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pump
Definitions
[pʌmp], (Noun)
Definitions:
- a mechanical device using suction or pressure to raise or move liquids, compress gases, or force air into inflatable objects such as tyres
(e.g: a petrol pump)
- an active transport mechanism in living cells by which specific ions are moved through the cell membrane against a concentration gradient
(e.g: the bacterium's sodium pump)
- a pump-action shotgun
(e.g: the shotgun was a 12-gauge pump)
Phrases:
- pump iron
- pump someone's hand
- under the pump
Origin
:
late Middle English (originally in nautical use): related to Dutch pomp ‘ship's pump’ (earlier in the sense ‘wooden or metal conduit’), probably partly of imitative origin
[pʌmp], (Verb)
Definitions:
- force (liquid, gas, etc.) to move by or as if by means of a pump
(e.g: the blood is pumped around the body)
- fill (something such as a tyre or balloon) with liquid or gas using a pump
(e.g: I pumped the tyres and oiled the chain)
- move vigorously up and down
(e.g: we had to pump the handle like mad)
- try to elicit information from (someone) by persistent questioning
(e.g: she began to pump her friend for details)
Phrases:
- pump iron
- pump someone's hand
- under the pump
Origin
:
late Middle English (originally in nautical use): related to Dutch pomp ‘ship's pump’ (earlier in the sense ‘wooden or metal conduit’), probably partly of imitative origin
[pʌmp], (Noun)
Definitions:
- a sports shoe; a plimsoll
- a court shoe
Phrases:
Origin
:
mid 16th century: of unknown origin
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definition by Oxford Dictionaries