any of various viscid, amorphous exudations from plants, hardening on exposure to air and soluble in or forming a viscid mass with water.
any of various similar exudations, as resin.
a preparation of such a substance, as for use in the arts or bookbinding.
mucilage; glue.
Philately. the adhesive by which a postage stamp is affixed.
Informal. a rubber overshoe or boot.
to smear, stiffen, or stick together with gum.
to clog with or as if with some gummy substance.
to exude or form gum.
to become gummy.
to become clogged with a gummy substance.
to masticate (food) with the gums instead of teeth.
to shape or renew the teeth of (a saw), as by grinding.
any of various sticky substances that exude from certain plants, hardening on exposure to air and dissolving or forming viscous masses in water
any of various products, such as adhesives, that are made from such exudates
any sticky substance used as an adhesive; mucilage; glue
short for kauri gum
a gumdrop
to cover or become covered, clogged, or stiffened with or as if with gum
(tr) to stick together or in place with gum
(intr) to emit or form gum
First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English gom(m)e, gum(m)e, from Old French gomme, from Vulgar Latin gumma, for Latin gummi, cummi, commi, from Greek kómmi, from Coptic kommi, from Egyptian kema, kemai, kmjt
First recorded in 1275–1325; Middle English gom(m)e, Old English gōma “palate, jaws (in plural),” Old Norse gōmr “roof or floor of the mouth,” German Gaumen “palate”
First recorded in 1825–35; euphemism for God
Gum is a sticky substance that oozes out of a tree or another plant, and chewing gum is the stuff you blow bubbles with or stick under your desk. Yuck. Natural gum has many uses, including as a thickener in food products. Chewing gum, however, has only one real use: it's made to be chewed but not swallowed. This kind of gum often has a fruity or minty flavor, and can sometimes be blown into bubbles. When you gum something up, you clog or block it — or you make it sticky. Completely different gums are the soft flesh inside your mouth where your teeth are rooted.
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
In an early trial in people with gum disease, the drug was reported to reduce gum inflammation for several months.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 26, 2026
Over time, severe gum disease can destroy the tissue and bone that hold teeth in place.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 26, 2026
Another company, Denteric, is developing a therapeutic vaccine designed to help patients who already have gum disease.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 26, 2026
To investigate, the research team tested whether chewing sugar-containing gum, which lowers the pH inside the mouth, would increase nitrite production.
From Science Daily ● Jul. 15, 2026
"Life Savers, individually wrapped. Bit-O-Honey, Charleston Chews, Bazooka bubble gum, and..."
From "Look Both Ways" by Jason Reynolds
GUM, the luxury mall next to Red Square, is full of shoppers — though many Western stores like Prada, Gucci and Christian Dior are closed — and restaurants and theaters do thriving business.
From New York Times ● Sep. 6, 2022
Bartender Yevgeniya Chernyshkova was lined up Thursday for a shot at Moscow’s GUM department store just off Red Square after the government required vaccinations for workers in some sectors.
From Seattle Times ● Jul. 2, 2021
Detsky Mir has one big advantage for recently-exfiltrated Soviet spies over better known department stores like GUM: It’s a toy store.
From Slate ● May 31, 2018
But when that site was outgrown and revitalization projects were being launched along MLK, GUM was pushed and even paid - the city gave $252,000 - to relocate.
From Washington Times ● May 2, 2018
GUM CISTUS.—The gum labdanum is procured from this shrub, and is its only produce used in medicine.
From The Botanist's Companion, Volume II by Salisbury, William
But conditions worsened Friday when they discovered they could not offload a neutralizing agent in the failing tank because the valves had broken and were gummed up.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 23, 2026
That gummed up credit markets, tanked the value of money-market funds, and sent global stock markets into a tailspin.
From Barron's ● Mar. 13, 2026
In a memo to employees, Fiddelke said he was trying to clear up “complexity” that gummed up decision-making and made it harder to deliver on ideas, according to the Journal.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 26, 2025
The process, normally gummed up, is even more difficult lately.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 16, 2025
Instead my feet had gummed to the sidewalk as he handed her into the Ford and they drove away.
From "The Red Car to Hollywood" by Jennie Liu
In practice, it is gumming up urgent upgrades.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 3, 2026
"It's almost palpably eager to please – and if you don't welcome it right into your heart, you might want to check there's not some marmalade gumming it shut."
From BBC ● Dec. 1, 2025
And despite the claims that she’s gumming up the state’s process with her appeals, Gilbert has never actually reversed a council decision.
From Salon ● Aug. 17, 2025
Many importers then quietly used the San Pedro ports to store containers, causing a logjam of ships waiting to berth and gumming up the entire supply chain system.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 26, 2024
I keep going, one foot in front of the other, tears gumming up the back of my throat, until I feel I’m far enough away that they won’t find me.
From "Red Flags and Butterflies" by Sheryl Azzam
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
