1
: fine particles of matter (as of earth)
2
: the particles into which something disintegrates
3
a
: something worthless
b
: a state of humiliation
4
a
: the earth especially as a place of burial
b
: the surface of the ground
5
a
: a cloud of dust
b
6
archaic
: a single particle (as of earth)
7
British
: refuse ready for collection
dusted; dusting; dusts
1
archaic
: to make dusty
2
: to make free of dust
dust the living room
3
a
: to sprinkle with fine particles
a cake dusted with sugar
b
: to sprinkle in the form of dust
4
: to throw a fastball close to (a batter) : brush back
—often used with off
5
: to defeat badly (as in a race)
1
of a bird
: to work dust into the feathers
2
: to remove dust
3
: to give off dust
Synonyms of dust
Examples of dust in a Sentence
Noun
The floor was covered with dust.
You can see the dust particles floating through the air.
There is not a speck of dust in that house.
As the car sped down the dirt road, it left a cloud of dust behind.
He wiped the chalk dust off his hands.
Verb
I dust at least once a week.
Dust the pan with flour.
The crops will be dusted with pesticide.
Recent Examples on the Web
Prabhat Ranjan Mishra, Interesting Engineering, 22 Feb. 2026
Ingredients are local and organic, with dishes like the Rollitos de Pionono with duck confit, sweet plantain, mofongo dust, and criolla sauce, to the Pulpaccio finished with alcapurria crumbs, or the El Morro Croquette with morcilla dust.
—Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 22 Feb. 2026
Madeline Buiano, Martha Stewart, 22 Feb. 2026
Still, no visit is complete without ending the meal with a warm pastel de nata dusted with cinnamon—and maybe a box to take home.
—Stacey Leasca, Travel + Leisure, 21 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for dust
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
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Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
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Noun
Weapon system autonomously detects and classifies moving targets The company revealed that the weapon system autonomously detects and classifies moving targets in poor visibility situations caused by darkness, bad weather, smoke or dust kicked up by helicopters.
—Prabhat Ranjan Mishra, Interesting Engineering, 22 Feb. 2026
Ingredients are local and organic, with dishes like the Rollitos de Pionono with duck confit, sweet plantain, mofongo dust, and criolla sauce, to the Pulpaccio finished with alcapurria crumbs, or the El Morro Croquette with morcilla dust.
—Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 22 Feb. 2026
Verb
In addition to dusting, keeping doormats at all entryways will help reduce the amount of dirt and debris in your home.
—Madeline Buiano, Martha Stewart, 22 Feb. 2026
Still, no visit is complete without ending the meal with a warm pastel de nata dusted with cinnamon—and maybe a box to take home.
—Stacey Leasca, Travel + Leisure, 21 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for dust
Cite this Entry
“Dust.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/dust. Accessed 24 Feb. 2026.
Copy CitationKids Definition
dust
1 of 2 noun1
a
: fine dry powdery particles (as of earth)
b
: a fine powder
2
: the powdery remains of bodies once alive
3
: something worthless
4
: the surface of the ground
dust
2 of 2 verb1
: to make free of dust : brush or wipe away dust
dusted the living room
2
: to sprinkle with dust or as a dust
dust a pan with flour
dust insecticide on plants
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