as in low
belonging to the class of people of low social or economic rank
a kind of music that has traditionally appealed to the lumpen segment of the musical audience
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
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 lumpen
Yet Empire Falls translates into a lumpen, stodgy miniseries, despite a fine central performance from Harris as a divorced diner owner with deep roots in the town and a structure that allows the past to keep informing and enriching the present.
—
Scott Tobias, Vulture, 14 Apr. 2024
Rhys spent decades, often isolated and paranoid, in lumpen houses and apartments in and out of London, before success arrived late.
—New York Times, 20 June 2022
Then the judges booted her for wearing a lumpen quilt skirt accessorized with a blow-up-doll boyfriend.
—Spencer Kornhaber, The Atlantic, 20 Apr. 2022
Tye Sheridan gives a somewhat lumpen performance as the author’s stand-in, an aspiring writer whose family background is funky, to say the least.
—Globe Staff, BostonGlobe.com, 6 Jan. 2022
The films of Sean Baker celebrate lumpen characters and communities that subsist within the cracks of America’s neoliberal landscape.
—Erik Morse, Vogue, 10 Dec. 2021
Indeed, the miniatures — lumpen clay armchairs and occasional tables that Valle arranges and rearranges inside shoebox versions of their ultimate destinations — are closer to dollhouse furniture than to showpiece renderings.
—New York Times, 9 Sep. 2021
Some collectors are leaning further into technology by amassing digital artworks, while other sets of buyers are coping by prizing ceramics, with their fragile, lumpen tactility.
—Kelly Crow, WSJ, 6 July 2021
Other labels are riffing on the shoe’s lumpen shape, and playing with proportion and puff.
—Lauren Mechling, Vogue, 30 Mar. 2021
Scott Tobias, Vulture, 14 Apr. 2024
Rhys spent decades, often isolated and paranoid, in lumpen houses and apartments in and out of London, before success arrived late.
—New York Times, 20 June 2022
Then the judges booted her for wearing a lumpen quilt skirt accessorized with a blow-up-doll boyfriend.
—Spencer Kornhaber, The Atlantic, 20 Apr. 2022
Tye Sheridan gives a somewhat lumpen performance as the author’s stand-in, an aspiring writer whose family background is funky, to say the least.
—Globe Staff, BostonGlobe.com, 6 Jan. 2022
The films of Sean Baker celebrate lumpen characters and communities that subsist within the cracks of America’s neoliberal landscape.
—Erik Morse, Vogue, 10 Dec. 2021
Indeed, the miniatures — lumpen clay armchairs and occasional tables that Valle arranges and rearranges inside shoebox versions of their ultimate destinations — are closer to dollhouse furniture than to showpiece renderings.
—New York Times, 9 Sep. 2021
Some collectors are leaning further into technology by amassing digital artworks, while other sets of buyers are coping by prizing ceramics, with their fragile, lumpen tactility.
—Kelly Crow, WSJ, 6 July 2021
Other labels are riffing on the shoe’s lumpen shape, and playing with proportion and puff.
—Lauren Mechling, Vogue, 30 Mar. 2021
Recent Examples of Synonyms for lumpen
Adjective
-
Abarth is low cost, high return and should be encouraged.—
Mark Phelan,
USA Today,
20 May 2025
-
China's retail sales disappoint Retail sales in China grew 5.1% in April from a year earlier, lower than the 5.5% expected by a Reuters poll and March's figure of 5.9%, suggesting the spending habits of consumers are still muted.—
Yeo Boon Ping,
CNBC,
19 May 2025
Adjective
-
Another option to assess training intensity is to look at how the unwashed masses train: to sift through reams of data looking for the patterns and variables that predict the best race performances.—
Alex Hutchinson,
Outside Online,
31 Dec. 2024
-
Besides the health concerns, unwashed skin simply doesn’t look its best.—
Lauryn Higgins,
Time,
30 Apr. 2025
Adjective
-
Below that sits the pedestrian CLK 500 and plebeian CLK 350.—
Jeremy Korzeniewski,
Robb Report,
26 Feb. 2025
-
Across the lake, on the plebeian side, up the shoreline a mile or so, in the heart of downtown West Palm Beach, stand twin 32-story towers dubbed Trump Plaza of the Palm Beaches.—
Miami Herald Archives,
Miami Herald,
8 Jan. 2025
Adjective
-
Improbably located right across the street from their humble abode is the upscale manse inhabited by the Falconers, a rich couple (Katherine Waterson, Chris Klein) who’ve raised only child Tiffany (Fina Strazza) to be a particularly stinging WASP.—
Dennis Harvey,
Variety,
23 May 2025
-
Each pits a young heroine of humble means against the formidable, possibly sinister lady of the estate; this time, that quintessential Nicole Kidman role is played by a serenely terrifying Julianne Moore.—
Judy Berman,
Time,
22 May 2025
Adjective
-
In that sense, the vulgar Vader situation creates a touchy dilemma for Epic Games and Disney, which likely invested substantially in this high-profile collaboration.—
ArsTechnica,
ArsTechnica,
16 May 2025
-
Amid the attention, the new pontiff's eldest brother has drawn scrutiny for social media posts praising Trump and using inflammatory, vulgar rhetoric toward Democrats and transgender people.—
Mandy Taheri,
MSNBC Newsweek,
14 May 2025
Adjective
-
If this story were a parable, our hero would likely suffer some ignoble end as punishment for his moral failings.—
Hazlitt,
Hazlitt,
13 May 2025
-
Rudy Giuliani, who was once considered a national hero for his leadership during 9/11, and who went down in a spray of legal and financial troubles after tying himself to Trump, arguably represents a third category, of mayors who are both ignoble and indelible.—
Eric Lach,
New Yorker,
5 May 2025
Adjective
-
The user plays as a lowly Tarnished eager to help a mysterious woman named Melina get to a gigantic golden tree called the Erdtree.—
Fran Hoepfner,
Vulture,
23 May 2025
-
The show tells the story of how a lowly Cockney flower girl is accepted as royalty by improving her manner of speech with the help of a speech teacher.—
Jerry Weissman,
Forbes.com,
20 May 2025
Adjective
-
Robbins: Is the East an inferior conference compared to the West?—
Eric Koreen,
New York Times,
14 May 2025
-
Before and after each game, Warriors coach Steve Kerr has talked about how Golden State has to play with pace, execute the gameplan defensively and win the possession battle — basically, all of the controllables that an inferior team in a matchup has to execute in order to pull off an upset.—
Jace Frederick,
Twin Cities,
13 May 2025
Cite this Entry
“Lumpen.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/lumpen. Accessed 27 May. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share