stump

1 of 4

noun (1)

ˈstəmp 

1

a

: the basal portion of a bodily part remaining after the rest is removed

b

: a rudimentary or vestigial bodily part

2

: the part of a plant and especially a tree remaining attached to the root after the trunk is cut

3

: a remaining part : stub

4

: one of the pointed rods stuck in the ground to form a cricket wicket

5

: a place or occasion for public speaking (as for a cause or candidate)

also : the circuit followed by a maker of such speeches

—used especially in the phrase on the stump

stump

2 of 4

verb (1)

stumped; stumping; stumps

transitive verb

1

: to reduce to a stump : trim

2

a

: dare, challenge

b

: to frustrate the progress or efforts of : baffle

3

: to clear (land) of stumps

4

: to travel over (a region) making political speeches or supporting a cause

5

a

: to walk over heavily or clumsily

b

: stub sense 3

intransitive verb

1

: to walk heavily or clumsily

2

: to go about making political speeches or supporting a cause

stumper noun

stump

3 of 4

noun (2)

: a short thick roll of leather, felt, or paper usually pointed at both ends and used for shading or blending a drawing in crayon, pencil, charcoal, pastel, or chalk

stump

4 of 4

verb (2)

stumped; stumping; stumps

transitive verb

: to tone or treat (a drawing) with a stump

Synonyms

Verb (1)

• barge
• clump
• flog [British]
• flounder
• galumph
• lumber
• lump
• plod
• pound
• scuff
• scuffle
• shamble
• shuffle
• slog
• slough
• stamp
• stomp
• stumble
• tramp
• tromp
• trudge

Examples of stump in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

The 16-year-old victim, who was from Hazel Green, was driving a 2012 Ford Fusion that left the roadway and struck a tree stump. —Lawrence Specker | [e-mail], al, 6 Aug. 2023

That may be changing, as instead of standing with Sequoia-like titans like Franklin D. Roosevelt and Dwight D. Eisenhower, John F. Kennedy and Ronald Reagan, the Trump sapling is being cut into a stump. —Philip Elliott, Time, 1 Aug. 2023

Here’s what this looks like in pruning away the stump of a branch torn off from a winter storm. —Roy Berendsohn, Popular Mechanics, 17 July 2023

On each end of the pitch is a wicket, a set of three stumps and two bails. —Peter Rauterkus, Dallas News, 12 July 2023

In the middle of the state seal, a farmer plows a field, his rifle propped on a nearby tree stump. —Teresa Nowakowski, Smithsonian Magazine, 7 Aug. 2023

The sapling that sprouted from the stump now stands about 60 feet. —Tiana Woodard, BostonGlobe.com, 8 July 2023

Pegs that mimic old pier pilings can serve as play stumps for smaller children or stepping stones for older kids. —Melissa Breyer, Treehugger, 5 July 2023

The lush trees in these forests were thought to have been instantly killed when struck by saltwater, leaving a forest of tree stumps, which are still visible today, according to the College of Earth and Mineral Science at Pennsylvania State University. —Arianna Johnson, Forbes, 19 Apr. 2023

Verb

Still, they are stumped with finding a perfect wedding location that highlights the transitional beauty of the season. —Dominique Fluker, Essence, 19 Sep. 2023

And Tim Scott stumps in the Hawkeye State, while Mike Pence delivers a speech on China in DC. —Mark Murray, NBC News, 18 Sep. 2023

Regardless of who first thought about them, until recently, researchers were stumped by one seemingly easy question about Möbius bands: What is the shortest strip of paper needed to make one? —Rachel Crowell, Scientific American, 12 Sep. 2023

The development came after decades in which police were stumped by the stabbing and slashing death, which left the couple’s 2-year-old wandering alone in the house in West Springfield, Va., for days the weekend before Thanksgiving in 1994. —Michelle Boorstein, Washington Post, 11 Sep. 2023

Water-based setting powders are the latest makeup innovation stumping TikTok. —Devon Abelman, Allure, 31 Aug. 2023

Doctors were stumped until Camilleri found a Washington University cardiologist who’d treated patients with similar post-COVID heart trouble. —Lauran Neergaard, Chicago Tribune, 10 Aug. 2023

And these puzzles aren’t just fun for kids, there are plenty of hard riddles that will even stump adults. —Cameron Jenkins, Good Housekeeping, 4 Sep. 2023

Left for politically dead in the summer of 2007, McCain turned around his presidential campaign by stumping for a more aggressive approach to the Iraq War. —Paul Kane, Washington Post, 2 Sep. 2023

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Word History

Etymology

Noun (1)

Middle English stumpe; akin to Old High German stumpf stump and perhaps to Middle English stampen to stamp

Noun (2)

French or Dutch dialect; French estompe, from Dutch dialect stomp, literally, stub, from Middle Dutch; akin to Old High German stumpf stump

First Known Use

Noun (1)

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Verb (1)

1581, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1

Noun (2)

1778, in the meaning defined above

Verb (2)

1807, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing stump

• stump speech
• on the stump
• stump-tailed macaque
• stump work
• stump up

• stump speech
• on the stump
• stump-tailed macaque
• stump work
• stump up

Kids Definition

stump

1 of 2 noun

ˈstəmp 

1

: the base of a bodily part (as an arm or leg) remaining after the rest is removed

2

: the part of a plant and especially a tree remaining attached to the root after the top is cut off

3

: a part (as of a pencil) remaining after the rest is worn away or lost : stub

4

: a place or occasion for political public speaking

stump

2 of 2 verb

1

a

: challenge entry 1 sense 3

b

: perplex sense 1, confound

2

a

: to walk or walk over heavily or clumsily

b

: stub entry 2 sense 2

3

: to go about making political speeches

stump the state for a candidate

stumper noun

Etymology

Verb

probably an altered form of earlier stump (noun) "a challenge"

Medical Definition

stump

noun

ˈstəmp 

1

: the basal portion of a bodily part (as a limb) remaining after the rest is removed

2

: a rudimentary or vestigial bodily part