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[duhmp] /dʌmp/
verb (used with object)
to drop or let fall in a mass; fling down or drop heavily or suddenly:
Dump the topsoil here.
to empty out, as from a container, by tilting or overturning.
to unload or empty out (a container), as by tilting or overturning.
to be dismissed, fired, or released from a contract:
The first baseman was dumped from the team after hitting .210 for the first half of the season.
to transfer or rid oneself of suddenly and irresponsibly:
Don't dump your troubles on me!
Boxing Slang.
  1. to knock down:
    The champion was dumped twice but won the fight.
  2. to lose (a match) intentionally:
    a bribe to dump a fight.
  1. to put (goods or securities) on the market in large quantities and at a low price without regard to the effect on market conditions.
  2. to sell (goods) into foreign markets below cost in order to promote exports or damage foreign competition.
Computers. to print, display, or record on an output medium (the contents of a computer's internal storage or the contents of a file), often at the time a program fails.
Slang. to kill; murder:
threats to dump him if he didn't pay up.
verb (used without object)
to fall or drop down suddenly.
to throw away or discard garbage, refuse, etc.
  1. to offer goods for sale in large quantities at a low price.
  2. to dump below-cost goods into foreign markets.
to release contents:
a sewage pipe that dumps in the ocean.
Slang. to complain, criticize, gossip, or tell another person one's problems:
He calls me up just to dump.
Slang: Vulgar. to defecate.
an accumulation of discarded garbage, refuse, etc.
Also called dumpsite, dumping-ground. a place where garbage, refuse, etc., is deposited.
  1. a collection of ammunition, stores, etc., deposited at some point, as near a battlefront, for distribution.
  2. the ammunition, stores, etc., so deposited.
the act of dumping.
  1. a runway or embankment equipped with tripping devices, from which low-grade ore, rock, etc., are dumped.
  2. the pile of ore so dumped.
Informal. a place, house, or town that is dilapidated, dirty, or disreputable.
(in merchandising) a bin or specially made carton in which items are displayed for sale:
Fifty copies of the best-selling paperback novel were in a dump near the checkout counter.
Computers. a copy of the contents of a computer's internal storage or of the contents of a file at a given instant, that is printed, displayed, or stored on an output medium.
dump on (someone), Informal.
  1. to attack with verbal abuse; criticize harshly:
    Reporters never tired of dumping on certain public figures.
  2. to unload one's problems onto (another person):
    You never phone me without dumping on me.
Origin of dump
1250-1300; Middle English (in sense “to fall suddenly”) < Old Norse dumpa strike, bump; modern senses as transitive v. and noun (not known before 19th cent.) perhaps < another source, or independent expressive formation
Related forms
dumper, noun
undumped, adjective Unabridged
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Examples from the Web for dumping
Contemporary Examples
Historical Examples
  • Consequently it soon became the dumping grounds for fugitives from justice and criminals of all kinds.

    The Indians' Last Fight Dennis Collins
  • dumping him into the car, Joe mounted hastily and drove off.

    The Burning Spear John Galsworthy
  • Some grow in flat rich ground, or where there has been a fill, or on dumping grounds; some grow on wood and around old stumps.

  • For several days, the south of England was a dumping ground—from somewhere.

    The Book of the Damned Charles Fort
  • Three or four were dumping a squat-bellied car into one of them.

    Mountain Clement Wood
British Dictionary definitions for dumping


to drop, fall, or let fall heavily or in a mass
(transitive) to empty (objects or material) out of a container
to unload, empty, or make empty (a container), as by tilting or overturning
(transitive) (informal) to dispose of
(transitive) to dispose of (waste, esp radioactive nuclear waste) in the sea or on land
  1. to market (goods) in bulk and at low prices
  2. to offer for sale large quantities of (goods) on foreign markets at low prices in order to maintain a high price in the home market and obtain a share of the foreign markets
(transitive) to store (supplies, arms, etc) temporarily
(intransitive) (slang, mainly US) to defecate
(transitive) (surfing) (of a wave) to hurl a swimmer or surfer down
(transitive) (Austral & NZ) to compact (bales of wool) by hydraulic pressure
(transitive) (computing) to record (the contents of part or all of the memory) on a storage device, such as magnetic tape, at a series of points during a computer run
  1. a place or area where waste materials are dumped
  2. (in combination): rubbish dump
a pile or accumulation of rubbish
the act of dumping
(informal) a dirty or unkempt place
(military) a place where weapons, supplies, etc, are stored
(slang, mainly US) an act of defecation
See also dump on
Derived Forms
dumper, noun
Word Origin
C14: probably of Scandinavian origin; compare Norwegian dumpa to fall suddenly, Middle Low German dumpeln to duck


(obsolete) a mournful song; lament
Word Origin
C16: see damp
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
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Word Origin and History for dumping



early 14c., "throw down or fall with force," perhaps from a Scandinavian source (cf. Danish dumpe, Norwegian dumpa "to fall suddenly"). The sense of "unload en masse" is first recorded in American English 1784. That of "discard, abandon" is from 1919. Related: Dumped; dumping. Dump truck is from 1930.


"place where refuse is dumped," 1865, originally of mining operations, from dump (v.). Meaning "any shabby place" is from 1899. Meaning "act of defecating" is from 1942.

Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
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dumping in Culture

dumping definition

The sale of goods of one nation in the markets of a second nation at less than the price charged within the first nation. Dumping can eliminate competitors by undercutting their prices.

The American Heritage® New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition
Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Slang definitions & phrases for dumping



Harsh criticism; severe derogation: A coupon is provided on page 47 for your dumping (1950s+)



  1. Any place so shabby or ugly as to be comparable to a depository for trash and garbage; a repulsive venue: What a dump my hometown is now! (1899+)
  2. Any building or place: Nice little dump you got here/ fanciest dump in town (1930s+)
  3. A prison (1904+ Underworld)
  4. A race, game, etc, that is intentionally lost, usually for gambling advantage; fix: When he took a dive in the first I knew we had a dump on our hands (1940s+ Gambling)
  5. A defecation; a SHIT: To start the morning with a satisfactory dump is a good omen (1940s+)
  6. A fund-raising event that allows many contributions to be given at once; scoop: The chief has a breakfast dump at the Century Plaza, then a stump speech at 2 p.m. (1990s+ Politics)


  1. To sell goods, stock, etc, in order to manipulate or depress a market (1868+)
  2. : Players accepting bribes to ''dump'' games
  3. To bunt a baseball: Dehoney dumped one toward third (1920+ Baseball)
  4. To kill (1930s+ Underworld)
  5. To rid oneself of someone or something; deep six: He dumped the whole cabinet (1848+)
  6. To admit someone to a hospital without proper cause •Often done as a way of avoiding responsibility for a patient (1980s+ Medical)
  7. To assign vulnerable novices and officers with disciplinary infractions to drug-ridden precincts (1990s+ Police)
  8. To speak openly and volubly: I shake my head and proceed to start dumping about my mom (1990s+)

Related Terms

core dump, take a dump

[origin uncertain; perhaps related to a Scandinavian term meaning ''to fall suddenly,'' the connection being the tipping out of a load from a cart]

Copyright (C) 2007 by HarperCollins Publishers.
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