lump
1 Americannoun
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a piece or mass of solid matter without regular shape or of no particular shape.
a lump of coal.
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a protuberance or swelling.
a blow that raised a lump on his head.
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an aggregation, collection, or mass; clump.
All the articles were piled in a great lump.
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Also called lump of sugar. a small block of granulated sugar, designed for sweetening hot coffee, tea, etc..
How many lumps do you take in your coffee?
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the greater part or number; a large number.
The great lump of voters are still undecided.
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Informal. lumps, harsh criticism, punishment, or defeat.
The new theory came in for some lumps when other scholars heard of it.
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Informal. a heavy, clumsy, and usually stupid person.
adjective
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in the form of a lump or lumps.
lump sugar.
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made up of a number of items taken together; not separated or considered separately.
The debts were paid in one lump sum.
verb (used with object)
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to unite into one aggregation, collection, or mass (often followed bytogether ).
We lumped the reds and blues together.
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to deal with, handle, consider, etc., in the lump or mass.
to lump unrelated matters indiscriminately.
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to make into a lump or lumps.
to lump dough before shaping it into loaves.
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to raise into or cover with lumps.
a plow lumping the moist earth.
verb (used without object)
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to form or raise a lump or lumps.
Stir the gravy so that it doesn't lump.
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to move heavily and awkwardly.
The big oaf lumped along beside me.
idioms
verb (used with object)
noun
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a small solid mass without definite shape
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pathol any small swelling or tumour
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a collection of things; aggregate
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informal an awkward, heavy, or stupid person
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informal (plural) punishment, defeat, or reverses
he took his lumps
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self-employed workers in the building trade considered collectively, esp with reference to tax and national insurance evasion
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( as modifier )
lump labour
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(modifier) in the form of a lump or lumps
lump sugar
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a tight dry feeling in one's throat, usually caused by great emotion
verb
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to collect into a mass or group
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(intr) to grow into lumps or become lumpy
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(tr) to consider as a single group, often without justification
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(tr) to make or cause lumps in or on
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to move or proceed in a heavy manner
verb
Other Word Forms
- lumpingly adverb
Etymology
Origin of lump1
First recorded in 1300–50; Middle English lumpe, lomp(e); cognate with early Dutch lompe “piece,” Danish lump(e) “lump,” dialectal Norwegian lump “block”
Origin of lump2
An Americanism dating back to 1785–95; perhaps identical with British dialect lump “to look sullen”
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.
While artificial-intelligence stocks have recently taken some lumps, many are still highly priced, so much so that many investors still see a bubble.
From Barron's
After 25 years of retirement — and despite several investment errors — the lump sum has grown to three times its initial amount.
From MarketWatch
The second-year coach, frustrated after the team delivered a lump of coal in a Christmas Day blowout by the Houston Rockets, said he couldn’t stand to rewatch the same tired story.
From Los Angeles Times
Just be aware of the risks of giving 18-year-olds a lump sum.
From MarketWatch
That means the cost of chips that may have to be replaced in a few years or less can be lumped together with buildings that can stand for decades.
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.
