sump

[ suhmp ]
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noun
  1. a pit, well, or the like in which water or other liquid is collected.

  2. Machinery. a chamber at the bottom of a machine, pump, circulation system, etc., into which a fluid drains before recirculation or in which wastes gather before disposal.

  1. Mining.

    • a space where water is allowed to collect at the bottom of a shaft or below a passageway.

    • a pilot shaft or tunnel pushed out in front of a main bore.

  2. British. crankcase.

  3. British Dialect. a swamp, bog, or muddy pool.

Origin of sump

1
1375–1425; late Middle English sompe<Middle Low German or Middle Dutch sump; cognate with German Sumpf; akin to swamp

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Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use sump in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for sump

sump

/ (sʌmp) /


noun
  1. a receptacle, such as the lower part of the crankcase of an internal-combustion engine, into which liquids, esp lubricants, can drain to form a reservoir

  2. another name for cesspool

  1. mining

    • a depression at the bottom of a shaft where water collects before it is pumped away

    • the front portion of a shaft or tunnel, ahead of the main bore

  2. British dialect a muddy pool or swamp

Origin of sump

1
C17: from Middle Dutch somp marsh; see swamp

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