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trump

noun · verb

Simple meaning

The suit, in a game of cards, that outranks all others.

Pronunciation

Say it like this:

truhmp
US device voice
IPA pronunciation (US)

ˈtɹʌmp

This word is pronounced essentially the same in American and British English, so one transcription covers both.

IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) is a standard way of writing speech sounds.

Word Review

Definition

Everyday modern meanings first, grouped by part of speech.

noun

  1. card games

    A playing card in the suit that has been declared trumps

    “The ace of trumps is a sure winner.”

  2. card games

    The suit, in a game of cards, that outranks all others.

  3. card games

    A playing card of that suit.

  4. An old card game, almost identical to whist; the game of ruff.

  5. A card of the major arcana of the tarot.

  6. Donald Trump (b. 1946), a businessman, television personality, and current president of the United States of America (2017–2021, 2025–present).

verb

  1. transitive

    To get the better of, or finesse, a competitor.

  2. intransitiveukcolloquial

    To fart.

  3. transitive

    To supersede.

  4. transitive

    To outweigh; be stronger, greater, bigger than or in other way superior to.

  5. Produce a sound as if from a trumpet

  6. To blow a trumpet.

Word at a Glance

Difficulty
B2 · Upper Intermediate (estimated)
Frequency
Moderately Common
Typical Use
Neutral / general English

Word Aura™

How this word commonly comes across.

Aura for this meaning

This meaning: A playing card in the suit that has been declared trumps

Used this way, trump is a common word that usually carries little praise or criticism of its own. It usually sounds natural in a wide range of settings.

Heard in a sentence
“The ace of trumps is a sure winner.”
Emotional tone
Neutral
Formality
Neutral
Intensity
Not strongly marked
How common
Common
Connotation
Matter-of-fact
Usage feel
Neutral and straightforward

Word Aura describes common impressions, not a measurement. Tone changes with sentence, speaker, relationship and situation.

More ways to use trump

  • “The ace of trumps is a sure winner.”noun

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Common Patterns and Combinations

How this word naturally appears with others.

Playing / suit

trump cardlast trumptrump suit

Other combinations

van trumptrump towertrump leadtrump plaza

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Word Family

Related forms, grouped by how they connect.

Compound terms

Established multiword terms.

  • trump upverbCompound term

    Invent.

  • trump outverbCompound term

    Proclaim or announce with or as if with a fanfare.

  • trump cardnounCompound term

    A playing card in the suit that has been declared trumps.

  • no-trumpnounCompound term

    A version of contract bridge in which no suit is designated as trump for the duration of the hand.

More about this wordSynonyms, forms, origin

Synonyms

noun

Sense: playing card in the suit that has been declared trumps

verb

Sense: to get the better of or or finesse

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Dictionary data from Wiktionary via the Free Dictionary API. Simple meanings, combinations and word intelligence are built from verified reference data, no AI is used to load this page.