trample

[tram-puh l] /ˈtræm pəl/
verb (used without object), trampled, trampling.
1.
to tread or step heavily and noisily; stamp.
2.
to tread heavily, roughly, or crushingly (usually followed by on, upon, or over):
to trample on a flower bed.
3.
to act in a harsh, domineering, or cruel manner, as if treading roughly (usually followed by on, upon, or over):
to trample on another's feelings.
verb (used with object), trampled, trampling.
4.
to tread heavily, roughly, or carelessly on or over; tread underfoot.
5.
to domineer harshly over; crush:
to trample law and order.
6.
to put out or extinguish by trampling (usually followed by out):
to trample out a fire.
noun
7.
the act of trampling.
8.
the sound of trampling.
Origin
1350-1400; Middle English tramplen to stamp (cognate with German trampeln); see tramp, -le
Related forms
trampler, noun
untrampled, adjective
Examples from the web for trample
  • Something startles them on their walk home, and the anxious chipmunks accidentally trample through their neighbors flower garden.
  • Yak herding increases every year, and the animals trample the buntings' nests.
  • Critters big and small trample, crush, and plow rocks as they scurry across the surface and burrow underground.
  • Never uproot or cut wildflowers, and be careful not to trample the plants.
  • But encroaching farming threatens to trample the flower and its habitat.
  • No matter who created the borders, they would have had to trample over some of those tribal lines.
  • Other animals dig and trample rock aboveground, causing rock to slowly crumble.
  • Even hiking, over a long period of time, can trample saplings or prevent new ones from taking root.
  • The government is going to trample all over your private and personal matters.
  • Others suggest that this change would trample the rights of creditors and raise borrowing costs.
British Dictionary definitions for trample

trample

/ˈtræmpəl/
verb when intr, usually foll by on, upon, or over
1.
to stamp or walk roughly (on): to trample the flowers
2.
to encroach (upon) so as to violate or hurt: to trample on someone's feelings
noun
3.
the action or sound of trampling
Derived Forms
trampler, noun
Word Origin
C14: frequentative of tramp; compare Middle High German trampeln
Word Origin and History for trample
v.

late 14c., "to walk heavily," frequentative form of tramp. Transitive sense is first found 1520s. Related: Trampled; trampling.