as in hick
an awkward or simple person especially from a small town or the country
the bumpkin was overwhelmed by the city's confusing subway system
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Examples Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of bumpkin
Emily in Paris On Location: Hotel Plaza Athénée Paris
Rediscover Paris as Chicago bumpkin Emily (played by Lily Collins) moves there for a job and takes you to places like Galeries Lafayette, Galerie-Musee Baccarat and Hotel Plaza Athénée Paris.
—
Forbes Travel Guide, Forbes, 14 Sep. 2024
At their worst, these histories, like the Soviet one, reduce Ukrainians to lazy, irresponsible, prejudiced country bumpkins with exaggerated penchants for vodka and violence.
—Alexander J. Motyl, Foreign Affairs, 4 Aug. 2016
There are no bumpkins in Hamaguchi’s movie, either—no one who can be reduced to a small-town, salt-of-the-earth cliché.
—Justin Chang, The New Yorker, 3 May 2024
Working in a glass tower and living in the big city may still be the dream for a bumpkin like Jianlin, but China’s young urbans are starting to head in the opposite direction and seeking more comfortable lifestyles in the countryside.
—Mohamed El Aassar, Fortune, 25 Jan. 2024
But there’s a bitter and violent tone of hatred here that’s more reminiscent of 70s thrillers like Straw Dogs or Deliverance, where backwards country bumpkins take out their grievances on innocent newcomers.
—Jordan Mintzer, The Hollywood Reporter, 24 July 2023
These skirts are chic, fresh and modern, rather than stuffy or country bumpkin.
—Laura Fenton, Washington Post, 13 June 2023
Memphis, a guitar-strumming gentle giant with a country bumpkin way — touchingly incarnated by Sheldon D. Brown — is the main target of Waters’ irrational ire.
—Charles McNulty, Los Angeles Times, 26 May 2023
In Russia, people heard a man who could never finish a sentence or get to the punch line—and whose accent marked him, to the end, as a country bumpkin.
—Masha Gessen, The New Yorker, 31 Aug. 2022
Forbes Travel Guide, Forbes, 14 Sep. 2024
At their worst, these histories, like the Soviet one, reduce Ukrainians to lazy, irresponsible, prejudiced country bumpkins with exaggerated penchants for vodka and violence.
—Alexander J. Motyl, Foreign Affairs, 4 Aug. 2016
There are no bumpkins in Hamaguchi’s movie, either—no one who can be reduced to a small-town, salt-of-the-earth cliché.
—Justin Chang, The New Yorker, 3 May 2024
Working in a glass tower and living in the big city may still be the dream for a bumpkin like Jianlin, but China’s young urbans are starting to head in the opposite direction and seeking more comfortable lifestyles in the countryside.
—Mohamed El Aassar, Fortune, 25 Jan. 2024
But there’s a bitter and violent tone of hatred here that’s more reminiscent of 70s thrillers like Straw Dogs or Deliverance, where backwards country bumpkins take out their grievances on innocent newcomers.
—Jordan Mintzer, The Hollywood Reporter, 24 July 2023
These skirts are chic, fresh and modern, rather than stuffy or country bumpkin.
—Laura Fenton, Washington Post, 13 June 2023
Memphis, a guitar-strumming gentle giant with a country bumpkin way — touchingly incarnated by Sheldon D. Brown — is the main target of Waters’ irrational ire.
—Charles McNulty, Los Angeles Times, 26 May 2023
In Russia, people heard a man who could never finish a sentence or get to the punch line—and whose accent marked him, to the end, as a country bumpkin.
—Masha Gessen, The New Yorker, 31 Aug. 2022
Recent Examples of Synonyms for bumpkin
Noun
-
In first grade, when a teacher called him a hick, Ciotti threw an inkwell at her.D. T. Max, The New Yorker, 23 Sep. 2024
-
In the special, taped at Brad Garrett’s Comedy Club at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas, NV, Kober brings audiences together with stories about dealing with hometown hicks, unforgiving fruit flies and California candy cartels.Matt Grobar, Deadline, 25 June 2024
Noun
-
Ten years later, Chloe Sevigny donned a choppy peroxide wig, a partial suit of armor and a white muslin peasant dress for her Joan of Arc Halloween costume.Tacita Quinn, CNN, 15 Oct. 2024
-
While painting a Nuenen man, the forger missed a long vertical stick used by Brabant peasants to carry bundles of wood on their backs.Francesca Aton, ARTnews.com, 4 Oct. 2024
Noun
-
Well, the rubes just elected Donald Trump president.Chris Roemer, Baltimore Sun, 8 Nov. 2024
-
That’s easy: a rube, chump, or mark, whose naive optimism sets them up for betrayal.Jamil Zaki, TIME, 3 Sep. 2024
Noun
-
Florida yokels versus the elite Hollywood movie-star kind of group.Bilge Ebiri, Vulture, 26 July 2024
-
Ben’s refusal to stand down for a middle-aged white man seeking to wrest power from him was radical, as was the film’s ending, in which the hero was shot by yokels failing to distinguish him from the zombies previously described as animals.Richard Newby, The Hollywood Reporter, 23 Oct. 2024
Noun
-
Mantle was the voluble hayseed from Oklahoma who could hit anything but was corrupted by the big city, and wound up undone by alcohol and knee injuries.Adam Gopnik, The New Yorker, 21 June 2024
-
Today, the variety shows’ wise-clown hayseeds (overalls, prosthetic teeth, silly hats, no shoes) are the ones who get all the good lines, whose material is distinctive in its political sensibility and cultural hobbyhorses.Rafil Kroll-Zaidi, Harper's Magazine, 30 Mar. 2024
Noun
-
The gilets jaunes protests, a largely peri-urban phenomenon, inverted the roles played by Parisians and provincials in 1871.Robert Zaretsky, Foreign Affairs, 30 Mar. 2021
-
Until recently, attendees at such a talk would have seen themselves as mere provincials gathering to hear a report from the great halls of power in London and Washington.Jonathan Kay, Foreign Affairs, 15 Aug. 2017
Noun
-
The clowns there, contributed by donors worldwide, are not for sale.Christopher Reynolds, Los Angeles Times, 3 Dec. 2024
-
The parade’s 98th year was the largest yet, with more than 5,000 volunteers, 17 character balloons, 22 floats, 15 heritage and novelty balloons, more than 700 clowns, 11 marching bands and 10 performance groups.Violet Goldstone, WWD, 30 Nov. 2024
Noun
-
With its abundance of local art and the low-key rustic—yet no doubt pricey—details that adorn its interiors, this sprawling campus provides the ultimate eco-luxe immersion.Jessica Ritz, The Hollywood Reporter, 18 Nov. 2024
-
The vibe: Elevated and modern with a touch of rustic.Laura Barrero, Axios, 1 Aug. 2024
Thesaurus Entries Near bumpkin
Cite this Entry
“Bumpkin.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/bumpkin. Accessed 21 Dec. 2024.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share