1 um | Definition of um
\ a prolonged m sound How to pronounce um (audio) , əm\

Definition of um

used to indicate hesitation well, um, I don't know

Examples of um in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Um, see you in theaters, because that has the makings of cinematic genius. Lilian Min, Cosmopolitan, "Leo Meets His Ultimate Casting Match in a Leonardo Da Vinci Biopic," 14 Aug. 2017 Gabriel averaged an obscene 11.8 yards per target last season and scored touchdowns on 17.1% of his catches, making him an obvious candidate for regress– …um, for worse numbers than last year. Pat Fitzmaurice, SI.com, "Atlanta Falcons Fantasy Football 2017 Preview: Jones, Freeman Are Top Picks," 2 Aug. 2017 Despite, um, everything, maybe American users actually got a little happier this year. Krystin Arneson, Glamour, "6 Mind-Blowing Emoji Facts in Honor of World Emoji Day," 16 July 2017 We’ve written before about Camila Giorgi’s um (to the euphemism-mobile!) idiosyncratic team. Jon Wertheim, SI.com, "50 parting thoughts from Wimbledon 2017," 15 July 2017 Um, possible to still get a ticket to the Governor's Ball? Joelle Goldstein, PEOPLE.com, "Neil Patrick Harris Had a Hilariously Perfect Response to Missing Out on an Emmy Nomination," 13 July 2017 On Monday, Green made headlines at the first ever NBA Awards by wearing a beautiful teal blue shawl collar tuxedo jacket adorned with a YSL pin and...um...shorts. Jake Woolf, GQ, "Draymond Green Does Not Trust Drake's Style," 30 June 2017 My taste in music and clothes and TV shows rendered me cliché and boring and too cool (um, what???), which meant that one wanted to hang out with me. Lauren Miller, Seventeen, "Here's What Having A Panic Attack Really Feels Like," 29 June 2017

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'um.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

See More

First Known Use of um

1672, in the meaning defined above

Keep scrolling for more

Keep scrolling for more

More Definitions for um

English Language Learners Definition of um

used when you hesitate because you are not sure about what to say