ditch

noun \ ˈdich \

|Updated on: 9 Jul 2018

Examples: ditch in a Sentence

Definition of ditch

: a long narrow excavation dug in the earth (as for drainage)

See ditch defined for English-language learners

See ditch defined for kids

Examples of ditch in a Sentence

He drove the car into the ditch.
after skidding on the ice, our car went right into the ditch

Recent Examples of ditch from the Web

Right? 93’: Back to Denmark Eriksen takes a shot and earns a last-ditch corner.

— victor mather, New York Times, "Shootout Sunday: Croatia Follows Russia’s Lead and Wins on Penalty Kicks," 3 July 2018
Switzerland's Michael Lang was sent off in injury-time for a last-ditch push on Martin Olsson and referee Damir Skomina downgraded his penalty to a free-kick on the edge of the area.

— thomas allnutt, chicagotribune.com, "Sweden book place in World Cup quarter-finals after edging past Switzerland," 3 July 2018
Then, with Mexico still pushing and hoping for a last-ditch, desperation chance, Roberto Firmino scored in the 88th minute to seal the deal.

— andrew beaton, WSJ, "Mexico’s World Cup Ends in Round of 16," 2 July 2018
When her husband was dying of a drug-resistant infection, Steffanie Strathdee had a last-ditch idea.

— eric boodman, STAT, "First phage therapy center in the U.S. signals growing acceptance," 21 June 2018
Australian defender Josh Risdon went for a last-ditch sliding tackle on Antoine Griezmann in the penalty area, and appeared to clip the ball before making slight contact with Griezmann’s ankle.

— nick schwartz, For The Win, "Technology saved France against Australia," 16 June 2018
Its lawyers filed a last-ditch appeal this week and asked that the reimbursements keep flowing until the appeal is heard.

— andy marso, kansascity, "Hospital facing loss of federal money asked nurses to falsify records, inspectors say," 14 June 2018
In the meantime, Tuesday will kick off a series of last-ditch meetings and closed-door negotiations to try to chart a path out of a seemingly irreconcilable divide.

— tal kopan, CNN, "Republicans' immigration collision course on track for dramatic conclusion," 5 June 2018
On Monday British Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson made an apparent last-ditch appeal to Trump, appearing on his favorite show, Fox & Friends.

— margaret hartmann, Daily Intelligencer, "What Happens After Trump Pulls Out of the Iran Deal," 8 May 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'ditch.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Origin and Etymology of ditch

Middle English dich, from Old English dīc dike, ditch; akin to Middle High German tīch pond, dike

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: before 12th century

in the meaning defined above

See Words from the same year

ditch Synonyms

Synonyms

dike, gutter, trench, trough;

Related Words

culvert, drain, draw, gully (also gulley), ravine;

drill, furrow;

Other Civil Engineering Terms

asphalt, ballast, barrage, cantilever, infrastructure, sluice

ditch

verb

Definition of ditch

transitive verb

1 a : to surround with a long narrow cavity in the earth : to enclose with a ditch (see ¹ditch)

The pasture was hedged and ditched.

b : to dig a ditch in

2 aviation : to make a forced landing of (an airplane) on water

successfully ditched the plane

3 a : to get rid of : discard

ditch an old car

had to ditch their plan

b : to end association with : leave

ditched school

His girlfriend ditched him.

intransitive verb

1 : to dig a ditch

2 aviation : to crash-land at sea

See ditch defined for English-language learners

Examples of ditch in a Sentence

The thief ditched the purse in an alley.
They ditched the car in a vacant lot.
They ditched me at the concert.

Recent Examples of ditch from the Web

In an ordinary election, Mexicans would ditch Mr Peña’s Institutional Revolutionary Party and turn back to the conservative National Action Party.

— The Economist, "AMLO, Mexico’s answer to Donald Trump," 23 June 2018
Dems should ditch them, in climate policy above all else.

— david roberts, Vox, "Big oil and Bush-era lobbyists are teaming up to support a carbon tax," 22 June 2018
Then there is the case of Mary Matalin, the former George H.W. Bush deputy campaign manager, who ditched the Republican Party and registered as a Libertarian when Trump became the GOP's presumptive nominee in the spring of 2016.

— callum borchers, Washington Post, "Steve Schmidt, Never Trumpers and life after the GOP," 20 June 2018
The girls who ditched the hijab while playing also stopped inviting their families to watch their games at school.

— ruqaya izzidien, Outside Online, "Fatimah Hussein Is America's Sports Hijab Pioneer," 6 June 2018
And The Bachelorette will serve us 27 breakups this season, presuming Becca Kufrin doesn't ditch the whole crew like Brad Womack did.

— rebecca farley, refinery29.com, "Here's Who The Bachelorette Dumped Last Night," 29 May 2018
The experience was awesome, but not phone-ditching awesome.

— ben golliver, SI.com, "Putting the NBA in Virtual Reality to the Test," 20 Apr. 2018
Petrocelli also tried to dismiss the government's argument that AT&T's DirecTV would stand to gain customers who would ditch competitors' services if AT&T withholds Time Warner content.

— jim puzzanghera, latimes.com, "AT&T wants to buy Time Warner to 'weaponize' its content, government says in opening arguments of antitrust trial," 22 Mar. 2018
But Democrats apparently aren't ready to support someone who ditches any pretense that our courts should be nonpartisan arbiters of justice. 3.

— daniel bice, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, "Bice: Five takeaways from Wisconsin's primary election," 21 Feb. 2018

Origin and Etymology of ditch

see ¹ditch

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 14th century

in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1a

See Words from the same year

ditch Synonyms

Phrases

dispose of, set aside;

DITCH Defined for English Language Learners

ditch

noun

Definition of ditch for English Language Learners

: a long narrow hole that is dug along a road, field, etc., and used to hold or move water

ditch

verb

Definition of ditch for English Language Learners

: to stop having or using (something you no longer want or need) : to get rid of (something)
: to end a relationship with (someone)
: to get away from (someone you do not want to be with) without saying that you are leaving