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clump

 - 5 dictionary results

clump

  [kluhmp]
Use clump in a Sentence
–noun
1. a small, close group or cluster, esp. of trees or other plants.
2. a lump or mass
3. a heavy, thumping step, sound, etc.
4. Immunology. a cluster of agglutinated bacteria, red blood cells, etc.
5. a thick extra sole on a shoe.
–verb (used without object)
6. Also, clomp. to walk heavily and clumsily.
7. Immunology. to gather or be gathered into clumps; agglutinate.
–verb (used with object)
8. to gather or form into a clump; mass.
Origin:
1580–90; akin to D klompe lump, mass, OE clympre lump of metal

Related forms:
clumpy, clumpish, clumplike, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source Link To clump
clump   (klŭmp)   
n.  

  1. A clustered mass; a lump: clumps of soil.

  2. A thick grouping, as of trees or bushes.

  3. A heavy dull sound; a thud.

v.   clumped, clump·ing, clumps

v.   intr.

  1. To form lumps or thick groupings.

  2. To walk or move so as to make a heavy dull sound.

v.   tr.
To gather into or form lumps or thick groupings of.

[Probably Low German klump, from Middle Low German klumpe, cluster of trees.]
clump'y adj.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Word Origin & History

clump 
1586, from Du. klomp "lump, mass," or Low Ger. klump. O.E. had clympre "lump, mass of metal." The verb "to tread heavily" is first recorded 1665.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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Medical Dictionary

Main Entry: 1clump
Pronunciation: 'kl&mp
Function: noun
: a clustered mass of particles (as bacteria or blood cells) —compare AGGLUTINATION

Main Entry: 2clump
Function: intransitive verb
: to form clumps clump transitive senses
: to arrange in or cause to form clumpsclumps the bacteria>
Merriam-Webster's Medical Dictionary, © 2002 Merriam-Webster, Inc.
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