Advertisement

Advertisement

stump speech

noun

  1. a political campaign speech, especially one made on a campaign tour.


Discover More

Word History and Origins

Origin of stump speech1

An Americanism dating back to 1810–20
Discover More

Example Sentences

Harris, one of the most cautious and disciplined politicians in her party, defined herself in her stump speech as someone who would be “grounded in common sense and practical outcomes.”

“He refuses to be the kind of politician that has a polished stump speech everywhere they go,” she said.

While former President Barack Obama was happy to poke fun at Trump's ramblings as incoherent "word salad" in recent stump speeches, Scarborough saw nothing funny in what Trump tells crowds.

From Salon

“Some of you who don’t think your vote matters… We can’t let them take us back 40, 50, 60 years,” Reverend Leach said, echoing a line often used in Harris's stump speech.

From BBC

Trump has mixed up words, names, places and timelines in his remarks on the campaign trail and in interviews, and routinely goes on strange tangents in the midst of longer and longer stump speeches.

Advertisement

Discover More

More About Stump Speech

What does stump speech come from?

A stump speech is a campaign speech—a speech made to encourage people to vote for a politician.

The word stump can refer to a platform for making speeches. This use isn’t common, but this sense of the word is commonly used in a figurative way to refer to the place where political campaign speeches are made, especially in the phrase on the stump, as in The senator went out on the stump to try to win re-election. 

Stump can also be used as a verb meaning to campaign, as in He’s stumping in Iowa today or He has endorsed the senator and will be stumping for her.

The term stump speech most often refers to a speech made on a campaign tour. It most commonly refers to a speech made by the politician who’s campaigning, but it can also refer to a speech made in support of that politician. This person can be called a stumper.

Example: He uses the same stump speech at every campaign stop—he just changes the name of the city each time. 

Where does stump speech come from?

The first records of the term stump speech come from around 1820. It was first and is primarily used in the U.S. The first records of the word stump to refer to a platform for speechmaking come from the 1770s.

Politicians are always making speeches. This is especially true when they’re trying to get re-elected. Calling a speech a stump speech indicates that it’s a campaign speech, but it also sometimes implies that it’s a bit formulaic and maybe just not that good.

Did you know ... ?

What are some synonyms for stump speech?

  • campaign speech

What are some words that share a root or word element with stump speech

What are some words that often get used in discussing stump speech?

How is stump speech used in real life?

Stump speech is always used in the context of politics. It especially refers to a speech made during a campaign tour.

 

Try using stump speech!

True or False?

A stump speech is always made by the person seeking election.

Advertisement

Advertisement

Advertisement


stump ranchstumpsucker