draw stumps

verb

To declare an end to the day's play, and remove the bails and sometimes the stumps.

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Meanings

verbdraw stumps (third-person singular simple present draws stumps, present participle drawing stumps, simple past drew stumps, past participle drawn stumps)

present singular third person draws stumps · participle present drawing stumps · past drew stumps · participle past drawn stumps

  1. ball gamesTo declare an end to the day's play, and remove the bails and sometimes the stumps.
  2. idiomaticTo cease doing something, at least for the day.

Origin

From the game of cricket, where a day's play is terminated by the umpire drawing the stumps out of the ground.

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Cite this entry
APA

draw stumps. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/draw%20stumps

MLA

“draw stumps.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/draw%20stumps. Accessed November 4, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “draw stumps,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/draw%20stumps.

Source: draw stumps on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.