stump
noun
the lower end of a tree or plant left after the main part falls or is cut off; a standing tree trunk from which the upper part and branches have been removed.
had stumped
-
past perfectof stump.past perfect
Used to express a completed action that took place before another specific past action occurred.
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
The 12-year-old drugmaker, more commonly known as RevMed, had spent much of its existence trying to solve a scientific puzzle that had stumped some of the industry’s leading researchers.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 28, 2026
Last month, OpenAI announced that its latest version of ChatGPT had solved a major math problem, one that had stumped experts for 80 years.
From Slate ● Jun. 22, 2026
Grady had stumped for Brown’s Senate bid last year, when Brown came in second place to former Nevada Attorney General Adam Laxalt in the GOP primary.
From Seattle Times ● Aug. 8, 2023
At first, Bowman, a computer scientist at New York University, thought he had stumped the models.
From Science Magazine ● May 5, 2022
A thirty-something father of two, he badly wanted this job, but he had barely passed his other exams, and first aid had stumped him.
From "Newjack: Guarding Sing Sing" by Ted Conover
