mump
/mʌmp/
"mump" is a 4-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“mump” is uncommon English (outside the top frequency list), classed as a verb. The kind of spelling people second-guess.
- Unranked
- below top-frequency English
- 4
- letters
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - To mumble, speak unclearly.
Corpus desk
Index EN-mump · mump · English
mump · unranked · 0 variants · 0 confusables
- FREQ-UNRANKED Unranked
- LEN-MID 4 letters
- VOW-1 1 vowel
- CONFUS-0 No pairs
- VAR-0 0 variants
- BOOK-THIN "M" thin
- PHOTO-UNK Peer pending
Read with this headword: Spelling guide for this pattern
Desk codes from Wiktionary headword shape, FrequencyWords rank tier, confusable-pair count, generated misspelling depth, letter-cohort book size, and photo-finish peer. Not a difficulty grade.
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | mump |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Verb |
| IPA | /mʌmp/ |
| Letters | 4 |
| Misspellings tracked | 0 |
| Confusable pairs | 0 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Long-tail rank of “mump” in English
Rare enough to double-check
mump is uncommon English outside the top frequency list, classed as averb, transcribed /mʌmp/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 7 senses are on record.
mump doesn't appear in our generated misspelling index, a straightforward case of a spelling with little room for common typos. We don't track a confusable pairing for this entry, which tends to mean the word is visually distinctive enough to stand on its own.
Etymologically, the entry records: Perhaps borrowed through obsolete Dutch mompen (“to cheat, swindle, deceive”), according to Kroonen, a derivative of Proto-Germanic *mump- (“to stain”), perhaps from Proto-Indo-European *mm̥bʰ-neh₂- Also akin to German mimpfeln (“to mumble”), Icelandic mump… The correct English form is mump, spelled M-U-M-P.
Definition
- 1To mumble, speak unclearly.
- 2To move the lips with the mouth closed; to mumble, as in sulkiness.
- 3To beg, especially if using a repeated phrase.
- 4To deprive of (something) by cheating; to impose upon.
- 5To cheat; to deceive; to play the beggar.
- 6To be sullen or sulky.
- 7To nibble.
Recorded use
Wiktionary examplesThese source excerpts show how mump appears in context. They illustrate usage; the definition above remains the entry’s reference meaning.
Who mump their passion, and who, grimly smiling, Still thus address the fair with voice beguiling […]
He mumps, and lowres, and hangs the lip […]
Etymology
Perhaps borrowed through obsolete Dutch mompen (“to cheat, swindle, deceive”), according to Kroonen, a derivative of Proto-Germanic *mump- (“to stain”), perhaps from Proto-Indo-European *mm̥bʰ-neh₂- Also akin to German mimpfeln (“to mumble”), Icelandic mumpa (“to take into the mouth”). See also English mum. While Kroonen claims Ancient Greek μέμφομαι (mémphomai, “I blame, accuse”) and the Germanic forms are reconcilable and related, Beekes rejects this, stating that Germanic -p- cannot here correspond to Greek -φ- and that this etymological connection is not widely considered reliable.
Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.