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Antonyms for lumbering


Grammar : Adj
Spell : luhm-ber-ing
Phonetic Transcription : ˈlʌm bər ɪŋ



Definition of lumbering

Origin :
  • "timber sawn into rough planks," 1660s, American English (Massachusetts), earlier "disused bit of furniture; heavy, useless objects" (1550s), probably from lumber (v.), perhaps influenced by Lombard, from the Italian immigrants famous as pawnbrokers and money-lenders in England (see Lombard). Lumbar, Lumbard were old alternative forms of Lombard in English. The evolution of sense then would be because a lumber-house ("pawn shop") naturally accumulates odds and ends of furniture.
  • Live Lumber; soldiers or passengers on board a ship are so called by the sailors.LUMBER HOUSE. A house appropriated by thieves for the reception of their stolen property. ["Dictionary of Buckish Slang, University Wit, and Pickpocket Eloquence," London, 1811]
  • adj clumsy, awkward
Example sentences :
  • At the end he nodded, and, with a lumbering movement, altered his position in his chair.
  • Extract from : « The Market-Place » by Harold Frederic
  • His instinct was to "charge" and he made one lumbering plunge.
  • Extract from : « Two Arrows » by William O. Stoddard
  • Their lumbering craft is the first to touch the side of the Teutonic.
  • Extract from : « The Confessions of a Caricaturist, Vol 2 (of 2) » by Harry Furniss
  • The heavy, lumbering steps of a policeman at last broke her reverie.
  • Extract from : « Scottish Ghost Stories » by Elliott O'Donnell
  • He shouted to the postilion, and the huge, lumbering vehicle was set in motion.
  • Extract from : « Scottish Ghost Stories » by Elliott O'Donnell
  • He returned in a few minutes with Ann lumbering in his wake.
  • Extract from : « The Shrieking Pit » by Arthur J. Rees
  • He pulled free from Shann's grip, lumbering across the sand to the kill.
  • Extract from : « Storm Over Warlock » by Andre Norton
  • Will you please tell me why a dam is necessary to lumbering?
  • Extract from : « Grace Harlowe's Overland Riders in the Great North Woods » by Jessie Graham Flower
  • The thought-processes in Washington are too lumbering for the needs of this nation.
  • Extract from : « A Preface to Politics » by Walter Lippmann
  • It was nearly an hour before the lumbering farm-wagon appeared.
  • Extract from : « Shoe-Bar Stratton » by Joseph Bushnell Ames

Synonyms for lumbering

Based on : Thesaurus.com - Gutenberg.org - Dictionary.com - Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019