plumbing

noun

plumb·​ing ˈplə-miŋ 

1

: the act of using a plumb

2

: a plumber's occupation or trade

3

a

: the apparatus (such as pipes and fixtures) concerned in the distribution and use of water in a building

b

: an internal system that resembles plumbing

especially : one consisting of conduits or channels for conveying fluids

Examples of plumbing in a Sentence

The house has old plumbing.

Recent Examples on the Web

The new two-story, 13,500-square-foot building has been vacant since The Finial hardware and plumbing store closed in June of 2022. —Claudia Levens, jsonline.com, 13 Oct. 2025

Avoid electronics, plumbing and windows. —Hayleigh Evans, AZCentral.com, 13 Oct. 2025

Those clients include a plumbing company in Knoxville, Tennessee, and a vacation rental company, according to Luna. —Idaho Statesman, 13 Oct. 2025

Elsewhere, freeze warnings and frost advisories spanned parts of the Midwest and Northeast, where temperatures in the mid-20s and low 30s could lead to frost and freeze conditions capable of killing crops and other sensitive vegetation as well as damaging outdoor plumbing. —MSNBC Newsweek, 10 Oct. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing plumbing

• indoor plumbing
• plumbing fixture

Rhymes for plumbing

• coming
• cumming
• drumming
• gumming
• humming
• numbing
• strumming
• summing
• thrumming
• thumbing
• becoming
• forthcoming

Kids Definition

plumbing

noun

plumb·​ing ˈpləm-iŋ 

1

: a plumber's work

2

: a system of pipes for supplying and carrying off water in a building