lug
verb (used with object)
to pull or carry with force or effort.
lug
1 American
[luhg]
/ lʌg /
verb (used with object)
-
lugs,
present (3rd person singular)
-
lugged,
past participle, past
-
lugging
present participle
-
to pull or carry with force or effort.
to lug a suitcase upstairs.
-
to introduce or interject in an inappropriate or irrelevant manner.
to lug personalities into a discussion of philosophy.
-
(of a sailing ship) to carry an excessive amount of (sail) for the conditions prevailing.
verb (used without object)
-
lugs,
present (3rd person singular)
-
lugged,
past participle, past
-
lugging
present participle
-
to pull or tug laboriously.
-
(of an engine or machine) to jerk, hesitate, or strain.
The engine lugs when we climb a steep hill.
noun
-
an act or instance of lugging; a forcible pull; haul.
-
a wooden box for transporting fruit or vegetables.
-
Slang. a request for or exaction of money, as for political purposes.
They put the lug on him at the office.
lug
2
American
[luhg]
/ lʌg /
noun
-
a projecting piece by which anything is held or supported.
-
a ridge or welt that helps to provide traction, as on a tire or the sole of a shoe.
-
Masonry. either of the ends of a lug sill.
-
Carpentry. (in a double-hung window) one of a pair of projections extending downward from the ends of the meeting rail of the upper sash.
-
a leather loop hanging down from a saddle, through which a shaft is passed for support.
-
Shipbuilding. clip.
-
Slang.
-
an awkward, clumsy fellow.
-
a blockhead.
-
a man; guy.
-
lug
3
American
[luhg]
/ lʌg /
noun
lug
4
American
[luhg]
/ lʌg /
noun
Lug
5
American
[lookh ]
/ lʊx /
noun
lug
1
British
/ lʌɡ /
noun
-
a projecting piece by which something is connected, supported, or lifted
-
Also called: tug. a leather loop used in harness for various purposes
-
a box or basket for vegetables or fruit with a capacity of 28 to 40 pounds
-
dialect another word for ear 1
-
slang a man, esp a stupid or awkward one
lug
2
British
/ lʌɡ /
verb
-
to carry or drag (something heavy) with great effort
-
(tr) to introduce (an irrelevant topic) into a conversation or discussion
-
(tr) (of a sailing vessel) to carry too much (sail) for the amount of wind blowing
noun
lug
3
British
/ lʌɡ /
noun
lug
4
British
/ lʌɡ /
noun
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
lugsimple
-
lugssimple
-
have luggedperfect
-
has luggedperfect
-
am luggingprogressive
-
are luggingprogressive
-
is luggingprogressive
-
have been luggingperfect progressive
-
has been luggingperfect progressive
Past
-
luggedsimple
-
had luggedperfect
-
was luggingprogressive
-
were luggingprogressive
-
had been luggingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of lug1
First recorded in 1300–50; Middle English luggen, from Scandinavian; compare Norwegian lugge, Swedish lugga “to pull by the hair”
Origin of lug2
First recorded in 1485–95; from Scandinavian; compare Norwegian, Swedish lugg “forelock”; see lug 1
Origin of lug3
By shortening
Origin of lug4
First recorded in 1595–1605; earlier lugg; perhaps special use of lug 2
Explanation
To lug something is to drag or haul it. If you have to lug a heavy backpack to school, look into buying a fashionable backpack on wheels. If you overpack for a trip, you might end up having to lug your suitcases around the airport, and if your grocery bag breaks on your way home, you'll have to lug your gallon of milk and bunches of bananas in your arms instead. As a noun, lug has several less common meanings, including "a handle-like projection," and "an asymmetrical four-sized sail." Informally, a lug is also an ear in Scotland, and a bully in North America.
Vocabulary lists containing lug
Essential Three-Letter Words, Part 2
Looking to grow your vocabulary? Check out this interactive, curated word list from our team of English language specialists at Vocabulary.com – one of over 17,000 lists we've built to help learners worldwide!
