dirt
Americannoun
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any foul or filthy substance, as mud, grime, dust, or excrement.
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earth or soil, especially when loose.
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something or someone vile, mean, or worthless.
After that last outburst of hers I thought she was dirt.
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moral filth; vileness; corruption.
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obscene or lewd language.
to talk dirt.
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Informal. gossip, especially of a malicious, lurid, or scandalous nature.
Tell me all the latest dirt.
- Synonyms:
- scuttlebutt, rumor, slander, scandal
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private or personal information which if made public would create a scandal or ruin the reputation of a person, company, etc.
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Mining.
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crude, broken ore or waste.
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(in placer mining) the material from which gold is separated by washing.
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idioms
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eat dirt, to accept blame, guilt, criticism, or insults without complaint; humble or abase oneself.
The prosecutor seemed determined to make the defendant eat dirt.
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do (someone) dirt. dirty.
noun
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any unclean substance, such as mud, dust, excrement, etc; filth
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loose earth; soil
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packed earth, gravel, cinders, etc, used to make a racetrack
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( as modifier )
a dirt track
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mining the gravel or soil from which minerals are extracted
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a person or thing regarded as worthless
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obscene or indecent speech or writing
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slang gossip; scandalous information
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moral corruption
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slang to do something vicious to someone
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informal to spread malicious gossip
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slang to accept insult without complaining
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to have no respect or consideration for someone
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of dirt
1250–1300; Middle English dirt, drit; cognate with Old Norse drit excrement; compare Old English drītan
Explanation
Dirt is earth or soil — it's the substance that makes up the dry surfaces of our planet. Gardeners spend a lot of time digging in the dirt, planting seeds and pulling up weeds. Dirt is the fine rock that makes up soil, but it also means anything unclean: "Do something about the dust and dirt in this room before our guests arrive!" When you know something embarrassing about another person, especially juicy gossip, you can call that information dirt as well — this meaning was coined by Ernest Hemingway in 1926. The word comes from the Old English drytt, "mud, dirt, or dung."
Vocabulary lists containing dirt
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
By the first week of June, crews had repaired the two roads, enabling trucks, visible on satellite images, to clear dirt and work on reopening the collapsed tunnel entrances.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 22, 2026
Wilfrank Liendo, 40, and his 21-year-old son, Eduardo, are barefoot as they cross a stream and follow simple dirt paths to deliver the heavy bags to Wilfrank's elderly mother.
From Barron's ● Jul. 18, 2026
Authorities and volunteers have conducted multiple searches for Julie Goforth, 63, who was last seen early Friday riding her dirt bike in the sprawling El Mirage Dry Lake Off Highway Recreation Area near Adelanto.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 14, 2026
Pakistan piled up 556 batting first on a flat surface but the visitors were unfazed, the batters putting behind nearly two days in the dirt to rack up countless records.
From BBC ● Jul. 12, 2026
She’s hated that dirt bike since the day Dad bought it last winter.
From "Red Flags and Butterflies" by Sheryl Azzam
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
