1
as in shuffles
to move heavily or clumsily
the seemingly endless parade finally ended, and the drummers and tuba players stumped wearily to their buses
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in dares
to invite (someone) to take part in a contest or to perform a feat
when my grandfather was a kid, he and his friends would stump one another to dive into the local swimming hole
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of stumps
Jenny Hughes, The Spruce, 25 May 2026
Ancient artifacts found beneath Cape Canaveral Space Force Station as one mystery still stumps researchers.
—FOXNews.com, 15 May 2026
David Hogg stumps for Mai Vang in 7th District primary.
—Sacbee.com, 11 May 2026
In 1938, Pennington pitched a tent outside the hiring hall for workers building the Shasta Dam, set up some tree stumps for seats and started hawking grub.
—Los Angeles Times, 7 Apr. 2026
Also, check rocks, stumps or logs before sitting down.
—Laylan Connelly, Oc Register, 26 Mar. 2026
This is because tendons that normally curl the toes downward (such as when cats knead your lap) pull on the amputation stumps so that the stumps rub on the ground, and no mechanism remains to oppose that action.
—The Washington Post, San Diego Union-Tribune, 28 Feb. 2026
For more than two months, a helicopter has been hard at work removing dead trees and stumps from the reservoir using a special device.
—Olivia Young, CBS News, 15 Jan. 2026
During the day, the birds lie motionless on the ground, blending into piles of leaves and tree stumps to hide from predators.
—Marina Watts, PEOPLE, 9 Jan. 2026
Verb
Or arrange a bunch of tree stumps around a fire pit to create seating that the kids will love.
—Jenny Hughes, The Spruce, 25 May 2026
Ancient artifacts found beneath Cape Canaveral Space Force Station as one mystery still stumps researchers.
—FOXNews.com, 15 May 2026
David Hogg stumps for Mai Vang in 7th District primary.
—Sacbee.com, 11 May 2026
In 1938, Pennington pitched a tent outside the hiring hall for workers building the Shasta Dam, set up some tree stumps for seats and started hawking grub.
—Los Angeles Times, 7 Apr. 2026
Also, check rocks, stumps or logs before sitting down.
—Laylan Connelly, Oc Register, 26 Mar. 2026
This is because tendons that normally curl the toes downward (such as when cats knead your lap) pull on the amputation stumps so that the stumps rub on the ground, and no mechanism remains to oppose that action.
—The Washington Post, San Diego Union-Tribune, 28 Feb. 2026
For more than two months, a helicopter has been hard at work removing dead trees and stumps from the reservoir using a special device.
—Olivia Young, CBS News, 15 Jan. 2026
During the day, the birds lie motionless on the ground, blending into piles of leaves and tree stumps to hide from predators.
—Marina Watts, PEOPLE, 9 Jan. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for stumps
Verb
-
At the sound of morning prayers, an older Clarissa awakens from this dream and shuffles out to her lawn, where the leafy bush has been replaced with the industrial skyline of Lagos.—
Lovia Gyarkye,
HollywoodReporter,
16 May 2026
-
Tristan returns home and greets James while Siegfried shuffles the woman out the window.—
Alice Burton,
Vulture,
12 Jan. 2026
Verb
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Her healing skills soon prove invaluable, but her wild, curious nature unsettles the monks as an evil count threatens to destroy anyone who dares protect her.—
Christopher Vourlias,
Variety,
19 May 2026
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Only a steroid-addled rival, Pavel, dares to question Jim’s position.—
Richard Lawson,
HollywoodReporter,
17 May 2026
Noun
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On top of that, repurposing wheat straw also helps reduce the burning of agricultural residues, 90 million metric tons of which (primarily rice and wheat straw)are incinerated in India each year.—
Jennifer Bringle,
Footwear News,
1 June 2026
-
Using water samples from the Great Salt Lake, the team successfully extracted about 50% of the available lithium from the post-desalination residues.—
Mrigakshi Dixit,
Interesting Engineering,
27 May 2026
Verb
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Set in the evening, the scene broods as an unknown figure, only identifiable by his terrible Lego haircut and furry boots, stomps toward the Stallion Saloon.—
Sergio Pereira,
Space.com,
3 June 2026
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In the closing moments, Godzilla stomps his way to the Statue of Liberty, setting his sights on New York City.—
Jordan Moreau,
Variety,
14 Apr. 2026
Verb
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The Holy Spirit challenges us today regarding our relationship with technology and the ongoing digital revolution.—
Pope Leo XIV,
Boston Herald,
9 June 2026
-
The New York Fed analysis challenges the popular narrative that artificial intelligence is the primary driver of sluggish entry-level hiring.—
Bill Pan,
Baltimore Sun,
9 June 2026
Noun
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The wall drawings also contain erasure marks, vestiges of the artist’s false starts and corrections.—
Jeremy Lybarger,
Artforum,
2 June 2026
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In a follow-up exam conducted six years after the infection, vestiges of the virus’s RNA were found in the man’s semen.—
Adam Kovac,
Scientific American,
15 May 2026
Verb
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The first robot stumbles on aluminum debris, its wheels furiously trying to get traction and move around the obstacle.—
Nick Paton Walsh,
CNN Money,
30 May 2026
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Roher and co-writer Robert Ramsay craft a classically structured screenplay about a talented piano tuner who stumbles into a life of crime, upon which Roher, editor Greg O’Bryant, and composer Will Bates embroider jazzy rhythms and inflections, inspired by the musical world our characters inhabit.—
Los Angeles Times,
Los Angeles Times,
29 May 2026
Noun
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Archaeological remnants of his reign—the Arch of Galerius and the Rotunda—flaunt the city’s antiquity.—
Magda Teter,
The New York Review of Books,
6 June 2026
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Visitors can see the remnants in the pathways for the playground spaces.—
A.D. Quig,
Chicago Tribune,
4 June 2026
Cite this Entry
“Stumps.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/stumps. Accessed 12 Jun. 2026.
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