stump

[ stuhmp ]

noun

1. the lower end of a tree or plant left after the main part falls or is cut off; a standing tree trunk from which the upper part and branches have been removed.
2. the part of a limb of the body remaining after the rest has been cut off.
3. a part of a broken or decayed tooth left in the gum.
4. a short remnant, as of a candle; stub.
5. any basal part remaining after the main or more important part has been removed.
6. an artificial leg.
7. Usually stumps. Informal. legs:

   Stir your stumps and get out of here.

8. a short, stocky person.
9. a heavy step or uneven gait.
10. the figurative place of political speechmaking:

    to go on the stump.

11. Furniture. a support for the front end of the arm of a chair, sofa, etc. Compare post ¹( def 2 ).
12. a short, thick roll of paper, soft leather, or some similar material, usually having a blunt point, for rubbing a pencil, charcoal, or crayon drawing in order to achieve subtle gradations of tone in representing light and shade.
13. Cricket. each of the three upright sticks that, with the two bails laid on top of them, form a wicket.

verb (used with object)

1. to reduce to a stump; truncate; lop.
2. to clear of stumps, as land.
3. Chiefly Southern U.S. to stub, as one's toe.
4. to nonplus, embarrass, or render completely at a loss:

   This riddle stumps me.

5. to challenge or dare to do something.
6. to make political campaign speeches to or in:

   to stump a state.

7. Cricket. (of the wicketkeeper) to put (a batsman) out by knocking down a stump or by dislodging a bail with the ball held in the hand at a moment when the batsman is off his ground.
8. to tone or modify (a crayon drawing, pencil rendering, etc.) by means of a stump.

verb (used without object)

1. to walk heavily or clumsily, as if with a wooden leg:

   The captain stumped across the deck.

2. to make political campaign speeches; electioneer.

stump

/ stʌmp /

noun

1. the base part of a tree trunk left standing after the tree has been felled or has fallen
2. the part of something, such as a tooth, limb, or blade, that remains after a larger part has been removed
3. informal.
   1. often plural a leg
   2. stir one's stumps to move or become active
4. cricket any of three upright wooden sticks that, with two bails laid across them, form a wicket (the stumps )
5. Also calledtortillon a short sharply-pointed stick of cork or rolled paper or leather, used in drawing and shading
6. a heavy tread or the sound of heavy footsteps
7. a platform used by an orator when addressing a meeting
8. often plural a pile used to support a house
9. on the stump
   on the stump engaged in campaigning, esp by political speech-making

verb

1. tr to stop, confuse, or puzzle
2. intr to plod or trudge heavily
3. tr cricket (of a fielder, esp a wicketkeeper) to dismiss (a batsman) by breaking his wicket with the ball or with the ball in the hand while he is out of his crease
4. to campaign or canvass (an area), esp by political speech-making
5. tr to reduce to a stump; lop
6. tr to clear (land) of stumps

Derived Forms

• ˈstumper, noun

Other Words From

• stump·less adjective
• stump·like adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of stump¹

1200–50; (noun) Middle English stompe, cognate with or < Middle Low German stump ( e ), Middle Dutch stomp (compare German Stumpf ); (v.) Middle English stumpen to stumble (as over a stump), derivative of the noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of stump¹

C14: from Middle Low German stump; related to Dutch stomp, German Stumpf; see stamp

Idioms and Phrases

Idioms

1. up a stump, Informal. at a loss; embarrassed; perplexed:

   Sociologists are up a stump over the sharp rise in juvenile delinquency and crime.

Example Sentences

This woman turned her tree stump into a Little Free Library fit for magical elves.

From Washington Post

He winds his way through a stump speech with the same inflections and cadences of a Southern preacher.

From Washington Post

Once you’re confident you can avoid rocks and stumps, there’s no need to delay the season further.

From Outside Online

Prop it up in the fork of a tree or set it on a rock, stump or two forked prop sticks.

From Popular-Science

Wearing a bandanna fashioned as a headband, a cut-off T-shirt and dark glasses, he was perched on a tree stump and pointing back at the camera.

From ProPublica

They are model citizens, the kind of people whose lives might be used as exemplary stories by a politician in a stump speech.

From The Daily Beast

Plus “The stump of a pipe he held tight in his teeth/And the smoke it encircled his head like a wreath”?

From The Daily Beast

Looking to turn back the tide or at least hold it back for one more election, Clinton will stump in Benton County next week.

