landfill

[ land-fil ]

noun

1. a low area of land that is built up from deposits of solid refuse in layers covered by soil.
2. the solid refuse itself.

verb (used without object)

1. to create more usable land by this means.

verb (used with object)

1. to make (an area of land) by means of a landfill.
2. to use in a landfill:

   to landfill millions of tons of garbage each year.

landfill

/ ˈlændˌfɪl /

noun

1. 1. disposal of waste material by burying it under layers of earth
   2. ( as modifier )

      landfill sites

landfill

/ lănd′fĭl′ /

1. A disposal site where solid waste, such as paper, glass, and metal, is buried between layers of dirt and other materials in such a way as to reduce contamination of the surrounding land. Modern landfills are often lined with layers of absorbent material and sheets of plastic to keep pollutants from leaking into the soil and water.
2. Also called sanitary landfill

Word History and Origins

Origin of landfill¹

An Americanism dating back to 1940–45; land + fill

Example Sentences

Those efforts, though, are running up against tight restrictions on the types of projects already approved for those activities, like replanting a forest, capturing landfill gas or growing rice in flooded fields.

From Voice of San Diego

Those closures likely sent more cardboard and other recyclable materials to landfills.

From Science News For Students

The amount of plastic recycled in the United States has increased over the last few decades — but those levels still pale in comparison with the amount of plastic that goes into landfills.

From Science News

Businesses like restaurants can send their food scraps to the Miramar Greenery composting facility at the landfill, but they have to get a permit and comply with a bunch of other rules.

From Voice of San Diego

For instance, a developer could invest in a project to capture planet-warming methane that leaks from a landfill but there aren’t a lot of projects like that left.

From Voice of San Diego

That year, landfill gas accounted for 9,800 gigawatts of electricity generation, up more than 90 percent from 2003.

From The Daily Beast

Covering 13 acres of a landfill no longer in use in West Nyack, it has a generating capacity of 2.36 megawatts.

From The Daily Beast

For those in the resource world, every ton of junk that goes into a landfill represents wasted energy.

From The Daily Beast

At the end of October, the first landfill solar field in New York State was completed.

From The Daily Beast

Every piece of garbage that is diverted from a landfill is a penny saved.

From The Daily Beast

Related Words

• depot
• junkyard