pump

Etymology 1

From Middle English pumpe, possibly from Middle Dutch pompe (“pipe, water conduit”) or Middle Low German pumpe (“pump”). Compare Dutch pompen, German pumpen, and Danish pompe.

noun

1. A device for moving or compressing a liquid or gas.
   This pump can deliver 100 gallons of water per minute.
2. An instance of the action of a pump; one stroke of a pump; any action similar to pumping
   It takes thirty pumps to get 10 litres; he did 50 pumps of the weights.
3. A device for dispensing liquid or gas to be sold, particularly fuel.
   This pump is out of order, but you can gas up at the next one.
4. (bodybuilding, climbing) A swelling of the muscles caused by increased blood flow following high intensity weightlifting.
   Want a skin-stretching pump? Up the volume by using high-rep sets. A great pump is better than coming. (Arnold Schwarzenegger) 2010, Eric Velazquez, “Power Pairings”, in Reps!, 17:83
5. (colloquial) A ride on a bicycle given to a passenger, usually on the handlebars or fender.
   She gave the other girl a pump on her new bike.
6. (US, slang) The heart.
7. (obsolete, vulgar, British slang) The vagina.
   Thus to and again to our paſtime we went, / And my Cards I play'd fairly to Jenny's content; / I work'd at her Pump till my Sucker grew dry, / Then I left pumping, a good Reaſon why. 1750, “Ge ho, Dobbin or the Waggoner”, in The Tulip, page 2

verb

1. (transitive, intransitive) To use a pump; to move (water or other liquid) by means of a pump.
   I've been pumping for over a minute but the water isn't coming through.
   I've pumped over 1000 gallons of water in the last ten minutes.
2. (transitive) To inject or pour (something) into someone or something in a manner similar to a pump.
   The underlying cause of the warming is human activities pumping carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases into the atmosphere, scientists say. But the reasons why marine heating is speeding up now are far from clear. 2023-08-07, Clive Cookson, “Missing ice and bleached coral: the sudden warming of the oceans”, in Financial Times
3. (obsolete) To put (a person or part of the body) under a stream of water from a pump, as a punishment or as a form of medical treatment; to force a pump of water upon or on someone.
   Pump him soundly, impudent Fellow. 1676, Thomas Shadwell, The Virtuoso
   ‘So much the worse for him. I've had my eye on him for some time. He shall be prettily pumped upon.’ 1872, George Eliot, Middlemarch, Book IV, chapter 37
4. (transitive) To gain information from (a person) by persistent questioning.
   But pump not me for politics. 1682, Thomas Otway, Venice Preserv'd
   "Did Dora just offer up that advice, or were you pumping her for information?" "Shoot, I outed my informant. I'm a terrible spy." 2017, Jeph Jacques, Questionable Content (webcomic), Number 3509: Sensitive Information
5. (Britain, slang) To copulate.
   Thus to and again to our paſtime we went, / And my Cards I play'd fairly to Jenny's content; / I work'd at her Pump till my Sucker grew dry, / Then I left pumping, a good Reaſon why. 1750, “Ge ho, Dobbin or the Waggoner”, in The Tulip, page 2
6. (transitive, intransitive) To express milk from (a breast) by means of a breast pump.
7. (transitive, often followed by up) To fill with air by means of a pump; to inflate.
   He pumped up the air-bed by hand, but used the service station air to pump up the tyres.
8. (transitive) To move rhythmically, as the motion of a pump.
   I pumped my fist with joy when I won the race.
9. (bodybuilding) To enlarge the body by means of weightlifting or steroid use.
10. (transitive) To shake (a person's hand) vigorously.
11. (US, intransitive, slang) Of music: to be loud, to have strong bass and rhythms; (by extension) to be full of energy.
    The waves were really pumping this morning.
    Last night's party was really pumping.
12. (sports) To kick, throw, or hit the ball far and high.
    Blackburn pumped long balls towards Diouf as they became increasingly desperate to salvage a point, but Wigan held on for a win that may prove crucial in their quest for Premier League survival. February 5, 2011, Michael Da Silva, “Wigan 4 - 3 Blackburn”, in BBC
13. (Britain, slang, vulgar) To pass gas; to fart quietly.
    People never pumped, just never never, but sometimes ye got smells. 2008, James Kelman, Kieron Smith, Boy, Penguin, published 2009, page 82
14. (computing) To pass (messages) into a program so that it can obey them.
    Sure enough, rather than pumping a message to the Console window, you will now see a message box displaying your message 2006, Andrew Troelsen, Pro C# 2005 and the .NET 2.0 Platform
    The CLR pumps messages automatically during a wait, reducing the likelihood of this but it can show up in native code. 2008, Joe Duffy, Concurrent Programming on Windows
    c. 2012, Microsoft, .NET Framework 4.5 documentation for Marshal.CleanupUnusedObjectsInCurrentContext The interop system pumps messages while it attempts to clean up RCWs.
15. (colloquial) To inject silicone into the body in order to try to achieve a fuller or curvier look.

Etymology 2

The etymology of the term is unclear and disputed. One possibility is that it comes from pomp (“ornamentation”). Another is that it refers to the sound made by the foot moving inside the shoe when dancing. The Oxford English Dictionary claims that it appeared in the 16th century, and lists its origin as "obscure". It has also been linked to the Dutch pampoesje, possibly borrowed from Javanese pampus, ultimately from Persian پاپوش (pâpuš), borrowed from Arabic بَابُوش (bābūš).

noun

1. (Britain) A low-top shoe with a rubber sole and a canvas upper; a low-top canvas sneaker.
2. (chiefly Canada, US) A type of women's shoe which leaves the instep uncovered and has a relatively high heel, especially a stiletto (with a very high and thin heel)
   She was wearing a lovely new pair of pumps.
3. A dancing shoe.
   Gabriel's pumps were all unpinkt i' th' heel 1591, William Shakespeare, The Taming of the Shrew
   Ballerine - or ballet pumps - are the Milanese woman's footwear 'de rigeur', and not just because there are so many cobbled streets to walk over and are therefore infinitely preferable to heels. 2012, Rachael Martin, The Fashion Lover's Guide to Milan
4. A type of shoe without a heel.