dredge

1 of 3

verb (1)

ˈdrej 

dredged; dredging

transitive verb

1

a

: to dig, gather, or pull out with or as if with a dredge (see dredge entry 2)

dredging oysters in the bay

—often used with up

dredge up silt from the canal bottom

b

civil engineering : to deepen (a waterway) with a machine that removes earth usually by buckets on an endless chain or a suction tube : to deepen with a dredge (see dredge entry 2 sense 2)

2

: to bring to light by deep searching

—often used with up

dredging up memories

intransitive verb

1

: to use a dredge

dredging for oysters

2

: to search deeply

dredge

2 of 3

noun

1

: an apparatus usually in the form of an oblong iron frame with an attached bag net used especially for gathering fish and shellfish

2

civil engineering : a machine for removing earth usually by buckets on an endless chain or a suction tube

3

nautical : a barge used in dredging

dredge

3 of 3

verb (2)

dredged; dredging

transitive verb

: to coat by sprinkling (as with flour)

dredge the chicken in flour

The fish is dredged with a cornmeal mixture and fried.

Synonyms

Verb (1)

• comb
• dig (through)
• hunt (through)
• rake
• ransack
• rifle
• rummage
• scour
• search
• sort (through)
• troll

Examples of dredge in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Verb

Another factor is dredging, according to Stephen Murphy, an assistant professor at Tulane University's School of Public Health and Tropical Medicine and the director of the university's Disaster Management Program. —Kevin McGill and Stephen Smith The Associated Press, Arkansas Online, 28 Oct. 2023

As rising sea levels shrink shorelines, some communities rely on sand dredged from the nearby seafloor to replenish beaches. —Justine Calma, The Verge, 5 Sep. 2023

Dip in egg mixture, allowing excess drip, and dredge in panko mixture, pressing to adhere. —Julia Levy, Southern Living, 7 Aug. 2023

The supervisors unanimously directed $5 million to build a sediment-and-trash-control basin and dredge drainage channels in the Tijuana River Valley, according to Tammy Murga of The San Diego Union-Tribune. —Michael Smolens, San Diego Union-Tribune, 29 Oct. 2023

The lower Mississippi is frequently dredged by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to make way for huge cargo ships serving ports vital to the Louisiana and national economies. —Kevin McGill and Stephen Smith The Associated Press, Arkansas Online, 28 Oct. 2023

Other contributors besides climate change can affect saltwater intrusion, such as how the river is dredged, seasonal variability, and other weather patterns such as El Niño. —Isa Meyers, The Christian Science Monitor, 23 Oct. 2023

Toss chicken in egg mixture to coat, and then back to flour mixture to dredge again. —Southern Living Test Kitchen, Southern Living, 25 Sep. 2023

The brown paper bag method of dredging the tomatoes is a distinctively (and utterly charming) Southern approach. —Jessica B. Harris, Southern Living, 15 Sep. 2023

Noun

After a quick panko dredge, they are fried in batches until deeply golden brown. —Nina Moskowitz, Bon Appétit, 29 Nov. 2023

Working with 1 ball at a time, dredge in flour, and shake off excess. —Karen Schroeder-Rankin, Southern Living, 17 Nov. 2023

The notice advised mariners to expect low water conditions to continue until the Mississippi River rises, or until the second dredge, expected to arrive on October 21, completes work in the area. —Arkansas Democrat-Gazette, Arkansas Online, 17 Oct. 2023

Despite the warnings, scallop dredges and trawlers regularly encroach on the 400-foot buffer zones around wrecks. —Laura Trethewey, Smithsonian Magazine, 1 Sep. 2023

Make the dredge station: In one bowl, combine the buttermilk, cayenne pepper, and egg. —Southern Living Test Kitchen, Southern Living, 25 Sep. 2023

Below, crews pulled up the metal dredge to check for jammed logs and rock as giant generators hummed. —USA TODAY, 10 Sep. 2023

Scallop dredges are heavy, metal contraptions that can plow right through a rotting shipwreck. —Laura Trethewey, Smithsonian Magazine, 1 Sep. 2023

So did longer offshore vessels towing two side-by-side dredges, spanning roughly 30 feet. —Laura Trethewey, Smithsonian Magazine, 1 Sep. 2023

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Word History

Etymology

Noun and Verb (1)

perhaps from Old English *drecge; akin to Old English dræge dragnet, dragan to draw

Verb (2)

obsolete dredge, noun, sweetmeat, from Middle English drage, drege, from Anglo-French dragee, modification of Latin tragemata sweetmeats, from Greek tragēmata, plural of tragēma sweetmeat, from trōgein to gnaw

First Known Use

Verb (1)

1508, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1a

Noun

1602, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Verb (2)

1596, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing dredge

• dredge up

• dredge up

Kids Definition

dredge

1 of 3 verb

ˈdrej 

dredged; dredging

1

a

: to dig, gather, or pull out with or as if with a dredge

dredged up scallops from the sea bottom

b

: to deepen (as a waterway) with a dredge

2

: to bring to light by deep searching

dredging up memories

dredge

2 of 3 noun

1

: an iron frame with an attached net used especially to catch fish or shellfish

2

: a machine for removing earth usually by buckets on a continuous chain or by a suction tube

dredge

3 of 3 verb

dredged; dredging

: to coat (food) by sprinkling (as with flour)

Etymology

Noun

probably from Old English dragan "to pull, drag"

Verb

from obsolete dredge (noun) "a candied fruit," derived from early French dragee (same meaning), from Latin tragemata (plural) "candied fruits," from Greek tragēmata (same meaning), derived from trōgein "to gnaw"