litter

¹lit·ter

noun \ˈli-tər\

: things that have been thrown away and that are lying on the ground in a public place

: a messy pile or group of things

: dry material that is spread in a container and used as a toilet by animals (especially cats) while they are indoors

Full Definition of LITTER

1

a :  a covered and curtained couch provided with shafts and used for carrying a single passenger

b :  a device (as a stretcher) for carrying a sick or injured person

2

a (1) :  material used as bedding for animals (2) :  material used to absorb the urine and feces of animals

b :  the uppermost slightly decayed layer of organic matter on the forest floor

3

:  the offspring at one birth of a multiparous animal <a litter of puppies>

4

a :  trash, wastepaper, or garbage lying scattered about <trying to clean up the roadside litter>

b :  an untidy accumulation of objects <a shabby writing-desk covered with a litter of yellowish dusty documents — Joseph Conrad>

— lit·tery \-tə-rē\ adjective

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Examples of LITTER

1. We decided to pick up the litter in the park.
2. Her desk was covered with a litter of legal documents.

Illustration of LITTER

Origin of LITTER

Middle English, from Anglo-French litere, from lit bed, from Latin lectus — more at lie

First Known Use: 14th century

Related to LITTER

Synonyms

agglomerate, agglomeration, alphabet soup, assortment, botch, clutter, collage, crazy quilt, farrago, gallimaufry, grab bag, gumbo, hash, hodgepodge, hotchpotch, jambalaya, jumble, jungle, miscellany, macédoine, medley, mélange, menagerie, miscellanea, mishmash, mixed bag, montage, motley, muddle, olio, olla podrida, omnium-gatherum, pastiche, patchwork, patchwork quilt, potpourri, ragbag, ragout, rummage, salad, salmagundi, scramble, shuffle, smorgasbord, stew, tumble, variety, welter

Related Words

detritus, notions, oddments, odds and ends, sundries; accumulation, aggregate, aggregation, conglomerate, conglomeration; catchall; admixture, alloy, amalgam, blend, combination, commixture, composite, compound, fusion, intermixture, mix-up; bollix, chaos, confusion, disarrangement, disarray, disorder, dog's breakfast [chiefly British], mess, morass, muddle, shambles; imbroglio, knot, snarl, tangle

Near Antonyms

catch, gem, goody (or goodie), jewel, pearl, plum, prize, treasure, treasure trove, trove, valuable; booty, find, salvage

Other Vehicles Terms

brougham, hansom, shay, skid, sledge, sulky, wain

Rhymes with LITTER

bitter, chitter, critter, fitter, flitter, fritter, glitter, hitter, jitter, knitter, quitter, quittor, sitter, skitter, slitter, spitter, titter, twitter

²litter

verb

: to cover (a surface) with many things in an untidy way

: to throw or leave trash on the ground in a public place

Full Definition of LITTER

transitive verb

1

:  bed 1a

2

:  to give birth to a litter of (young)

3

a :  to strew with scattered articles

b :  to scatter about in disorder

c :  to lie about in disorder <their upside-down hats littered the top of the bar — Michael Chabon>

d :  to mark with objects scattered at random <a book littered with misprints>

intransitive verb

1

:  to give birth to a litter

2

:  to strew litter

Examples of LITTER

1. Paper and popcorn littered the streets after the parade.
2. a desk littered with old letters and bills
3. It is illegal to litter.
4. He had to pay a fine for littering.

First Known Use of LITTER

14th century

Rhymes with LITTER

bitter, fitter, flitter, fritter, glitter, hitter, jitter, knitter, slitter, spitter, titter, twitter