lumber

1
[ luhm-ber ]
See synonyms for: lumberlumberedlumbering on Thesaurus.com

noun
  1. timber sawed or split into planks, boards, etc.

  2. miscellaneous useless articles that are stored away.

verb (used without object)
  1. to cut timber and prepare it for market.

  2. to become useless or to be stored away as useless.

verb (used with object)
  1. to convert (a specified amount, area, etc.) into lumber: We lumbered more than a million acres last year.

  2. to heap together in disorder.

  1. to fill up or obstruct with miscellaneous useless articles; encumber.

Origin of lumber

1
First recorded in 1545–55; of uncertain origin; perhaps because the cut and trimmed timber was dried and seasoned in a lumber room

Other words from lumber

  • lum·ber·er, noun
  • lum·ber·less, adjective

Words Nearby lumber

Other definitions for lumber (2 of 2)

lumber2
[ luhm-ber ]

verb (used without object)
  1. to move clumsily or heavily, especially from great or ponderous bulk: overloaded wagons lumbering down the dirt road.

  2. to make a rumbling noise.

Origin of lumber

2
First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English lomeren; compare dialectal Swedish lomra “to resound, roar,” loma “to walk heavily”

Other words for lumber

Other words from lumber

  • lum·ber·ly, adjective

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use lumber in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for lumber (1 of 2)

lumber1

/ (ˈlʌmbə) /


noun
  1. mainly US and Canadian

    • logs; sawn timber

    • cut timber, esp when sawn and dressed ready for use in joinery, carpentry, etc

    • (as modifier): the lumber trade

  2. British

    • useless household articles that are stored away

    • (as modifier): lumber room

verb
  1. (tr) to pile together in a disorderly manner

  2. (tr) to fill up or encumber with useless household articles

  1. mainly US and Canadian to convert (the trees) of (a forest) into marketable timber

  2. (tr) British informal to burden with something unpleasant, tedious, etc

  3. (tr) Australian to arrest; imprison

Origin of lumber

1
C17: perhaps from a noun use of lumber ²

Derived forms of lumber

  • lumberer, noun

British Dictionary definitions for lumber (2 of 2)

lumber2

/ (ˈlʌmbə) /


verb(intr)
  1. to move awkwardly

  2. an obsolete word for rumble

Origin of lumber

2
C14 lomeren; perhaps related to lome lame 1, Swedish dialect loma to move ponderously

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012