"Digging" by Seamus Heaney
Interested in learning more words like this one? Our team at Vocabulary.com has got you covered! You can review flashcards, quiz yourself, practice spelling, and more – and it's all completely free to use!
The Color of My Words
Want to remember this word for good? Start your learning journey today with our library of interactive, themed word lists built by the experts at Vocabulary.com – we'll help you make the most of your study time!
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.
See Examples For:
Most people would vouch for specific items, such as a spare tire or a lug wrench, if they had limited choices on what to keep in their car every day.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 20, 2026
They then lug heavy loads back home, spreading the seaweed out on the ground and snipping off residue.
From Barron's ● Jun. 30, 2026
Many people over the years have recommended that I get an e-reader so I don’t have to lug around books in my suitcase.
From Slate ● Mar. 8, 2026
For our final critique, I offered to help lug her sewing mannequin across campus.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 8, 2025
“To imply the Cro-Magnon were lug heads is wrong. They exhibited a cranial capacity approximately sixteen hundred cubic centimeters larger than modern-day humans.’
From "Burning Blue" by Paul Griffin
"Lug nuts do not shake themselves loose and fall off all at the same time without warning," he said.
From Fox News ● Oct. 21, 2021
Lug up some camping chairs, beverages, and flameless candles, and you have a pleasant change of scenery.
From Slate ● May 22, 2020
I was introduced to the routine that the three dozen other riders had already adopted: Lug your duffle bag down from the truck.
From New York Times ● Jan. 28, 2019
In San Francisco Elsa Maxwell gave a party, plugging Foyers du Soldat, incidentally plugging her motion picture The Lady and the Lug.
From Time Magazine Archive
Lug, the ear; the handle of an article.
From The Proverbs of Scotland by Alexander Hislop
Every morning, he lugs a five-gallon water tank into his trailer, and he eats lunch with a group of other founders on the site.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 24, 2026
A child lugs a jerry can half his size full of water.
From Seattle Times ● Feb. 23, 2024
Infrastructure also plays a role, with leaks plaguing the network that lugs water up to and across Mexico's high-altitude capital.
From Reuters ● Apr. 27, 2023
“I get about $8.75,” said Emy, who told me she lugs two suitcases with her when she takes an Uber to Long Beach to begin her five-day shift.
From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 8, 2023
She lugs heavy tomes from the shelves and sets them on a nearby table.
From "The Belles" by Dhonielle Clayton
Duchamp clambered into a taxi, packed up his canvas and lugged it home.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 12, 2026
In the same central train stations of that city, old women then sold carrots and beets from cardboard boxes they had lugged from their country homes.
From Salon ● Dec. 3, 2025
Valeria Serna of climate nonprofit Resilient Palisades recently purchased a 500-gallon water tank on her own dime and lugged it to several neighborhoods that lacked water access.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 24, 2025
Potatoes would arrive in huge wooden crates and have to be lugged up from the cellar.
From BBC ● Oct. 25, 2024
“I won’t have them ruined by this smoke,” she told me as I lugged the boxes out to the car.
From "Tangerine" by Edward Bloor
Groups of all ages converged on the city centre to the sound of drums and guitars, with hardy pilgrims lugging rucksacks and camping material on their backs.
From Barron's ● Jun. 7, 2026
Picture, said Hutchcraft, laborers going up and down the rows with bags on their shoulders, picking orange fruit and filling them, and then lugging the bags to tubs at the ends of rows.
From Slate ● Apr. 20, 2026
She remembered trailing behind her grandmother cutting roses in her garden, lugging bucketfuls of flowers and inhaling the sweetness.
From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 9, 2026
Now, he's working on a two-legged version that will require even more responsive legs to keep its balance while lugging Bruton around.
From BBC ● Feb. 5, 2026
It was another beautiful day, and I wanted to go outside without lugging anything extra.
From "Maybe He Just Likes You" by Barbara Dee
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.
