ditch

1 of 2

noun

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

ditch

2 of 2

verb

ditched; ditching; ditches

transitive verb

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

Examples of ditch in a Sentence

Noun He drove the car into the ditch. after skidding on the ice, our car went right into the ditch Verb The thief ditched the purse in an alley. They ditched the car in a vacant lot. They ditched me at the concert.
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Noun
This season, the nearest neighboring fields across the ditch bordering my parents’ house at the farm are filled with sturdy stalks of sorghum. Philip Potempa, Chicago Tribune, 5 Sep. 2025 There have been at least two other shootings this year tied to a TikTok social media trend in which participants ding, dong, ditch. Jeanine Santucci, USA Today, 4 Sep. 2025
Verb
Yungblud rocked a coat with a furry trim and low-cut pants hesaid were Iggy Pop's (and ditched a shirt altogether) before his tribute performance to Ozzy Osbourne with Steven Tyler and Joe Perry of Aerosmith and Nuno Bettencourt. Jackie Fields, PEOPLE, 8 Sep. 2025 Part of the change may be accomplished by ditching iPhone models with lower storage, particularly for the iPhone Pro. Kevin Stankiewicz, CNBC, 7 Sep. 2025 See All Example Sentences for ditch

Word History

Etymology

Noun and Verb

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

First Known Use

Noun

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined above

Verb

14th century, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1a

Time Traveler
The first known use of ditch was before the 12th century

Cite this Entry

“Ditch.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/ditch. Accessed 9 Sep. 2025.

Kids Definition

ditch

1 of 2 noun
: a long narrow channel or trench dug in the earth

ditch

2 of 2 verb
1
: to dig a ditch in or around
2
a
: to get rid of : discard
ditch an old car
b
: to end association with : leave
his girlfriend ditched him
3
: to make a forced landing of (an airplane) on water

More from Merriam-Webster on ditch

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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