pump
pump — noun
1. A device that uses suction or pressure to push liquids (such as water or oil) or
A device that uses suction or pressure to push liquids (such as water or oil) or gases (such as air) through pipes or out of one area into another.
The farmer used a hand pump to bring water from the well for his cattle.
hand pump / bring water from [source]
When the basement flooded, Lakan borrowed an electric pump to remove the standing water.
Mechanics use an air pump to fill car tyres with compressed air.
air pump / fill [object] with [substance]
The old water pump in the garden finally broke after thirty years of daily use.
- hand pump
- electric pump
- water pump
- air pump
- fuel pump
- pump house
- pump mechanism
more technical; used in engineering contexts
- suction pump
specific type that uses suction to move fluids
- plug
a plug stops flow; a pump enables flow
Grammar Patterns
pump + of + noun
compound: [material/function] + pump
Usage Note
Often appears in compound nouns that name the type or purpose: hand pump, air pump, water pump, petrol pump, heart pump.
Common Mistakes
2. A woman's flat shoe with a thin sole and simple design, similar in style to the
A woman's flat shoe with a thin sole and simple design, similar in style to the soft shoes worn by ballet dancers.
Maeve wore black pumps with her summer dress to the outdoor concert.
Anjali bought a pair of red leather pumps for the wedding reception.
pair of + pumps
The dance studio sells soft pumps with canvas uppers for beginners.
Yuki wore thin-soled pumps that looked like ballet slippers to a summer wedding.
thin-soled pumps / look like ballet slippers — flat, lightweight shoe
- leather pumps
- canvas pumps
- black pumps
- pair of pumps
- ballet flat
more common term in American English for this style
- dancer shoe
descriptive term, less common
Grammar Patterns
pair of + pumps
Usage Note
In American English, this style is usually called 'ballet flats' rather than 'pumps.' The word 'pumps' in US English refers instead to heeled dress shoes (see noun sense 3).
Common Mistakes
3. A women's smart shoe with a heel and a slip-on style that has no straps, laces,
A women's smart shoe with a heel and a slip-on style that has no straps, laces, or other fasteners, worn with formal or business clothing.
Ziad's grandmother polished her black patent pumps before the family dinner.
patent pumps / polished
The bride chose white satin pumps with a low heel for her wedding day.
Élise wore navy blue pumps with her business suit to the annual conference.
Isabela found a pair of comfortable pumps that matched her evening gown perfectly.
- patent pumps
- satin pumps
- leather pumps
- low-heel pumps
- black pumps
- court shoe
British term for the same style of heeled women's shoe
- high heel
broader term for any shoe with a tall heel; not all have the pump's no-fastening design
Grammar Patterns
pair of + pumps
Usage Note
In British English this style is sometimes called a 'court shoe.' In American English, 'pump' by itself almost always refers to this heeled style rather than the flat ballet style (noun sense 2).
Common Mistakes
4. A flat, hard-wearing cloth shoe with a rubber sole, used by children for sports
A flat, hard-wearing cloth shoe with a rubber sole, used by children for sports or physical education at school.
The children changed into their pumps before the PE lesson started.
changed into + pumps / PE lesson
Kenji's school pumps had white rubber soles and blue canvas uppers.
Folake packed her son's pumps in a bag for the school sports day.
The teacher reminded every child to bring clean pumps for the gym class on Friday.
- canvas pumps
- PE pumps
- school pumps
- white pumps
Grammar Patterns
pair of + pumps
Usage Note
This sense is primarily British. The same type of shoe is called 'plimsolls,' 'gym shoes,' or 'trainers' in different varieties of English.
Common Mistakes
To remove the contents of someone's stomach using a medical tube and suction, typically after poisoning or drug overdose.
The doctors had to pump the toddler's stomach after she swallowed household cleaner.
Paramedics rushed him to hospital where they pumped his stomach immediately.
pump iron
idiomTo do exercises that involve lifting heavy weights, especially as part of a regular fitness routine.
Justin spends two hours at the gym every morning pumping iron with his training partner.
Ava started pumping iron three months ago and can already lift twice her previous weight.
pump — verb
1. To use a pump or similar mechanical action to send a liquid (like water or fuel)
To use a pump or similar mechanical action to send a liquid (like water or fuel) or a gas (like air) through a tube, pipe, or passage.
The worker pumped the water out of the flooded shed with a small electric pump.
pump + noun + out of [location]
Bilal's heart pumps blood to every part of his body through a network of arteries.
The fire crew pumped water from the river to put out the forest fire.
pump + from [source]
Air is pumped into the diving tank before each training session for safety reasons.
passive: be pumped into [container]
- pump water
- pump air
- pump blood
- pump oil
- pump out
- pump into
- pump through
- suck
draws in rather than pushes out; opposite direction of flow
Grammar Patterns
pump + noun (liquid/gas) + adverb/preposition
pump + adverb/preposition
Usage Note
Frequently used with adverbs of direction (out, in, into, through, from). The object is typically a substance — liquid (water, oil, blood) or gas (air). Also used intransitively for the heart or mechanical pumps: 'His heart was pumping fast.'
Common Mistakes
2. To ask someone many questions in a careful or indirect way in order to discover
To ask someone many questions in a careful or indirect way in order to discover facts that they may not want to tell you.
The journalist tried to pump the politician for information about the new tax policy.
pump + person + for + information
Lakan's friends pumped him for details about his job interview at the tech company.
During dinner, Aunt Rosa pumped the children for news about their school and hobbies.
