MEANING
1. To produce a continuous low sound.
2. To sing a tune without opening the mouth.
3. To be filled with sustained, lively activity.
Use it for
Words that belong together
- hum steadily
- humming machinery
On the page
The transformer hummed behind the wall.
Word forms
- Base
- hum
- Past tense
- hummed
- Past participle
- hummed
- Present participle
- humming
Full tense & aspect guide
- Present
- hum
- Present continuous
- am/is/are humming
- Present perfect
- have/has hummed
- Present perfect continuous
- have/has been humming
- Past
- hummed
- Past continuous
- was/were humming
- Past perfect
- had hummed
- Past perfect continuous
- had been humming
- Future
- will hum
- Future continuous
- will be humming
- Future perfect
- will have hummed
- Future perfect continuous
- will have been humming
Choose the auxiliary that agrees with your subject. These are constructions of one word, not separate entries.
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Usage notes
Primary category: sensory / description. Forms: hum; hums; hummed; hummed; humming Legacy lexical fields mirror sense 1 only. Use numbered sense fields for all meanings. Established modern English lexical item. No separate regional spelling or grammatical inflection entry. Writing functions: description. Commonness: moderately common. Third-person singular: hums.
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