1
as in stout
being compact and broad in build and often short in stature
dumpy little toddlers growing into lanky children
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2
as in dilapidated
showing signs of advanced wear and tear and neglect
we could only find rooms at a dumpy motel on the outskirts of the city
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Examples Sentences
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Recent Examples of dumpy
She’s not allowed to be anything more than the dumpy friend on TV.
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Sarah Madaus, SELF, 3 Feb. 2023
Goloborodko’s once disappointed father (Viktor Saraykin) is suddenly beaming with pride and determined to renovate the family’s dumpy apartment in palatial style (and to evict neighboring tenants, until his wife objects).
—David Klion, The New Republic, 7 Apr. 2022
In the northern Swedish city of Skellefteå, White Arkitekter has completed Sara Kulturhus Center, a museum-theater-library complex topped by an ostentatiously dumpy hotel tower made out of structural wood.
—Curbed, 3 Feb. 2022
But unlike the dumpy, middle-aged baddies of yore, our modern-day villain is (usually) younger, slimmer, better-looking, and sometimes even downright pleasant.
—Vulture, 11 Jan. 2022
See all Example Sentences for dumpy 
Sarah Madaus, SELF, 3 Feb. 2023
Goloborodko’s once disappointed father (Viktor Saraykin) is suddenly beaming with pride and determined to renovate the family’s dumpy apartment in palatial style (and to evict neighboring tenants, until his wife objects).
—David Klion, The New Republic, 7 Apr. 2022
In the northern Swedish city of Skellefteå, White Arkitekter has completed Sara Kulturhus Center, a museum-theater-library complex topped by an ostentatiously dumpy hotel tower made out of structural wood.
—Curbed, 3 Feb. 2022
But unlike the dumpy, middle-aged baddies of yore, our modern-day villain is (usually) younger, slimmer, better-looking, and sometimes even downright pleasant.
—Vulture, 11 Jan. 2022
See all Example Sentences for dumpy
Recent Examples of Synonyms for dumpy
Adjective
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On the flip side, partly because of game circumstances and partly because of stout defense, the Seahawks have done little damage on the ground against the 49ers, averaging 3.7 yards per carry in the six games.Jerry McDonald, The Mercury News, 15 Nov. 2024
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Give me the 49ers by 10-plus. Titans at Chargers (-7.5) -- Sunday, 4:05 p.m. Everett: Chargers -7.5 L.A.'s stout defense + Justin Herbert = another comfortable victory against an overmatched opponent.Thomas G. Moukawsher, Newsweek, 5 Nov. 2024
Adjective
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While Abang quietly guts chickens in the Pudu wet market and takes odd jobs for half the wages a legal worker would receive, Adik is seen fleeing from a raid by immigration police in a dilapidated apartment block.Richard Kuipers, Variety, 19 Nov. 2024
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Her sweet idiot of a neighbor stood on the unlit front porch of his dilapidated brick rancher as the sun dipped below the horizon and shadows stretched to swallow him.Carly Tagen-Dye, People.com, 19 Nov. 2024
Adjective
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But instead of the dry, flaky mattes of our youth, these go on buttery soft and manage to cushion lips in peptides, hyaluronic acid, and botanical extracts for a hydrated, plump pout.Kiana Murden, Vogue, 1 Nov. 2024
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Most memorably are the mayor, depicted as a plump Caucasian male who performs Jackson’s famous kick, and the skeleton who dances Jackson’s iconic moonwalk.Ime Ekpo, Forbes, 31 Oct. 2024
Adjective
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Soft landing optimism has led the 2024 stock rally to broaden as of late into more neglected areas of the market such as small-caps.Krystal Hur, CNN, 9 Oct. 2024
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Meanwhile, a team aiming to restore a neglected and earthquake-damaged archaeological site in Turkey came across a tiny 3,500-year-old cuneiform tablet.Ashley Strickland, CNN, 17 Aug. 2024
Adjective
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With the costume’s feet at knee-level, an elevated stage (and smoke machine) helped give the appearance that Klum was walking around on E.T.’s characteristically stumpy legs.Oscar Holland, CNN, 1 Nov. 2024
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The heron turns out to be a stumpy man in a costume.Moeko Fujii, The New Yorker, 2 May 2024
Adjective
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Except, wait a minute, who was that small, stocky man bouncing out of the pack and suddenly leading cheers?Bill Plaschke, Los Angeles Times, 27 Sep. 2024
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Munk, who is stocky, with ruddy skin and a shock of strawberry-blond hair, served this course to me himself.Rebecca Mead, The New Yorker, 23 Sep. 2024
Adjective
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The thing to remember is that thinner angles, from 10 to 15 degrees for sushi knives, are sharper but dull faster, while wider angles, from 20 to 25 degrees, are sturdier but less sharp.David Hochman, Forbes, 20 Nov. 2024
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In turn, the tree was super sturdy and held ornaments with ease.Genevieve Cepeda, People.com, 19 Nov. 2024
Adjective
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Judge Reinhold, as an overly genteel young detective whom Foley brings into the adult world, and John Ashton, as Reinhold’s surly, stubby older partner, carry a burden as big as Murphy’s through the second half of the picture.David Denby, Vulture, 3 July 2024
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Simplicity, understood like this, is complexity well tended, just as a long, graceful line is a collection of stubby ones, tamed but not deadened.Jackson Arn, The New Yorker, 7 Oct. 2024
Thesaurus Entries Near dumpy
Cite this Entry
“Dumpy.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/dumpy. Accessed 28 Nov. 2024.
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