plumb bob

noun

1. plummet ( def 1 ).

plumb bob

noun

1. the weight, usually of lead, at the end of a plumb line; plummet

Word History and Origins

Origin of plumb bob¹

First recorded in 1825–35

Example Sentences

Now, you can use a plumb bob or level to project down to the ground exactly where your support posts will be.

From Seattle Times

But the installation titled “Diver” features a stainless-steel plumb bob swinging elliptically over the level surface of a container of water that sits on the Guggenheim’s sloping ramp.

From Washington Post

Foundation crews use plumb bobs and other tools to ensure that the new foundation is an exact match for the outer walls of the house suspended above them.

From Seattle Times

Don’t stare and plumb bob forever, but don’t hurry, either; wait that extra half-second until that projected putt becomes, somehow, real in the mind.

From Golf Digest

Your hitchy swing, your pretentious attire, the one time you shanked a ball off the protective wall at a driving range—it is not a setting for the hyper-sensitive, or anyone who plumb bobs.

From Golf Digest