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schlep

or schlepp, shlep, shlepp

[shlep]Slang.
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verb (used with object), schlepped, schlep·ping.
  1. to carry; lug: to schlep an umbrella on a sunny day.
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verb (used without object), schlepped, schlep·ping.
  1. to move slowly, awkwardly, or tediously: We schlepped from store to store all day.
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noun
  1. Also schlep·per. someone or something that is tedious, slow, or awkward; drag.
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Origin of schlep

1920–25; < Yiddish shlepn to pull, drag, (intransitive) trudge < Middle High German dialect sleppen < Middle Low German, Middle Dutch slēpen; cognate with Middle High German, Old High German sleifen (German schleifen); akin to slip1, slippery
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

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British Dictionary definitions for schlep

schlep

verb schleps, schlepping or schlepped
  1. to drag or lug (oneself or an object) with difficulty
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noun
  1. a stupid or clumsy person
  2. an arduous journey or procedure
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Word Origin

Yiddish, from German schleppen
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

Word Origin and History for schlep

v.

"to carry or drag," 1922 (in Joyce's "Ulysses"), from Yiddish shlepen "to drag," from Middle High German sleppen, related to Old High German sleifen "to drag," and slifan "to slide, slip" (cf. Middle English slippen; see slip (v.)). Related: Schlepped; schlepping.

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n.

"stupid person, loser," 1939, short for schlepper "person of little worth" (1934), in Yiddish, "fool, beggar, scrounger," from schlep (v.) "to carry or drag" (for sense evolution, cf. drag (n.) "annoying dull person").

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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper