumla, Dan. tumle, Icel. tumba; and cf. G. taumeln to reel, to stagger.]… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • Tumble — Tum ble, v. t. 1. To turn over; to turn or throw about, as for examination or search; to roll or move in a rough, coarse, or unceremonious manner; to throw down or headlong; to precipitate; sometimes with over, about, etc.; as, to tumble books or …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • tumble — (v.) c.1300, to perform as an acrobat, also to fall down, perhaps from a frequentative form of O.E. tumbian dance about, of unknown origin. Related to M.L.G. tummelen to turn, dance, Du. tuimelen to tumble, O.H.G. tumon, Ger. taumeln to turn,… …   Etymology dictionary

  • tumble — ► VERB 1) fall suddenly, clumsily, or headlong. 2) move in a headlong manner. 3) decrease rapidly in amount or value. 4) rumple; disarrange. 5) (tumble to) informal come to understand; realize. ► NOUN 1) …   English terms dictionary

  • tumble in — ● tumble …   Useful english dictionary

  • Tumble — Tum ble, n. Act of tumbling, or rolling over; a fall. [1913 Webster] …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • tumble — index agitate (shake up), disorganize, subvert, upset Burton s Legal Thesaurus. William C. Burton. 2006 …   Law dictionary

  • tumble — [v] fall or make fall awkwardly bowl down, bring down, descend, dip, disarrange, disarray, disorder, disturb, do a pratfall, down, drop, fall headlong*, flatten, floor, flop, go belly up*, go down, hit the dirt*, jumble, keel, keel over, knock… …   New thesaurus

  • tumble — I n. (colloq.) fall 1) to take a tumble 2) a bad, nasty tumble (she took a nasty tumble) 3) a tumble from sign of recognition 4) to give smb. a tumble (they wouldn t give us a tumble) II v. 1) (d; intr.) to tumble into (to tumble into bed) 2) (d; …   Combinatory dictionary

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