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pump
1[puhmp]
noun
an apparatus or machine for raising, driving, exhausting, or compressing fluids or gases by means of a piston, plunger, or set of rotating vanes.
Engineering, Building Trades., a shore having a jackscrew in its foot for adjusting the length or for bearing more firmly against the structure to be sustained.
Biology., an animal organ that propels fluid through the body; heart.
Cell Biology., a system that supplies energy for transport against a chemical gradient, as the sodium pump for the transfer of sodium and potassium ions across a cell membrane.
verb (used with object)
to raise, drive, etc., with a pump.
to free from water or other liquid by means of a pump.
to inflate by pumping (often followed byup ).
to pump a tire up.
to operate or move by an up-and-down or back-and-forth action.
to supply with air, as an organ, by means of a pumplike device.
to drive, force, etc., as if from a pump.
He rapidly pumped a dozen shots into the bull's-eye.
to supply or inject as if by using a pump.
to pump money into a failing business.
to question artfully or persistently to elicit information.
to pump someone for confidential information.
to elicit (information) by questioning.
verb (used without object)
to work a pump; raise or move water, oil, etc., with a pump.
to operate as a pump does.
to move up and down like a pump handle.
to exert oneself in a manner likened to pumping.
He pumped away at his homework all evening.
to seek to elicit information from a person.
to come out in spurts.
verb phrase
pump up
to inflate.
to increase, heighten, or strengthen; put more effort into or emphasis on; intensify.
The store has decided to pump up its advertising.
to infuse with enthusiasm, competitive spirit, energy, etc..
The contestants were all backstage pumping themselves up for their big moment.
pump
2[puhmp]
noun
a lightweight, low-cut shoe without fastenings for women.
a slip-on black patent leather shoe for men, for wear with formal dress.
pump
1/ pʌmp /
noun
any device for compressing, driving, raising, or reducing the pressure of a fluid, esp by means of a piston or set of rotating impellers
biology a mechanism for the active transport of ions, such as protons, calcium ions, and sodium ions, across cell membranes
a sodium pump
verb
to raise or drive (air, liquid, etc, esp into or from something) with a pump or similar device
(tr; usually foll by in or into) to supply in large amounts
to pump capital into a project
(tr) to deliver (shots, bullets, etc) repeatedly with great force
to operate (something, esp a handle or lever) in the manner of a pump or (of something) to work in this way
to pump the pedals of a bicycle
(tr) to obtain (information) from (a person) by persistent questioning
(intr; usually foll by from or out of) (of liquids) to flow freely in large spurts
oil pumped from the fissure
pump
2/ pʌmp /
noun
a low-cut low-heeled shoe without fastenings, worn esp for dancing
a type of shoe with a rubber sole, used in games such as tennis; plimsoll
pump
A device used to raise or transfer fluids. Most pumps function either by compression or suction.
A molecular mechanism for the active transport of ions or molecules across a cell membrane.
Other Word Forms
- pumpable adjective
- pumpless adjective
- pumplike adjective
- unpumpable adjective
- unpumped adjective
Word History and Origins
Origin of pump1
Origin of pump2
Word History and Origins
Origin of pump1
Origin of pump2
Idioms and Phrases
Example Sentences
The attack on the electricity grid has also meant the loss of power to water pumping stations, seriously impacting supplies.
The market is seeing declining banking reserves and the Federal Reserve isn’t pumping money into the market.
Speaking on BBC's Good Morning Ulster he said a "temporary pump" was used over the weekend that "probably saved homes" but "it's a temporary solution. As residents we want permanent solutions."
The subsidies have kept fuel prices relatively low but - because they mean that fuel is being sold at prices below import costs - have also lead to shortages and huge queues at pumps.
"For two weeks, we've been running out of fuel. Our fields have started to dry up from a lack of fuel for pumps," a resident of San, in central Mali, said.
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When To Use
Content warning: this article contains references to guns.Among many other slang senses, pump is short for pump-action shotgun, a type of shotgun that requires the user to change the shell with a pumping-like action.
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.
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