bounce
Americanverb (used without object)
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bounces,
present (3rd person singular)
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bounced,
past participle, past
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bouncing
present participle
-
to spring back from a surface in a lively manner.
The ball bounced off the wall.
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to strike the ground or other surface, and rebound.
The ball bounced once before he caught it.
-
to move or walk in a lively, exuberant, or energetic manner.
She bounced into the room.
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to move along in a lively manner, repeatedly striking the surface below and rebounding.
The box bounced down the stairs.
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to move about or enter or leave noisily or angrily (followed by around, about, out, out of, into, etc.).
He bounced out of the room in a huff.
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(of a check or the like) to fail to be honored by the bank against which it was drawn, due to lack of sufficient funds.
verb (used with object)
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bounces,
present (3rd person singular)
-
bounced,
past participle, past
-
bouncing
present participle
-
to cause to bound and rebound.
to bounce a ball; to bounce a child on one's knee; to bounce a signal off a satellite.
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to refuse payment on (a check) because of insufficient funds.
The bank bounced my rent check.
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to give (a bad check) as payment.
That's the first time anyone bounced a check on me.
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Slang. to eject, expel, or dismiss summarily or forcibly.
noun
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bounces
plural
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a bound or rebound.
to catch a ball on the first bounce.
-
a sudden spring or leap.
In one bounce he was at the door.
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ability to rebound; resilience.
This tennis ball has no more bounce.
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vitality; energy; liveliness.
There is bounce in his step. This soda water has more bounce to it.
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the fluctuation in magnitude of target echoes on a radarscope.
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Slang. a dismissal, rejection, or expulsion.
He's gotten the bounce from three different jobs.
adverb
verb phrase
verb
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(intr) (of an elastic object, such as a ball) to rebound from an impact
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(tr) to cause (such an object) to hit a solid surface and spring back
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to rebound or cause to rebound repeatedly
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to move or cause to move suddenly, excitedly, or violently; spring
she bounced up from her chair
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slang (of a bank) to send (a cheque) back or (of a cheque) to be sent back unredeemed because of lack of funds in the drawer's account
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(of an internet service provider) to send (an email message) back or (of an email message) to be sent back to the sender, for example because the recipient's email account is full
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slang (tr) to force (a person) to leave (a place or job); throw out; eject
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(tr) to hustle (a person) into believing or doing something
noun
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the action of rebounding from an impact
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a leap; jump; bound
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the quality of being able to rebound; springiness
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informal vitality; vigour; resilience
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swagger or impudence
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informal a temporary increase or rise
-
Australian rules football the start of play at the beginning of each quarter or after a goal
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informal to dismiss or be dismissed from a job
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informal in succession; one after the other
they have lost nine games on the bounce
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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bouncesimple
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bouncessimple
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have bouncedperfect
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has bouncedperfect
-
am bouncingprogressive
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are bouncingprogressive
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is bouncingprogressive
-
have been bouncingperfect progressive
-
has been bouncingperfect progressive
Past
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bouncedsimple
-
had bouncedperfect
-
was bouncingprogressive
-
were bouncingprogressive
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had been bouncingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of bounce
1175–1225; Middle English buncin, bounsen, variant of bunkin, apparently cognate with Dutch bonken to thump, belabor, bonzen to knock, bump
Explanation
Bounce is a word for an up and down movement or recovery — like a ball's bounce on the pavement or the stock market's rise after a crash. Bounce can be a noun or a verb. A basketball player bounces a ball on the floor and it springs back into her hand. Trampolines have a lot of bounce in them; that's why they are fun to jump on. Good dance music makes you want to bounce up and down. The phrase “bounce back” describes how you might recover after a bad situation. Did you slip and suffer a painful bounce on the floor? Some hot chocolate will help you "bounce back."
Vocabulary lists containing bounce
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Personal Finance and Financial Literacy - Introductory
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Personal Finance and Financial Literacy - High School
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
Consumer sentiment tumbled at the fastest pace since the Covid-19 pandemic this month as mounting cost-of-living pressures reversed the bounce in optimism seen over the summer.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 23, 2026
On trading: The market’s latest slide triggered a rare signal that last time produced an immediate bounce — followed, however, by more trouble for stocks, writes Jamie Chisholm.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 23, 2026
Doncic answered with a no-look, backwards bounce pass.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 22, 2026
The match was summed up by England's 10th try, when a promising Wales attack involved a chipped kick to the corner, but the bounce went kindly for Brown behind her own try line.
From BBC ● Oct. 17, 2026
My clomp-drag stride gained a little bounce as I marched back down Shady Oak Lane toward the shack where Mr. Pinkerton and Mr. Bangs waited.
From "The Detective's Assistant" by Kate Hannigan
Honesty around line calls, double bounces and double-hits.
From BBC ● Sep. 4, 2026
Dick’s decided to match competitors’ discounts to maintain market share when the market bounces back.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 25, 2026
Steps away, a man does the “Crank Dat” dance as a young child bounces on his shoulders in gleeful entrancement.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 21, 2026
When there are unknowns about how an industry will metabolize certain technological changes, they want to hire someone who bounces back from mistakes and takes setbacks in stride.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 13, 2026
He bounces his foot up and down on our cruddy porch boards.
From "The Truth as Told by Mason Buttle" by Leslie Connor
Much of yesterday’s rise was likely technically driven as the November contract bounced off the 20-day moving average at $3.10/mmBtu, Eli Rubin of EBW Analytics says in a note.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 14, 2026
All three markets bounced Wednesday as the same firms provided much-needed support, with Seoul and Taipei both up more than one percent.
From Barron's ● Oct. 14, 2026
Wiaan Mulder was caught in two minds and bounced out by Cummins.
From BBC ● Oct. 11, 2026
Harris then stole second and failed to capitalize on catcher Will Smith’s off-target throw, which got past second baseman Kiké Hernández and bounced into the outfield.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 8, 2026
It bounced into the border on the edge of the stones.
From "Firegirl" by Tony Abbott
Its $2 billion notes due 2031 fell to 42 cents on Thursday before bouncing back slightly in the mid-40s on Friday, according to market participants and the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, or Finra.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 23, 2026
Microsoft ran it with Clippy, the bouncing paperclip that came with Office as far back as the 1990s.
From Slate ● Oct. 14, 2026
"I want everyone bouncing out of there because it's a joyful musical, even though there's some absolutely heartbreaking moments in it."
From BBC ● Oct. 8, 2026
“I was just kind of bouncing around, like just being a little bit of everything,” he said.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 1, 2026
The river ran at the base of the ravine behind them, its roar bouncing up to them at the top.
From Anya and the Dragon by Sofiya Pasternack
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Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
