lumber

¹ American  

[luhm-ber] / ˈlʌm bər /

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.

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

lumber ² American  

[luhm-ber] / ˈlʌm bər /

verb (used without object)

1. to move clumsily or heavily, especially from great or ponderous bulk.

   overloaded wagons lumbering down the dirt road.

   Synonyms:

   plod, barge, trudge

2. to make a rumbling noise.

---

lumber ¹ British  

/ ˈlʌmbə /

noun

1. 1. logs; sawn timber

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

   3. ( as modifier )

      the lumber trade

2. 1. useless household articles that are stored away

   2. ( 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

3. to convert (the trees) of (a forest) into marketable timber

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

5. (tr) to arrest; imprison

lumber ² British  

/ ˈlʌmbə /

verb

1. to move awkwardly

2. an obsolete word for rumble

---

Other Word Forms

• lumberer noun
• lumberless adjective
• lumberly adjective

Etymology

Origin of lumber¹

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

Origin of lumber²

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

Example Sentences

It also faces steeper tariffs on steel, aluminium and softwood lumber.

From BBC • Feb. 25, 2026

The president, for example, has at his disposal Section 232 of the Trade Expansion Act of 1962, the same tool he used to impose import taxes on steel, aluminum, lumber and furniture.

From MarketWatch • Feb. 20, 2026

Some worried that new tariffs would drive up the price of lumber and steel and that immigration raids could increase the cost of labor.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 11, 2026

This was the largest redwood lumber mill in the world, resulting in clashes with the environmental community for years.

From Los Angeles Times • Jan. 2, 2026

Boats and trains brought vast amounts of lumber, grain, and livestock into the city to be stored and processed, then shipped out to customers across the country.

From "A Few Red Drops: The Chicago Race Riot of 1919" by Claire Hartfield

Related Words

• plod
• shuffle
• slog
• trudge
• trundle
• waddle