The police pumped the suspect for the names of others involved in the robbery.
pump + person + for + noun (names/details about crime)
- pump for information
- pump for details
- pump for news
- pump witnesses
- probe
more formal; suggests careful, systematic investigation
- grill
more aggressive; suggests intense, forceful questioning
- interrogate
formal, often in legal or police contexts; implies authority
- volunteer
to offer information freely rather than being asked
Grammar Patterns
pump + person + for + noun (information/details/secrets)
Usage Note
Almost always used in the pattern pump [someone] for [something]. The 'something' is typically information, details, secrets, or news. This sense implies persistent or strategic questioning, not a casual chat.
Common Mistakes
3. If music with a strong, continuous beat is pumping, it is being played very loud
If music with a strong, continuous beat is pumping, it is being played very loudly through speakers, or the person playing it is doing so.
The nightclub pumped dance music until four in the morning every Saturday.
Hip-hop music was pumping from the car speakers across the whole parking lot.
pump from [location] — music travelling from source
Justin turned up the volume and let the heavy beat pump through the living room.
The DJ pumped electronic music all night at the beach party last summer.
- pump music
- pump through speakers
- pump the beat
- pumping bass
- whisper
very quiet sound; opposite of loud music
Grammar Patterns
pump + noun (music/beat)
pump + adverb (through/from/out of)
be pumping
Usage Note
Informal. Usually describes amplified electronic music, hip-hop, rock, or dance music with a pronounced bass beat. Not used for acoustic or quiet music.
Common Mistakes
4. To move something rapidly up and down, in and out, or back and forth with a stea
To move something rapidly up and down, in and out, or back and forth with a steady, repeated motion, or to move in this way.
The runner pumped her arms as she sprinted toward the finish line.
pump + body part (arms/legs) — running motion
Eitan pumped the handle of the well until water started to flow from the tap.
Ada pumped the brakes when the car hit an icy patch on the road.
His fist pumped the air in celebration when the final whistle blew.
pump + fist in the air — celebratory motion
- pump arms
- pump legs
- pump fists
- pump the handle
- pump the brakes
- pump the pedal
- move up and down
descriptive phrase; less forceful than 'pump'
- thrust
suggests a single strong push rather than repeated motion
- work
broader; 'work the handle' implies repeated operation without specifying the motion pattern
- hold still
to keep motionless rather than moving repeatedly
Grammar Patterns
pump + noun (body part/object) + adverb
pump + adverb
Usage Note
Often used with body parts (arms, legs, fists) to describe a vigorous, repeated movement. Also used with mechanical objects (handle, brake, pedal) to describe operating them with a pumping motion.
Common Mistakes
pump up
phrasal verbTo fill something, especially a tyre or ball, with air using a pump. Also used informally to mean making someone feel excited, confident, or full of energy.
Ada stopped at the petrol station to pump up her car tyres before the long drive.
The coach gave an encouraging speech to pump up the team before the big match.
pump out
phrasal verbTo produce or supply something, especially music, information, or products, in large quantities and often continuously.
The radio station pumps out the same pop songs every hour without any variety.
That small factory pumps out over a thousand plastic toys every single day.
pump into
phrasal verbTo put a large amount of money, time, or effort into something, or to force a substance into something.
Investors pumped millions of dollars into the new technology company last year.
The government pumped extra funding into the public health system after the crisis.
pump in
phrasal verbTo force a liquid or gas into something using a pump.
The workers pumped in water to fill the tank.
Why did you pump in so much air into the balloon?
To shoot someone many times with a gun.
The gunman pumped several bullets into the victim's chest.
Did the attacker pump shots into the car before fleeing?
To force a large amount of a substance, especially a drug, into someone's body.
The doctors pumped the patient full of antibiotics.
Why did they pump her full of sedatives before the surgery?
pump iron
idiomTo lift heavy weights as exercise to build muscle.
Maya pumps iron at the gym every morning.
Have you been pumping iron to prepare for the competition?
To use a tube to remove harmful substances from someone's stomach.
The doctors had to pump the child's stomach after he swallowed pills.
Did they pump her stomach after the poisoning incident?
Word family
- pumpernounC1
- pumpingadjectiveB2
- pumpedadjectiveB2
Synonym discussion
Sense: verb/1
All four words describe moving something in a particular direction, but they differ in mechanism and intensity. 'Pump' specifically implies a device or repeated action that moves fluids or gases — it is the most precise word for mechanical or bodily fluid movement. 'Force' is broader and suggests overcoming resistance; you can force air into a balloon by blowing (no pump needed). 'Drive' implies sustained pressure or momentum, often in technical contexts ('the engine drives the wheels'), and can also describe natural processes ('the wind drives the waves'). 'Push' is the simplest and most general; you can push a chair or push water aside with your hand. In mechanical contexts, 'pump' is the right choice when a pump-like action is involved. For example, 'The heart pumps blood through the body' sounds natural, while 'The heart forces blood' sounds clinical, and 'The heart drives blood' sounds slightly literary.
Common collocations
Nouns
- water pump
- air pump
- fuel pump
- heart pump
- hand pump
- bike pump
- oil pump
- hydraulic pump
Adverbs
- pump hard
- pump furiously
- pump steadily
- pump vigorously
Phrases
- pump and dump
- pump the brakes
- pump iron
- pump someone's stomach
- pump up the volume
Etymology
The word 'pump' entered English in the early 1400s, likely borrowed from Middle Dutch 'pompe' or Middle Low German 'pumpe,' which referred to a device for moving water. These Germanic words probably came from a sound-imitating source — the splashing or thumping noise of a pump in action. By the 1500s, 'pump' was used for various mechanical fluid-moving devices. The shoe senses appeared later: the children's sports shoe and ballet flat senses emerged in 19th-century British English, while the heeled dress shoe sense became established in 20th-century American English. The verb senses for indirect questioning and loud music developed metaphorically in the 1900s, drawing on the idea of persistent, rhythmic action.