SUMP

cesspool, cesspit, sink, sump

(noun) a covered cistern; waste water and sewage flow into it

sump

(noun) a well or other hole in which water has collected

sump

(noun) an oil reservoir in an internal combustion engine

Source: WordNet® 3.1


Etymology

Noun

sump (plural sumps)

A hollow or pit into which liquid drains, such as a cesspool, cesspit or sink.

The lowest part of a mineshaft into which water drains.

A completely flooded cave passage, sometimes passable by diving.

(automotive) The crankcase or oil reservoir of an internal combustion engine.

(nautical) The pit at the lowest point in a circulating or drainage system (FM 55-501).

(construction) An intentional depression around a drain or scupper that promotes drainage.

Verb

sump (third-person singular simple present sumps, present participle sumping, simple past and past participle sumped)

(intransitive) Of a cave passage, to end in a sump, or to fill completely with water on occasion.

Anagrams

• umps

Source: Wiktionary


Sump, n. Etym: [Cf. G. sumpf a sump in a mine, a swamp, akin to LG. sump, D. somp a swamp, Dan. & Sw. sump, and perhaps to E. swamp.]

1. (Metal.)

Definition: A round pit of stone, lined with clay, for receiving the metal on its first fusion. Ray.

2. The cistern or reservoir made at the lowest point of a mine, from which is pumped the water which accumulates there.

3. A pond of water for salt works. Knight.

4. A puddle or dirty pool. [Prov. Eng.] Sump fuse, a fuse used in blasting under water.

– Sump men (Mining), the men who sink the sump in a mine.

Source: Webster’s Unabridged Dictionary 1913 Edition



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Word of the Day

29 April 2025

CORRECTION

(noun) a drop in stock market activity or stock prices following a period of increases; “market runups are invariably followed by a correction”


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Coffee Trivia

The expression “coffee break” was first attested in 1952 in glossy magazine advertisements by the Pan-American Coffee Bureau.

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