- present participle of plumb.
noun
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Also called: plumbery. the trade or work of a plumber
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the pipes, fixtures, etc, used in a water, drainage, or gas installation
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the act or procedure of using a plumb to gauge depth, a vertical, etc
Etymology
Origin of plumbing
Explanation
Indoor plumbing is what makes civilization great. Plumbing refers to the pipes that get the water in and the sewage out. If a snake shows up in the toilet, it probably came in through the plumbing. Yikes! You can use the noun plumbing whether you're talking about the bathroom sink, the pipes connected to your dishwasher, or the bathtub drain. A home's heating system often consists of plumbing too. The work of fixing or installing this type of system is also plumbing. The word's earliest meaning was "the weighting of a fishing line," from plumb, originally "to sink like lead," which has the Latin root plumba, or "lead."
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.
Her arc mirrored that of my Mexican immigrant parents, who were also mountain people who grew up in big farming families with no plumbing or electricity, snuggling with siblings during winter nights in unheated bedrooms.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 26, 2026
What Edwards refers to as fixed-income plumbing is also a worry.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 20, 2026
Passengers described stifling conditions as well as problems with plumbing after paying thousands of pounds for European cruises, including on the Danube River.
From BBC ● Aug. 20, 2026
And Richard Blumenthal, another Democratic senator, said there were "widespread reports of shortages of basic supplies, water contamination, plumbing issues, deteriorating mental health, deck safety concerns" on the ship.
From Barron's ● Aug. 13, 2026
Over the years he’d learned every trade he could get close to—fishing, ship rigging, painting, framing, masonry, plumbing, roofing, tile work, even auto repair.
From "Zeitoun" by Dave Eggers
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.
