Dictionary
Thesaurus
Encyclopedia
Translator
Web
Related Searches
Synonyms
Nearby Words
Definition of pumplike - 4 dictionary results

pump

1  [puhmp]
Use pumplike in a Sentence
–noun
1. an apparatus or machine for raising, driving, exhausting, or compressing fluids or gases by means of a piston, plunger, or set of rotating vanes.
2. Engineering, Building Trades. a shore having a jackscrew in its foot for adjusting the length or for bearing more firmly against the structure to be sustained.
3. Biology. an animal organ that propels fluid through the body; heart.
4. Cell Biology. a system that supplies energy for transport against a chemical gradient, as the sodium pump for the transfer of sodium and potassium ions across a cell membrane.
–verb (used with object)
5. to raise, drive, etc., with a pump.
6. to free from water or other liquid by means of a pump.
7. to inflate by pumping (often fol. by up): to pump a tire up.
8. to operate or move by an up-and-down or back-and-forth action.
9. to supply with air, as an organ, by means of a pumplike device.
10. to drive, force, etc., as if from a pump: He rapidly pumped a dozen shots into the bull's-eye.
11. to supply or inject as if by using a pump: to pump money into a failing business.
12. to question artfully or persistently to elicit information: to pump someone for confidential information.
13. to elicit (information) by questioning.
–verb (used without object)
14. to work a pump; raise or move water, oil, etc., with a pump.
15. to operate as a pump does.
16. to move up and down like a pump handle.
17. to exert oneself in a manner likened to pumping: He pumped away at his homework all evening.
18. to seek to elicit information from a person.
19. to come out in spurts.
—Verb phrase
20. pump up,
a. to inflate.
b. to increase, heighten, or strengthen; put more effort into or emphasis on; intensify: The store has decided to pump up its advertising.
c. to infuse with enthusiasm, competitive spirit, energy, etc.: The contestants were all backstage pumping themselves up for their big moment.
—Idioms
21. prime the pump,
a. to increase government expenditure in an effort to stimulate the economy.
b. to support or promote the operation or improvement of something.
22. pump iron. iron (def. 29).
Origin:
1400–50; late ME pumpe (n.); c. G Pumpe, D pomp

Related forms:
pump⋅a⋅ble, adjective
pumpless, adjective
pumplike, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source Link To pumplike
Medical Dictionary

Main Entry: 2pump
Function: intransitive verb
: to work a pump : raise or move a fluid with a pump pump transitive senses
1 : to raise (as water) with a pump
2 : to draw fluid from with a pump
3 : to transport (as ions) against a concentration gradient by the expenditure ofenergy
4 a : to excite (as atoms or molecules) especially so as to cause emission of coherent monochromatic electromagnetic radiation (as in a laser) b : toenergize (as a laser) by pumping
Merriam-Webster's Medical Dictionary, © 2002 Merriam-Webster, Inc.
Cite This Source
Medical Dictionary

pump (pŭmp)
n.

  1. A machine or device for raising, compressing, or transferring fluids.

  2. A molecular mechanism for the active transport of ions or molecules across a cell membrane.

v. pumped, pump·ing, pumps

  1. To raise or cause to flow by means of a pump.

  2. To transport ions or molecules against a concentration gradient by the expenditure of chemically stored energy.

The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Cite This Source
Science Dictionary
pump   (pŭmp)  Pronunciation Key 


(click for larger image in new window)

  1. A device used to raise or transfer fluids. Most pumps function either by compression or suction.

  2. A molecular mechanism for the active transport of ions or molecules across a cell membrane.


The American Heritage® Science Dictionary
Copyright © 2002. Published by Houghton Mifflin. All rights reserved.
Cite This Source
Search another word or see pumplike on Thesaurus | Reference
FacebookTwitterFollow us:
Partner Sites:
Ask AnswersEviteExpediaHotelsHotwireLife123LiveDailyMy Way