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Synonyms

pumping

American  
[puhm-ping] / ˈpʌm pɪŋ /

noun

  1. the act or process of pumping or the action of a pump.

  2. Meteorology. rapid change in the height of the column in a mercury barometer, resulting from fluctuations in the surrounding air pressure.

Etymology

Origin of pumping

First recorded in 1590–1600; pump 1 + -ing 1

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.

At the time, Iger said Disney had been pumping out too many shows and movies to compete with Netflix and needed to retrench.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 8, 2026

Fuel rationing has shortened queues, but on Thursday, the government began limiting water supply hours to conserve reserves and save pumping costs.

From Barron's • Apr. 4, 2026

Recently it has joined the AI rush, deviating from its bread and butter of conventional infrastructure and blue-chip stocks, pumping money into several large AI data center funds, including one with asset manager Brookfield.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 3, 2026

Meanwhile, improved fuel efficiency means that people aren’t pumping as much gasoline as before.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 31, 2026

The idea of it gets my adrenal glands pumping.

From "Dry" by Neal Shusterman and Jarrod Shusterman

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.