From The Daily Beast

CNN posted a video of UPD Chief of Police Linda Stump addressing the issue.

From The Daily Beast

Republicans and Democrats love bashing lobbyists on the stump.

From The Daily Beast

For hours the gray man would sit on a tombstone, while Black Sheep read epitaphs, and then with a sigh would stump home again.

From Project Gutenberg

The cigar stump held firmly between his teeth, he stood on the rug before the hearth, facing the door.

From Project Gutenberg

But, just as they were piling some more leaves in the hollow stump, they heard many voices of men shouting in the woods.

From Project Gutenberg

Mrs. Maloney sat on a stump near her daughter, and busied herself energetically with alternate nursing and painting.

From Project Gutenberg

By sheer good fortune a big tree stump stood under the door of the freight car, or the children never could have opened it.

From Project Gutenberg

Related Words

• baffle
• confound
• dumbfound
• mystify
• perplex
• puzzle

More About Stump

What does stump mean?

A stump is the base of a tree after the rest of the trunk has been cut down.

In general, stump can refer to what’s left of something after the main part or majority of it has been cut off or removed. The word stub means the same thing and is perhaps more commonly used.

When a person has had part of a limb removed, the remaining part is sometimes called a stump. A more technical term is residual limb. The word stump is also sometimes used to refer to a limb that has not fully developed. Though some people with limb differences may use the word stump to refer to their limb, others might find the word insensitive or offensive. In many cases, they may prefer for it to simply be called an arm, leg, or limb.

An artificial leg can also sometimes be called a stump. The word stumps is sometimes used as a slang term for the legs.

The word stump can refer to a platform for making speeches. This use isn’t common, but this sense of the word is commonly used in a figurative way to refer to the place where political campaign speeches are made, especially in the phrase on the stump, as in The senator went out on the stump to try to win re-election. A campaign speech can be called a stump speech. Stump can also be used as a verb meaning to campaign, as in He’s stumping in Iowa today or He has endorsed the senator and will be stumping for her.

As a verb, stump can also mean to confuse, puzzle, or perplex completely, as in The last question on the test really stumped me. When you are stumped in this way, you are usually at a loss—you don’t know the right answer and you might not even have a guess. Someone who is experiencing this puzzlement can be described as stumped. A question or problem that stumps can be called a stumper.

Example: The woodcutters chopped down all of the trees, leaving nothing but a field of stumps.

Where does stump come from?

The first records of the word stump come from the 1200s. The noun comes from the Middle Low German stump. The verb form comes from the Middle English stumpen, which means “to stumble (as over a tree stump)” and was derived from the noun.

While tree stumps are likely the first kind of stumps that come to mind, many other objects can be turned into stumps, such as nails, pencils, and erasers.

When used as a verb, stump usually means to confuse someone so badly that they can’t think of a single answer or solution. In everyday life, people are often stumped by difficult puzzles or complicated situations that may not even be possible to solve.

Did you know ... ?

What are some other forms related to stump?

• stumpy (adjective)
• stumper (noun)
• stumplike (adjective)

What are some synonyms for stump?

• stub 
• confuse
• baffle
• bewilder
• mystify

What are some words that share a root or word element with stump? 

• stump speech
• stump farm
• stumpage

What are some words that often get used in discussing stump?

 

• tree
• arm
• leg
• campaign
• speech
• political
• turn
• reduce
• completely

How is stump used in real life?

Stump most commonly refers to tree stumps. As a verb, it’s typically used informally.

Until annexed in 1912 to become a district of the City of Glasgow, Partick was a village (later an independent burgh) lying west of Glasgow. Fossil Grove in Whiteinch Park contains prehistoric fossilised tree stumps. When discovered, above them was a cist cemetery

— Clem Fandango (@ScotiaIndyref2) November 9, 2020

Why does unpacking make you so tired? I feel like my arms and feet are going to fall off and all that will be left is a stump.

— Robert Olguin (@Rbrtolguin) August 18, 2013

.@KLoeffler and @Perduesenate are holding their first joint appearance after the election, inside a crowded Cumming restaurant today. @SenRickScott is stumping for them here, following his fellow Floridian @marcorubio earlier this week. #gapol pic.twitter.com/bgwTDHVdBi

— Emma Hurt (@Emma_Hurt) November 13, 2020

 

 

Try using stump!

True or False?

When you cut down a tree, the stump is the big part that was cut off.