muck

[ muhk ]

noun

1. moist farmyard dung, decaying vegetable matter, etc.; manure.
2. a highly organic, dark or black soil, less than 50 percent combustible, often used as a manure.
3. mire; mud.
4. filth, dirt, or slime.
5. defamatory or sullying remarks.
6. a state of chaos or confusion:

   to make a muck of things.

7. Chiefly British Informal. something of no value; trash.
8. (especially in mining) earth, rock, or other useless matter to be removed in order to get out the mineral or other substances sought.

verb (used with object)

1. to manure.
2. to make dirty; soil.
3. to remove muck from (sometimes followed by out ).
4. Informal.
   1. to ruin; bungle (often followed by up ).
   2. to put into a state of complete confusion (often followed by up ).

verb phrase

1. Informal. to idle; waste time; loiter.

muck

/ mʌk /

noun

1. farmyard dung or decaying vegetable matter
2. Also calledmuck soil an organic soil rich in humus and used as a fertilizer
3. dirt or filth
4. earth, rock material, etc, removed during mining excavations
5. slang.
   rubbish
6. See Lord Muck Lady Muck
7. make a muck of slang.
   to ruin or spoil

verb

1. to spread manure upon (fields, gardens, etc)
2. to soil or pollute
3. often foll by out to clear muck from

Word History and Origins

Origin of muck¹

1200–50; Middle English muc, muk < Old Norse myki cow dung

Word History and Origins

Origin of muck¹

C13: probably of Scandinavian origin; compare Old Norse myki dung, Norwegian myk

Example Sentences

Last year, the college CEO even stepped in to invigilate an exam: "It's everyone mucking in."

From BBC

But I was mucking about with this song in my studio at home — this song by the Montgolfier Brothers, “Between Two Points” — and the sentiments of the lyrics just were not working for me.

From Los Angeles Times

"People think its all low pay, long hours and muck," she said, "but the truth is very different."

From BBC

She pointed out that there were "structural abnormalities" in ward drains which allowed stagnation of the water, and nurses had reported "black muck refluxing from the drains back into the sink".

From BBC

He mucked in and chatted to just about everyone.

From BBC

Related Words

• dirt
• goo
• gunk
• manure
• mud
• slime
• sludge
• trash