1
as in shuffling
to move heavily or clumsily
the elephant lumbered through the jungle
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in stumbling
to proceed or act clumsily or ineffectually
the novel's plot lumbers to its predictable conclusion after 500 long pages
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
4
as in loading
to place a weight or burden on
preparations that will lumber the expedition with unnecessary equipment and supplies
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
1
as in shambling
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Dissimilar Words
2
as in plodding
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Dissimilar Words
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of lumbering
Brad Lendon, CNN Money, 1 Sep. 2025
Leigh Yawkey Woodson’s parents created the tiny lumbering town of Hazelhurst, WI, about 60 miles due north of Wausau.
—Chadd Scott, Forbes.com, 31 Aug. 2025
In an era where teams are going all-in on big lumbering defenders, Montreal took a bet on a 5-foot-9, 160-pound defender.
—Dom Luszczyszyn, New York Times, 20 Aug. 2025
The area’s greatest economic driver after the end of the lumbering trade in the early 20th century has been and continues to be iron ore mining.
—Chicago Tribune, 13 Aug. 2025
Snow White is, for better and (mostly) worse, a product of a corporation that has for years been lumbering after its idea of the Zeitgeist with all the agility of an aging colossus.
—Alison Willmore, Vulture, 19 Mar. 2025
And then there’s the giant Mama Creeper, the lumbering head of the pack who hulks over the protagonist Mickey (Robert Pattinson) when the two are face to face.
—Abigail Lee, Variety, 17 Mar. 2025
During the Cultural Revolution, Mao Zedong came to believe that the revolution was losing momentum because of the country’s lumbering bureaucracy.
—Charlie Tyson, The New Yorker, 15 Mar. 2025
In the case of mammoths, the company argues that having mammoth-like creatures lumbering through the Arctic would compress the snow and grass that insulates the ground, slowing the rate of permafrost thaw and the release of carbon contained in this fragile ecosystem.
—Katie Hunt, CNN, 4 Mar. 2025
Adjective
Some were fresh out of flight school, others flew lumbering flying boats or were ferry pilots for large bombers.
—Brad Lendon, CNN Money, 1 Sep. 2025
Leigh Yawkey Woodson’s parents created the tiny lumbering town of Hazelhurst, WI, about 60 miles due north of Wausau.
—Chadd Scott, Forbes.com, 31 Aug. 2025
In an era where teams are going all-in on big lumbering defenders, Montreal took a bet on a 5-foot-9, 160-pound defender.
—Dom Luszczyszyn, New York Times, 20 Aug. 2025
The area’s greatest economic driver after the end of the lumbering trade in the early 20th century has been and continues to be iron ore mining.
—Chicago Tribune, 13 Aug. 2025
Snow White is, for better and (mostly) worse, a product of a corporation that has for years been lumbering after its idea of the Zeitgeist with all the agility of an aging colossus.
—Alison Willmore, Vulture, 19 Mar. 2025
And then there’s the giant Mama Creeper, the lumbering head of the pack who hulks over the protagonist Mickey (Robert Pattinson) when the two are face to face.
—Abigail Lee, Variety, 17 Mar. 2025
During the Cultural Revolution, Mao Zedong came to believe that the revolution was losing momentum because of the country’s lumbering bureaucracy.
—Charlie Tyson, The New Yorker, 15 Mar. 2025
In the case of mammoths, the company argues that having mammoth-like creatures lumbering through the Arctic would compress the snow and grass that insulates the ground, slowing the rate of permafrost thaw and the release of carbon contained in this fragile ecosystem.
—Katie Hunt, CNN, 4 Mar. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for lumbering
Verb
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In it, a monster with bolts in his head and a shuffling gate was created by a man.—
David Fear,
Rolling Stone,
9 Sep. 2025
-
The closures have resulted in staff shuffling throughout the library system and rescheduled activities such as author talks and photography exhibits.—
Noah Lyons,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
5 Sep. 2025
Verb
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The episode ends with a surreal, graphic deepfake scene of a totally nude Donald Trump stumbling around a desert.—
Nick Marx,
The Conversation,
11 Sep. 2025
-
Inside the agency, Dudek, ill-prepared for leadership or for DOGE’s murky agenda, was stumbling through the chaos in part by creating some of his own.—
Eli Hager,
ProPublica,
8 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
Apple’s promotional video for the iPhone 17 Pro is super loud and rumbling the floor.—
Eric Zeman,
PC Magazine,
9 Sep. 2025
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The hybrid trap track is filled with rumbling energy, setting up to be a hype song.—
Laura Sirikul,
Forbes.com,
9 Sep. 2025
Verb
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In digital services, apply the same scrutiny to login friction, loading messages, or chatbot delays.—
Vibhas Ratanjee,
Forbes.com,
10 Sep. 2025
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Masters says that taking care of small chores, such as taking out the trash, loading the dishwasher, and emptying the fridge of your own food, shows respect for the host, their belongings, and their home.—
Claire Hoppe Norgaard,
Better Homes & Gardens,
9 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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At the same time, no one in metal was funnier, more in touch with his own bathos, more post–Spinal Tap, in a sense, than Ozzy, especially in his shambling-paterfamilias incarnation on MTV’s reality show The Osbournes.—
James Parker,
The Atlantic,
12 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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Occasionally, as in the obscurity of Legion’s later episodes or the plodding pace of some Fargo plots, this approach can verge on self-indulgence.—
Judy Berman,
Time,
5 Aug. 2025
Verb
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Cena’s chrome-domed antihero, Freddie Stroma’s Vigilante and and Danielle Brooks’ Adebayo stomping through spots of light.—
Matt Webb Mitovich,
TVLine,
21 Aug. 2025
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No velvet rope, no fourth wall—just boot-stomping, beer-sign neon and crowd-absorption tech.—
Bob Bonniol,
Rolling Stone,
13 Aug. 2025
Verb
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Apart from buying struggling retailers, Barnes & Noble has expanded its physical footprint.—
Fernando Cervantes Jr,
USA Today,
10 Sep. 2025
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Despite the additional funding, the Advocate pointed out that some TAC offices were already struggling—as of April 15, 2025, 239 were understaffed and 21 were unstaffed.—
Kelly Phillips Erb,
Forbes.com,
10 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Lumbering.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/lumbering. Accessed 17 Sep. 2025.
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