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HOW TO PRONOUNCE

gumption

/ˈɡʌmpʃən/

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American Pronunciation Guide · 1:05
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What does gumption mean?

noun

  1. Common sense, initiative, resourcefulness.
  2. Boldness of enterprise; aggressiveness or initiative.
  3. Energy of body and mind, enthusiasm.

Definitions regrouped for readability · CC BY-SA 4.0

IPA pronunciation

/ˈɡʌmpʃən/

CMU Pronouncing Dictionary

Pronunciation varies by speaker and region. About these dictionary pronunciations.

In the pages of books

See this word in context.

“Well, she’s got more gumption than any one I’ve seen here so far—seems to take an interest in what she’s doing.”
Theodore DreiserSister Carrie: A NovelProject Gutenberg ebook #233
“Did you really have the gumption to suspect me just because I brought you up to this bare part of the heath?”
G. K. (Gilbert Keith) ChestertonThe innocence of Father BrownProject Gutenberg ebook #204
More book examples (2)
“Such rot! there isn’t a grain of intelligence in it. Nobody with more gumption than a grasshopper could go and sit and listen.”
D. H. (David Herbert) LawrenceSons and LoversProject Gutenberg ebook #217
“No, I won’t, young woman. Any one who has gumption knows what it is, and any one who hasn’t can never know what it is. So there is no need of defining it.”
L. M. (Lucy Maud) MontgomeryAnne of the IslandProject Gutenberg ebook #51