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• slump
  slump

  verb (used without object)

  to drop or fall heavily; collapse.
• Slump
  Slump

  noun

  another name for the Depression

slump

American  

[sluhmp] / slʌmp /

verb (used without object)

1. to drop or fall heavily; collapse.

   Suddenly she slumped to the floor.

2. to assume a slouching, bowed, or bent position or posture.

   Stand up straight and don't slump!

3. to decrease or fall suddenly and markedly, as prices or the market.

4. to decline or deteriorate, as health, business, quality, or efficiency.

5. to sink into a bog, muddy place, etc., or through ice or snow.

6. to sink heavily, as the spirits.

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noun

1. an act or instance of slumping.

2. a decrease, decline, or deterioration.

   Synonyms:

   setback, reverse, lapse

3. a period of decline or deterioration.

4. any mild recession in the economy as a whole or in a particular industry.

5. a period during which a person performs slowly, inefficiently, or ineffectively, especially a period during which an athlete or team fails to play or score as well as usual.

6. a slouching, bowed, or bent position or posture, especially of the shoulders.

7. a landslide or rockslide.

8. the vertical subsidence of freshly mixed concrete that is a measure of consistency and stiffness.

9. New England Cooking. a dessert made with cooked fruit, especially apples or berries, topped with a thick layer of biscuit dough or crumbs.

slump ¹ British  

/ slʌmp /

verb

1. to sink or fall heavily and suddenly

2. to relax ungracefully

3. (of business activity, etc) to decline suddenly; collapse

4. (of health, interest, etc) to deteriorate or decline suddenly or markedly

5. (of soil or rock) to slip down a slope, esp a cliff, usually with a rotational movement

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noun

1. a sudden or marked decline or failure, as in progress or achievement; collapse

2. a decline in commercial activity, prices, etc

3. economics another word for depression

4. the act of slumping

5. a slipping of earth or rock; landslide

Slump ² British  

/ slʌmp /

noun

1. another name for the Depression

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Other Word Forms

• unslumped
  adjective
• unslumping
  adjective

Etymology

Origin of slump

1670–80; originally, to sink into a bog or mud; perhaps imitative ( cf. plump ²)

Explanation

To slump is to fall or slouch down. It's also a downturn in performance — a struggling ballplayer and a sinking economy are both in a slump. There are many kinds of slumps, but they all involve things going downhill. If you slide down in your chair, you slump. Other slumps are less physical. If a successful quarterback starts losing games and throwing interceptions, that's a slump. The original meaning of slump, back in the 1670s, was "fall or sink into a muddy place," while the more figurative meanings came much later.

Example Sentences

Shares fell as much as 15% earlier in the session, marking the most severe slump since February of last year.

From Barron's • May 6, 2026

Japan’s yen surged against the U.S. dollar on Thursday after the country’s top currency official issued a “final advisory” to market speculators following the yen’s slump to its lowest levels in two years.

From Barron's • Apr. 30, 2026

Robinhood’s customers are grappling with rising energy prices, wild stock swings and a deep slump in cryptocurrencies.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 29, 2026

Freeman was equally brief when asked to discuss a slump that has seen him hit .138 in his last seven games with as many strikeouts as hits.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 29, 2026

My shoulders slump as I recognize the voice.

From "Dumplin'" by Julie Murphy

Related Words

• collapse
• deteriorate
• droop
• drop
• fall
• fall off
• go down
• hunch
• plummet
• plunge
• sag
• slide
• slip
• slouch
• tumble