lump

¹

[ luhmp ]

noun

1. a piece or mass of solid matter without regular shape or of no particular shape:

   a lump of coal.

2. a protuberance or swelling:

   a blow that raised a lump on his head.

3. an aggregation, collection, or mass; clump:

   All the articles were piled in a great lump.

4. Also called lump of sugar. a small block of granulated sugar, designed for sweetening hot coffee, tea, etc.:

   How many lumps do you take in your coffee?

5. the greater part or number; a large number:

   The great lump of voters are still undecided.

6. lumps, Informal. harsh criticism, punishment, or defeat:

   The new theory came in for some lumps when other scholars heard of it.

7. Informal. a heavy, clumsy, and usually stupid person.

adjective

1. in the form of a lump or lumps:

   lump sugar.

2. made up of a number of items taken together; not separated or considered separately:

   The debts were paid in one lump sum.

verb (used with object)

1. to unite into one aggregation, collection, or mass (often followed by together ):

   We lumped the reds and blues together.

2. to deal with, handle, consider, etc., in the lump or mass:

   to lump unrelated matters indiscriminately.

3. to make into a lump or lumps:

   to lump dough before shaping it into loaves.

4. to raise into or cover with lumps:

   a plow lumping the moist earth.

verb (used without object)

1. to form or raise a lump or lumps:

   Stir the gravy so that it doesn't lump.

2. to move heavily and awkwardly:

   The big oaf lumped along beside me.

lump

²

[ luhmp ]

verb (used with object)

, Informal.

1. to put up with; resign oneself to; accept and endure:

   If you don't like it, you can lump it.

lump

¹

/ lʌmp /

verb

1. informal.
   tr to tolerate or put up with; endure (in the phrase lump it )

lump

²

/ lʌmp /

noun

1. a small solid mass without definite shape
2. pathol any small swelling or tumour
3. a collection of things; aggregate
4. informal.
   an awkward, heavy, or stupid person
5. informal.
   plural punishment, defeat, or reverses

   he took his lumps

6. the lump
   the lump
   1. self-employed workers in the building trade considered collectively, esp with reference to tax and national insurance evasion
   2. ( as modifier )

      lump labour

7. modifier in the form of a lump or lumps

   lump sugar

8. a lump in one's throat
   a lump in one's throat a tight dry feeling in one's throat, usually caused by great emotion

verb

1. troften foll bytogether to collect into a mass or group
2. intr to grow into lumps or become lumpy
3. tr to consider as a single group, often without justification
4. tr to make or cause lumps in or on
5. introften foll byalong to move or proceed in a heavy manner

Other Words From

• lumping·ly adverb

Word History and Origins

Origin of lump¹

First recorded in 1300–50; Middle English lumpe, lomp(e); cognate with early Dutch lompe “piece,” Danish lump(e) “lump,” dialectal Norwegian lump “block”

Origin of lump²

An Americanism dating back to 1785–95; perhaps identical with British dialect lump “to look sullen”

Word History and Origins

Origin of lump¹

C16: origin uncertain

Origin of lump²

C13: probably related to early Dutch lompe piece, Scandinavian dialect lump block, Middle High German lumpe rag

Idioms and Phrases

Idioms

1. get / take one's lumps, to receive or endure hardship, punishment, criticism, etc.:

   Without its star pitcher, the baseball team will get its lumps today.

More idioms and phrases containing lump

In addition to the idiom beginning with lump , also see like it or lump it .

Example Sentences

You can lump unemployment policies into two broad categories—the US-style efforts that provide payments to people who have lost their jobs, and policies popular in Europe that provide money to companies to keep workers on the payroll.

From Quartz

Unlike spoons, spurtles allegedly don’t drag and prevent lumps.

From Eater

That arrangement might look something like paying a lump sum, Shevchuck suggests, but Moran argues “in my experience, arrangements to collect money from employees who have departed are inherently problematic.”

From Fortune

Upon closer inspection of a big lump of bones in the creature’s belly, Motani’s team discovered that the last thing the ichthyosaur ate was the body of a thalattosaur, sans head and tail.

From Science News

A pair of changes being rolled out to Apple’s operating systems has publishers lumping the device maker into that group as well.

From Digiday

French President François Hollande is telling the French people they should “not lump them together.”

From The Daily Beast

If the Americans are going to lump them together with ISIS, maybe best to join forces.

From The Daily Beast

The one-time anti-bullying champion let his attorney seek to lump the victim together with the victimizer.

From The Daily Beast

One morning in late December, Sclove told me she awoke to discover a lump on her lower spine.

From The Daily Beast

The lump, it turned out, was the result of a dislocated vertebrae.

From The Daily Beast

Besides a few crumbs, it contained a small lump of narwhal blubber and a little packet.

From Project Gutenberg

Now Isaias had ordered that they should take a lump of figs, and lay it as a plaster upon the wound, and that he should be healed.

From Project Gutenberg

He gulped back the lump in his throat; his trembling nerves became as steel.

From Project Gutenberg

Furs should be kept in a box, alone, and in summer carefully packed, with a quantity of lump camphor to protect from moths.

From Project Gutenberg

There was a lump in Perry's throat at that moment, and he stopped his rocking and turned to the fire, so his back was toward me.

From Project Gutenberg

Related Words

• bulge
• bump
• chunk
• hunk
• knot
• pile
• swelling
• tumor
• wad