dumpling

noun

dump·​ling ˈdəmp-liŋ 

plural dumplings

1

a

: a small mass of dough cooked by boiling or steaming

chicken soup with dumplings

b

: a casing of dough enclosing a typically savory filling (such as meat or seafood) and cooked usually by boiling, steaming, or pan-frying see gyoza, pot sticker, wonton

c

: a usually baked dessert of fruit wrapped in dough

apple dumplings

2

: something soft and rounded like a dumpling

especially : a plump person or animal often of short stature

"I wanted to do it [rowing] because it was something I had never heard of. I was a little dumpling as well. I wanted to lose weight."

—Spencer Turrin, quoted in The Daily Telegraph (England)

Examples of dumpling in a Sentence

We had vegetarian dumplings as an appetizer.

Recent Examples on the Web

Try the impossibly umami-rich vegan mushroom larb, dumplings, fun cocktails and anything fried, from whole fish with punchy Thai sides to Hat Yai-style chicken. —Mackensy Lunsford, The Tennessean, 2 July 2025

Grab a fresh-cut bouquet of flowers, sample local flavors from a variety of food carts, and savor tasty dumplings and stir fry. —AFAR Media, 26 June 2025

Diners can’t eat burger and fries, pizza and tacos all the time and Hawkers offers Chinese dumplings, BBQ pork bao and chili crisp wontons as tasty alternatives. —Gary Stern, Forbes.com, 25 June 2025

The menu includes Sonoma lamb dan dan noodles, langoustine dumplings, bluefin tuna potato chips, pork katsu and fried shrimp. —Carlos Rico, San Diego Union-Tribune, 19 June 2025

Word History

Etymology

perhaps alteration of lump

First Known Use

1600, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Kids Definition

dumpling

noun

dump·​ling ˈdəm-pliŋ 

1

: a portion of dough cooked by boiling or steaming

2

: a dessert of fruit baked in biscuit dough