dirt Hear it!

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dirt definition

dirt (dʉrt)

noun

  1. any unclean or soiling matter, as mud, dust, dung, trash, etc.; filth
  2. earth or garden soil
  3. anything common, filthy, or contemptible
  4. dirtiness, nastiness, corruption, etc.
  5. ☆ obscene writing, speech, etc.; pornography
  6. ☆ malicious talk or gossip
  7. ☆ Gold Mining the gravel, soil, etc. from which gold is separated by washing or panning

Etymology: ME, by metathesis < drit < ON drita, excrement, akin to OE dritan, to excrete < IE base *dher- (see dark) > L forire, defecate

adjective

☆ having a surface of compacted earth a dirt road
dirt Idioms

do someone dirt

☆
Slang to do harm to someone, as by deception or malicious gossip

hit the dirt

Slang to drop to the ground

Webster's New World College Dictionary Copyright © 2005 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Cleveland, Ohio.
Used by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

Alternate definitions:

idioms dirt idiom

dirt Synonyms

dirt

n.

  1. Earth

    soil, loam, clay; see earth 2.

  2. Filth

    grime, filthiness, smut; see dust, filth, trash 1.

do one dirt*

harm, hurt, cheat, slander; see abuse 1, deceive, slander.


Webster's New World Roget's A-Z Thesaurus Copyright © 1999 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Cleveland, Ohio.
Used by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

dirt Usage Examples

Converse of object

  • loosen: In all these cases a soft cloth is used to wipe up the loosened dirt.

Adjective modifier

  • ingrained: The models usually last around three scenes before ingrained dirt and cracked limbs make them rather unphotogenic.

Modifies a noun

  • oval: Indianapolis, Milwaukee ) to dirt ovals ( e.g.

Noun used with modifier

  • flea: Even when I cannot locate fleas on the pet I can often locate flea dirt.
dirt usage examples (more)

The word usage examples above have been gathered from various sources to reflect current and historical usage. They do not represent the opinions of YourDictionary.com.

dirt quotes

He picked her up out of the dirt and turned her into the clod she was today.

-Alther, Lisa ne¤  e Reed

   The time is right to mix sentences with dirt and the sun with punctuation and rain with verbs.

-Brautigan, Richard

There was no need to do any housework after all. After the first four years the dirt doesn't get any worse.

-Crisp, Quentin

dirt quotes (more)

Webster's New World Dictionary of Quotations Copyright © 2005 by Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd. All rights reserved. Published by Wiley, Hoboken, NJ. Used by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

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MLA Style

"dirt." Webster's New World College Dictionary. 2009

  • Your Dictionary. 5 July 2009
  • <www.yourdictionary.com/dirt>

APA Style

dirt. (2009). In Webster's New World College Dictionary

  • Retrieved July 5th, 2009, from www.yourdictionary.com/dirt

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