clump

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English

Etymology

From Middle English clompe, from Old English clymppe, a variant of clympre (“a lump or mass of metal”), from Proto-Germanic *klumpô (“mass, lump, clump; clasp”), from Proto-Indo-European *glembʰ- (“lump, clamp”). Alternatively, possibly from Middle Dutch clompe or Middle Low German klumpe[1] (compare German Klumpen). Cognates include Danish klump (probably from Low German as well[2]). Compare Norwegian Bokmål klump.

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /klʌmp/
  • Audio (US):(file)
  • Rhymes: -ʌmp

Noun

clump (plural clumps)

  1. A cluster or lump; an unshaped piece or mass.
  2. A thick group or bunch, especially of bushes or hair.
    • (Can we date this quote by Hawthorne and provide title, author’s full name, and other details?)
      a clump of shrubby trees
  3. A dull thud.
    • 1956, Anthony Burgess, Time for a Tiger (The Malayan Trilogy), published 1972, page 37:
      Thus, the myths of cinema and syndicated cartoon have served to unite the diverse races far more than the clump of the cricket-ball and the clipped rebukes and laudations of their masters.
  4. The compressed clay of coal strata.
    (Can we find and add a quotation of Brande & C to this entry?)
  5. A small group of trees or plants.
  6. (historical) A thick addition to the sole of a shoe.

Derived terms

Translations

to be checked

Verb

clump (third-person singular simple present clumps, present participle clumping, simple past and past participle clumped)

  1. (transitive, intransitive) To form clusters or lumps.
  2. (transitive, intransitive) To gather in dense groups.
  3. (intransitive) To walk with heavy footfalls.

Derived terms

Translations

References

  1. ^ clump in Merriam-Webster's dictionary
  2. ^ “klump” in Ordbog over det danske Sprog

Further reading

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