pump

verb

Definition of pumpnext
1
as in to bob
to make short up-and-down movements the thighs of the bicyclists were pumping furiously as they neared the finish line

Synonyms & Similar Words

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2
as in to interrogate
to put a series of questions to prying neighbors pumped the guileless child for information about the family's new pool

Synonyms & Similar Words
3
as in to drain
to remove (liquid) gradually or completely pumped water from the well

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of pump While Tavares coach Gavin Jones ponders how to replace 18 transfer players heading into the season, just down Route 441, new Eustis coach Tanner Harris is pumping some energy into a program that has had four coaches in three years. — Chris Hays, The Orlando Sentinel, 18 Aug. 2026 These are usually available in jars, tubs, squeeze tubes, or pump bottles. — Bestreviews, Chicago Tribune, 18 Aug. 2026 The Cleveland Clinic describes it as a condition where the heart is enlarged and has trouble pumping blood. — Callum Sutherland, Time, 17 Aug. 2026 Farmers from Belgium and Germany filled up tanker trucks, pumping water from a nearby lake before heading toward the fire area to help firefighters. — Sylvie Corbet, Los Angeles Times, 16 Aug. 2026 See All Example Sentences for pump
Recent Examples of Synonyms for pump
  1. bob
  2. interrogate
  3. drain
  4. shake
  5. examine
  6. jerk
  7. question
Verb
  • But the calm day gave way to terror when her uncle again looked out into the ocean and saw Summer’s head bobbing in and out of the water.
    — Julianna Bragg, CNN Money, 23 Aug. 2026
  • And when the sun is shining, that also means the water’s sparkling, sailboats are bobbing, and seagulls are cawing.
    — Madeline Bilis, Travel + Leisure, 18 Aug. 2026
Definition of bob
Verb
  • An interesting collective approach to American history was PRX Productions’ provocative series Monumental, in which features by a range of independent producers interrogated the history as reflected in public monuments.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 26 Aug. 2026
  • Peacock is preparing to celebrate the cultural influence of The Wendy Williams Show and to interrogate the role of fame in its end.
    — Katie Kilkenny, HollywoodReporter, 24 Aug. 2026
Definition of interrogate
Verb
  • In your audit, emergency reserves are separated from non-retirement assets because they should not ever be drained unless there is an emergency.
    — Cicely Jones, Forbes.com, 30 Aug. 2026
  • Then, crews from the Urban Search and Rescue team worked with the California Department of Fish and Wildlife to drain the tank and help save the remaining bears from drowning, officials said.
    — Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 30 Aug. 2026
Definition of drain
Verb
  • Beck didn’t participate in the book, but Riesman finds enough friends, family and associates to assemble a complex portrait of an artist who wants his audiences to see him as fashion-forward but has had a hard time shaking his past.
    — Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 31 Aug. 2026
  • Thunderous applause may greet one documentary premiering at the Venice Film Festival, fitting for a story of athletes who shake the earth with every footfall.
    — Matthew Carey, Deadline, 31 Aug. 2026
Definition of shake
Verb
  • Movie night this past week was Taylor Sheridan’s Wind River, an absolutely devastating neo-Western that examines the injustice many Native American women face on and off the reservation.
    — Erik Kain, Forbes.com, 30 Aug. 2026
  • Now, in this new study, the international team examined the curious fossil under cross-polarized light, allowing more of its structure to be visible.
    — New Atlas, New Atlas, 30 Aug. 2026
Definition of examine
Verb
  • But in 1933, within a matter of days, they were jerked back into reality.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 12 Aug. 2026
  • Stuttering lines, on the left, jerking up and down, denote the rattle of guns; on the right, the lines are all but flat, as silence descends.
    — Anthony Lane, New Yorker, 3 Aug. 2026
Definition of jerk
Verb
  • Critics also questioned whether UCLA’s athletic department had adapted quickly enough to the NIL era.
    — Ira Gorawara, New York Times, 1 Sep. 2026
  • At Liberty High School in Frisco, Texas, Muslim students had used a spare classroom to pray without incident from 2009 to 2017, when Paxton’s office sent the district a letter questioning whether other students were being excluded.
    — Asma Uddin, The Conversation, 31 Aug. 2026
Definition of question

Phrases Containing pump

Browse Nearby Words

pummels
pump
pumped
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Cite this Entry

“Pump.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/pump. Accessed 1 Sep. 2026.

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More from Merriam-Webster on pump

Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about pump

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