lumber

noun

/ˈlʌmbə(r)/

/ˈlʌmbər/

[uncountable]

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(especially North American English)
(also timber especially in British English)
wood that is prepared for use in building, etc.
- a lumber mill
Oxford Collocations Dictionary
adjective
- softwood
- pressure-treated
- treated
- …
lumber + noun
- mill
- yard
- camp
- …
See full entry
(British English, old-fashioned) pieces of furniture, and other large objects that you do not use any more
- a lumber room (= for storing lumber in)

Word Originnoun mid 16th cent.: perhaps from lumber ‘move slowly and awkwardly’; later associated with obsolete lumber ‘pawnbroker's shop’.

lumber

verb

/ˈlʌmbə(r)/

/ˈlʌmbər/

Verb Forms

present simple I / you / we / they lumber	/ˈlʌmbə(r)/ /ˈlʌmbər/
he / she / it lumbers	/ˈlʌmbəz/ /ˈlʌmbərz/
past simple lumbered	/ˈlʌmbəd/ /ˈlʌmbərd/
past participle lumbered	/ˈlʌmbəd/ /ˈlʌmbərd/
-ing form lumbering	/ˈlʌmbərɪŋ/ /ˈlʌmbərɪŋ/

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[intransitive] + adv./prep. to move in a slow and heavy way
- A family of elephants lumbered by.
- The huge convoy of trucks lumbered out of the city.
Extra Examples
- He lumbered to his feet and went to see who was at the door.
- She lumbered over towards me.
- He lumbered up the hill, stopping frequently to get his breath back.
[transitive, usually passive] (informal) to give somebody a responsibility, etc., that they do not want and that they cannot get rid of
- be/get lumbered with somebody/something When our parents went out, my sister got lumbered with me for the evening.
- I suppose I'll get lumbered with the extra work.
- be lumbered She might say ‘Yes’. Then you’d be lumbered.

Word Originverb sense 1 late Middle English lomere, perhaps symbolic of clumsy movement. verb sense 2 mid 16th cent.: perhaps from lumber ‘move slowly and awkwardly’; later associated with obsolete lumber ‘pawnbroker's shop’.