tree stump
7
1.8
- noun
- /tri stʌmp/
:
tocón
- From my upstairs bedroom window, I could see the tree stump in the center of our backyard.
- sitting on a tree stump
- dead tree stumps
- remove tree stumps
Examples
-
We were all sitting on a tree stump over there.
-
Ipa glanced over her shoulder at Rodrigo, who sat on a tree stump, watching them.
Fiction book (1995) -
We were all sitting on a tree stump over there.
-
A hollow tree stump about a mile from here.
-
Once I get a ways in, I crouch behind a tree stump and listen.
Fiction book (1992) -
My father stood beside the tree stump, and my mother sat on the back porch.
Fiction book (1992) -
Only Hasari remains apart, seated on a tree stump in the middle of the quad.
Fiction book (1992) -
Bluebirds build nests in holes that form in dead tree stumps.
Academic text (2002) -
The last glow of twilight illuminated a landscape of endless tree stumps.
Fiction book (2001) -
Frank didn't see the tree stump in front of him and went tumbling.
Synonyms
47
3.0
The part of a limb, tooth, or tree that remains after the rest is cut off
Surface Forms
Morphology
The meaning is directly and transparently derived from combining 'tree' (a tall plant) with 'stump' (the portion left after cutting); a B1 learner who knows both words will naturally infer it refers to the remaining base of a felled tree. This noun–noun compositional pattern is literal and cross-linguistically common, so no special idiomatic knowledge is required.
Etymology
Tree stump paints a simple picture: a tree has been cut and only a short stump stays in the ground. That's why it means 'the base of a tree left after the rest is cut down'.