bumper
UK /ˈbʌmpə/ · US /ˈbʌmpəɹ/ noun, adjective, verb
Forms bumpers bumpering bumpered
- noun Someone or something that bumps.
- noun A drinking vessel filled to the brim.
- noun (colloquial, now chiefly attributive) Anything large or successful.
- noun (automotive) Parts at the front and back of a vehicle which are meant to absorb the impact of a collision; fender.
- noun Any mechanical device used to absorb an impact, soften a collision, or protect against impact. “The company sells screw-on rubber bumpers and feet.”
- noun (cricket) A bouncer.
- noun (billiards) A side wall of a pool table.
- noun A cylindrical object used (as a substitute for birds) to train dogs to retrieve.
- adjective (colloquial) Wonderfully large; (as if) filled to the bumpers at the top of a silo, or successful in this regard. “a bumper collection of silly jokes”
- verb (obsolete, intransitive) To drink from the vessels called bumpers.
Synonyms
Etymology
A corruption of bumbard, bombard, a large drinking vessel.
Webster’s 1913
- noun A cup or glass filled to the brim, or till the liquor runs over, particularly in drinking a health or toast.
- noun A covered house at a theater, etc., in honor of some favorite performer. [Cant]
- noun That which bumps or causes a bump.
- noun Anything which resists or deadens a bump or shock; a buffer.
Sources: Wiktionary · Webster’s 1913 — from the Wiktionary entry “bumper”, CC BY-SA 4.0. Details