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Davidrock65 Posted 19 years ago
Grammar

lunge, lurch, jerk, jolt

Dear teachers
What's the difference between lunge, jerk, lurch and jolt?

I looked them up in the dictionary and they all mean "move (forward) suddenly(with sudden force)."

Ex. The train lurched forward and some of the people standing fell over.
Can I replace lurched with lunged, jerked or jolted? Are they interchangable?

Could you please explain the differences between them?
Thanks for help!
  

Top answer

They are all about the same. You can use any of them in the sentence about the train. CJ

— CalifJim

  • They are all about the same.
  • You can use any of them in the sentence about the train.
  • CJ
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5 Answers
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They are all about the same. You can use any of them in the sentence about the train.

CJ
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CalifJimThey are all about the same. You can use any of them in the sentence about the train.

CJ

Hi, CJ. For some reason, "I feel" a voluntary action in the "l"-words, and an involuntary action in the "j"-words. Am I way off-base?
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I wouldn't say off-base. It seems that this is just the way you react to the individual words. I understand in a vague sort of way what you're saying, because lunge, at least, has a voluntary sense about it (to me). You may be on to something there.

CJ
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What's a voluntary sense and involuntary sense? Do they have anything to do with the words?
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Voluntary here gives the idea that the motion is due to an agent - a person who expends energy to cause the movement -- (or an animal)
Involuntary here gives the idea that the motion is due to some agentless event - something mechanical happens, something falls, something breaks, whatever it might be.

If you dance, you are producing voluntary motion.
If you slip and fall
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