lump

[ luhmp ]

/ lʌmp /

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See synonyms for: lump / lumps on Thesaurus.com

noun

a piece or mass of solid matter without regular shape or of no particular shape: a lump of coal.

a protuberance or swelling:a blow that raised a lump on his head.

an aggregation, collection, or mass; clump: All the articles were piled in a great lump.

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?

the greater part or number; a large number: The great lump of voters are still undecided.

lumps, Informal. harsh criticism, punishment, or defeat: The new theory came in for some lumps when other scholars heard of it.

Informal. a heavy, clumsy, and usually stupid person.

adjective

in the form of a lump or lumps: lump sugar.

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)

to unite into one aggregation, collection, or mass (often followed by together): We lumped the reds and blues together.

to deal with, handle, consider, etc., in the lump or mass: to lump unrelated matters indiscriminately.

to make into a lump or lumps: to lump dough before shaping it into loaves.

to raise into or cover with lumps: a plow lumping the moist earth.

verb (used without object)

to form or raise a lump or lumps: Stir the gravy so that it doesn't lump.

to move heavily and awkwardly: The big oaf lumped along beside me.

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Question 1 of 7

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His boss, whom he admires, is waiting to meet with him about the big project.

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Idioms about lump

get / take one's lumps, to receive or endure hardship, punishment, criticism, etc.: Without its star pitcher, the baseball team will get its lumps today.

Origin of lump

First recorded in 1300–50; Middle English lumpe, lomp(e); cognate with early Dutch lompe “piece,” Danish lump(e) “lump,” dialectal Norwegian lump “block”

OTHER WORDS FROM lump

lump·ing·ly, adverb

Other definitions for lump (2 of 2)

lump²

[ luhmp ]

/ lʌmp /

verb (used with object) Informal.

to put up with; resign oneself to; accept and endure: If you don't like it, you can lump it.

Origin of lump

An Americanism dating back to 1785–95; perhaps identical with British dialect lump “to look sullen”

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use lump in a sentence

Instead of syncing the three games in any intelligent fashion, everything just feels lumped together.
Call of Duty’s merged world has everything a player could want. Except logic.|Mike Hume|December 18, 2020|Washington Post
In its pages Martin details the recipes she learned from the Cajun women in her family, from brothy chicken gumbo to lump crab cakes held together with shrimp binder.
As customers and coastlines disappear, a New Orleans chef fights for her community|Dayana Sarkisova|December 17, 2020|Washington Post
As I wrote here, I do think there’s decent evidence that it helps, though you can quibble about whether lifting heavy weights and doing explosive plyometric drills should or shouldn’t be lumped together in one category.
Rethinking the Cross-Training Paradox|Alex Hutchinson|November 19, 2020|Outside Online
Nothing about the radiation reveals whether it came from an astronaut or a lump of lead.
The Most Famous Paradox in Physics Nears Its End|George Musser|October 29, 2020|Quanta Magazine

In many cases, states were slow to set up their unemployment systems to distribute those weekly payments, which were sometimes disbursed later as one large lump sum.
U.S. economy recoups two-thirds of ground lost in first half of year, but there is still far to go|Rachel Siegel, Andrew Van Dam|October 29, 2020|Washington Post
They were also stigmatized, lumped in with drug users, gays, and Haitians—all disfavored groups at the time.
The Outrageous Celibacy Requirement for Gay Blood Donors|Jay Michaelson|November 22, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Their inchoate fury lumped together anger at same-sex marriage, at foreigners and at “the system.”
America’s Ambassadors of Hate|Christopher Dickey|February 4, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Whitman is made to share a chapter, lumped in with Proust, Wilde, and Baudelaire, in which he is allotted a mere paragraph.
John Sutherland‘s Enjoyable Little History of Literature|Malcolm Forbes|November 29, 2013|DAILY BEAST
Still, Le1f resents being lumped into a single category based not on musical style but sexual orientation.
Don’t Call It Gay Rap: Le1f’s Transition From YouTube to the Main Stage|Caitlin Dickson|August 30, 2013|DAILY BEAST
Thus Zawahiri lumped American, Russia, and Israel together as the enemies of Muslims everywhere.
Al Qaeda Is Probably Pleased With Boston Bombing|Bruce Riedel|April 19, 2013|DAILY BEAST
He looked irritably under lumped old quilts, piles of table linen, and cloth-shielded pictures.
Mountain|Clement Wood
He spoke in a brusque tone—as why should he not, since he was addressing an audience he lumped together as just so many crooks?
Children of the Whirlwind|Leroy Scott
She'd be lumped with common or garden palmists and fortune-tellers, I suppose.
The Second Latchkey|Charles Norris Williamson and Alice Muriel Williamson
In itself, each critical situation was minor, but lumped together they could add up to failure.
Student Body|Floyd L. Wallace
Likewise gowns lumped upon the shoulders, with all the folds drawn across, instead of hanging draperies.
Needlework As Art|Marian Alford

British Dictionary definitions for lump (1 of 2)

lump¹

/ (lʌmp) /

noun

a small solid mass without definite shape

pathol any small swelling or tumour

a collection of things; aggregate

informal an awkward, heavy, or stupid person

(plural) US informal punishment, defeat, or reverseshe took his lumps

the lump British

self-employed workers in the building trade considered collectively, esp with reference to tax and national insurance evasion
(as modifier)lump labour

(modifier) in the form of a lump or lumpslump sugar

a lump in one's throat a tight dry feeling in one's throat, usually caused by great emotion

verb

(tr often foll by together) to collect into a mass or group

(intr) to grow into lumps or become lumpy

(tr) to consider as a single group, often without justification

(tr) to make or cause lumps in or on

(intr often foll by along) to move or proceed in a heavy manner

Word Origin for lump

C13: probably related to early Dutch lompe piece, Scandinavian dialect lump block, Middle High German lumpe rag

British Dictionary definitions for lump (2 of 2)

lump²

/ (lʌmp) /

verb

(tr) informal to tolerate or put up with; endure (in the phrase lump it)

Word Origin for lump

C16: origin uncertain

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

Other Idioms and Phrases with lump

lump

In addition to the idiom beginning with lump

lump in one's throat

also see:

like it or lump it

lump

Idioms about lump

Origin of lump

OTHER WORDS FROM lump

Other definitions for lump (2 of 2)

Origin of lump

Words related to lump

How to use lump in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for lump (1 of 2)

Word Origin for lump

British Dictionary definitions for lump (2 of 2)

Word Origin for lump

Other Idioms and Phrases with lump