hump 1 of 2

noun

ˈhÉ™mp How to pronounce hump (audio)
Definition of humpnext
1
as in pouts
British a state of resentful silence or irritability failing her A-levels has certainly given her the hump

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2
as in mountain
an elevation of land higher than a hill a cloud-capped hump straddles the border separating the two countries

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3
as in hill
an area of high ground the grassy hump at the center of the park is a popular sledding spot during the winter

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hump

2 of 2

verb

1
as in to struggle
to devote serious and sustained effort the farmers had to really hump to get the harvest in before the rains

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2
as in to speed
to proceed or move quickly the boat was really humping before the motor started to sputter all of a sudden

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Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of hump
Noun
Their findings, some previously covered in Fortune, draw on a deep dataset spanning dozens of countries to confirm that ill-being is no longer hump-shaped in age — the young are now the most miserable cohort globally. — Nick Lichtenberg, Fortune, 6 July 2026 In fact, while sand traps aren’t overabundant, elevation changes, natural grass humps and, yes, some sand does challenge you most every hole. — Moira McCarthy, Boston Herald, 18 June 2026
Verb
She and her son are seen posing in front of a mirror together, before Spears begins speaking in an English accent and seemingly simulating a humping motion while wearing tight shorts and a top that exposes her midsection. — Brian Niemietz, New York Daily News, 27 Mar. 2026 Contractors then humped it east around Orange Lake to Jacksonville, an eighty-mile slog. — Literary Hub, 23 Feb. 2026 See All Example Sentences for hump
Recent Examples of Synonyms for hump
  1. pouts
  2. mountain
  3. hill
  4. struggle
  5. speed
  6. pet
  7. peak
  8. mound
Noun
  • Interspersed with Mellencamp’s idiosyncratic views of himself were old press shots of the singer, many without a shirt or showcasing pouts and flexed biceps, that fit the song’s wry message.
    — Melissa Ruggieri, USA Today, 30 July 2026
  • So how, exactly, did these polka-dot pouts make their way onto the mood board?
    — Annie Blay-Tettey, Allure, 25 June 2026
Definition of pouts
Noun
  • The boy was spotted sitting on his own at a hut about 8,200 feet (2,500 meters) above sea level – slightly more than halfway up the country’s tallest mountain – by a worker on Thursday, according to CNN’s affiliate TV Asahi.
    — Chris Lau, CNN Money, 23 Aug. 2026
  • Monday will see the riders tackle the first mountain stage of the 81st edition, a tough 174-kilometer (108-mile) route from Gruissan-Aude past the city of Perpignan before the climb to the ski resort of Font Romeu in the Pyrenees.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 23 Aug. 2026
Definition of mountain
Noun
  • Instead, he’s spent August anxiously watching the orange skies from his house in the northern Nevada hills through two consecutive and adjacent wild-land fires, the Bug and Hawk Fires.
    — Anya Kamenetz, Curbed, 28 Aug. 2026
  • He was filled with ambition to see more of the country, write a spy thriller and literally climb more hills.
    — Andrea Javor, Los Angeles Times, 28 Aug. 2026
Definition of hill
Verb
  • The Sparks struggled early, missing 12 of their first 16 shots from the field.
    — John W. Davis, Oc Register, 25 Aug. 2026
  • For now, Neda, a 34-year-old Tehran resident struggling with kidney disease and needing medication, is holding her breath as she is once again forced to buy only half of her monthly dose.
    — Leila Gharagozlou, CNN Money, 24 Aug. 2026
Definition of struggle
Verb
  • Officers said Rodriguez sped out of the lot and fled the scene.
    — Matthew Rodriguez, CBS News, 28 Aug. 2026
  • The next day, his rebuild group met, and one of the architects brought up prefabricated housing as an option to speed things along.
    — Nicola Twilley, New Yorker, 27 Aug. 2026
Definition of speed
Noun
  • The county also has a litany of cooling centers that residents can take their families and pets to for relief from the the heat.
    — Carlos De Loera, Los Angeles Times, 28 Aug. 2026
  • How Flor made her way from the north side of Chicago all the way to Gary remains a mystery, but Ratkowski said the reunion is a good reminder of why to always microchip your pet.
    — Claire Murphy, Chicago Tribune, 28 Aug. 2026
Definition of pet
Noun
  • While mega-cap pharma companies typically look to invest in assets that offer peak sales in the billions of dollars, Gayer has smaller targets in mind.
    — Brad Quick, CNBC, 28 Aug. 2026
  • Up to half of the more than 200,000 mountain glaciers — vast, slow moving rivers of ice that creep across the world’s peaks — are expected to disappear by the end of this century, even if ambitious climate goals are met.
    — Laura Paddison, CNN Money, 28 Aug. 2026
Definition of peak
Noun
  • That remained the case on Thursday with Gerrit Cole on the mound.
    — Gary Phillips, New York Daily News, 21 Aug. 2026
  • The Giants have now lost each of Roupp’s last six starts and 17 of the last 19 games he’s been on the mound.
    — Curtis Pashelka, Mercury News, 20 Aug. 2026
Definition of mound

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humped
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Cite this Entry

“Hump.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/hump. Accessed 29 Aug. 2026.

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More from Merriam-Webster on hump

Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about hump

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