English

Verb

take a dive ‎(third-person singular simple present takes a dive, present participle taking a dive, simple past took a dive, past participle taken a dive)

1. (idiomatic, boxing) To feign a knockout in order to lose intentionally.
   • 1950, Archer, Jules, I Sell What I Write, page 44:

     I decided there could be a nice bit of irony in a situation where a boxer, with a crown his for the taking, deliberately takes a dive to get revenge on the man he hates, who is betting everything on the boxer's victory.

   • 2012, Lovisi, Gary, “Boxing, Babes & Bullets”, in Battling Boxing Stories, Wildside Press LLC, ISBN 9781434448897, page 165:

     "You got a fight next weekend. You take a dive in the fourth round, understand?"

   • 2015 December 31, Pushkin, Vadim, “Povetkin Promoter Praises Fury, Rejects Klitschko Dive Claim”, in Boxing Scene, retrieved 2016-08-03:

     The businessman turned promoter rejected some of overseas rumors going around that Klitschko bet a large portion of funds on himself and then took a dive to collect.

2. (idiomatic) To lose or fail intentionally.

Synonyms

• throw ‎(“to intentionally lose a game”)