What does "plump" mean?
The sound of a sudden heavy fall.
Plump
/plʌmp/ adj, adv, name, noun, verb
adj, adv, name, noun, verb ·Common ·Middle school level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: The sound of a sudden heavy fall.
- Grammar: plump is listed as adj, adv, name, noun, verb.
- Nearest alternatives: abruptly, adipose, all at once, all of a sudden.
- Useful contrasts: boney, boneyest, bonier.
- Usage evidence: Every day grandfather and grandmother gave the kitten plenty of milk, and soon the kitten grew nice and plump.
How to use "plump"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "plump" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
- Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.
Meaning check
- Does the word fit the sentence's grammar?
- Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
- Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
- Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?
Source and review context
This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "plump" in a final draft.
If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.
Before you rely on this definition
Read the first definition as a starting point, then check the example, synonyms, and part of speech before treating "plump" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "plump" with a nearby alternative so the final choice matches both meaning and reader expectation.
Compare nearby meanings
- Use synonyms when you need a softer, stronger, simpler, or more specific word.
- Use antonyms to check the boundary of the meaning and avoid accidental contrast.
- Use the example sentence to confirm the word behaves naturally in context.
- Keep the original wording when a replacement adds complexity without improving precision.
Definition decision workflow
1. Identify the role
Check whether "plump" is acting as adj, adv, name, noun, verb in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.
2. Test the nearest option
Compare it with "abruptly" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.
3. Confirm with context
Use the example sentence below as an evidence check, then read your own sentence out loud to catch tone or rhythm problems.
Review note: Definition pages are checked for source coverage, sentence evidence, synonym support, and editorial insight before they are treated as approval-ready pages. If the evidence is too thin, the page remains available to users but is kept out of the approval-facing indexed inventory.
Final meaning check
Before publishing a sentence with "plump", ask whether the word helps the reader understand the idea faster. A precise word should reduce confusion, not simply make the sentence look more polished.
When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.
Definitions
Noun
- 1 The sound of a sudden heavy fall.
"As she beheld her, poor Mrs. Mack's heart fluttered up to her mouth, and then dropped with a dreadful plump, into the pit of her stomach."
- 2 A knot or cluster; a group; a crowd. obsolete
"a plump of trees, fowls, or spears"
- 3 the sound of a sudden heavy fall wordnet
- 4 A group of geese flying close together.
Verb
- 1 To grow plump; to swell out. intransitive
"Her cheeks have plumped."
- 2 To cast or let drop (something) all at once, suddenly and heavily. transitive
"to plump a stone into water"
- 3 give support (to) or make a choice (of) one out of a group or number wordnet
- 4 To make plump; to fill (out) or support; often with up. transitive
"to plump oysters or scallops by placing them in fresh or brackish water"
- 5 To drop or fall suddenly or heavily, all at once. intransitive
"September 24, 1712, The Spectator No. 492, letter from a prude Dulcissa plumps into a chair."
Show 6 more definitions
- 6 make fat or plump wordnet
- 7 To give a plumper (kind of vote). intransitive
- 8 set (something or oneself) down with or as if with a noise wordnet
- 9 To give (a vote), as a plumper. transitive
- 10 drop sharply wordnet
- 11 To favor or decide in favor of. intransitive
"A recent poll by the New York Times found that although most Brazilians plump for arch-rival Argentina as the team they most want to lose, the second-biggest group want Brazil itself to stumble."
Adjective
- 1 Having a full and rounded shape; chubby, somewhat overweight.
"a plump baby; plump cheeks"
- 2 Sudden and without reservation; blunt; direct; downright.
"After the plump statement that the author was at Erceldoune and spake with Thomas."
- 3 Of a wine: giving the sensation of filling the mouth.
"A plump wine, with an abundance of plum and berry characteristics and soft, round tannins. Easy to drink; ready on release."
Adjective
- 1 sufficiently fat so as to have a pleasing fullness of figure wordnet
Adverb
- 1 Directly; suddenly; perpendicularly.
"I suppose then, that going plump on a flying whale with your sail set in a foggy squall is the height of a whaleman’s discretion?"
Adverb
- 1 straight down especially heavily or abruptly wordnet
Proper Noun
- 1 A surname from German.
Synonyms
All synonymsExample
"Every day grandfather and grandmother gave the kitten plenty of milk, and soon the kitten grew nice and plump."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "plump"?
Common synonyms include: abruptly, adipose, all at once, all of a sudden, ample, ample.
How do you use "plump" in a sentence?
Every day grandfather and grandmother gave the kitten plenty of milk, and soon the kitten grew nice and plump.
How do you pronounce "plump"?
Pronounced /plʌmp/.
Etymology
Etymology 1
From Middle English plump, plompe, a borrowing from Middle Dutch plomp or Middle Low German plump. Cognate with Saterland Frisian plump (“plump”).
Etymology 2
From Middle English plumpen, akin to Middle Dutch plompen, Middle Low German plumpen, German plumpsen.
Etymology 3
From Middle English plump.
Etymology 4
Borrowed from North German Plump, a nickname from plump (“crude, clumsy”).