schlep

American  

[shlep] / ʃlɛp /

Also schlepp sometimes shlep,

verb (used with object)

Slang.

schlepped, schlepping

1. to carry; lug.

   to schlep an umbrella on a sunny day.

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verb (used without object)

Slang.

schlepped, schlepping

1. to move slowly, awkwardly, or tediously.

   We schlepped from store to store all day.

noun

Slang.

1. Also schlepper. someone or something that is tedious, slow, or awkward.

schlep British  

/ ʃlɛp /

verb

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

Etymology

Origin of schlep

First recorded in 1910–15; from Yiddish shlepn “to pull, drag, (intransitive) trudge,” from German schleppen, “to draw, tug, haul”; akin to slip ¹, slippery

Example Sentences

He’s about to schlep through a 162-game season with them: plane trips, batting practice, 1 a.m. room service steak dinners in antiseptic luxury hotels.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 16, 2026

She still laughs about it now, whispering to my dad back then, half-horrified, half-amused: “BYOM? They want us to schlep raw meat to their house. Is that… something people do?”

From Salon • Jan. 27, 2026

Yiddish, the language spoken by Ashkenazi Jews across Europe before the Holocaust, is now perhaps best known to many English speakers through words such as "schlep", "klutz" and "chutzpah".

From Barron's • Oct. 26, 2025

Before we know it, though, the long schlep home will begin – via Hawaii, California and Winnipeg - and Westminster’s tilt towards the Budget will become total.

From BBC • Oct. 25, 2024

Admittedly, I have to schlep to the rover five times a day to check e-mail.

From "The Martian" by Andy Weir