garbage

noun

gar·bage | \ ˈgär-bij

Definition of garbage

1a : food waste

b : discarded or useless material

2a : trash sense 1b

b : inaccurate or useless data

Synonyms Example Sentences Learn More about garbage

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Examples of garbage in a Sentence

The park was littered with garbage. Please take out the garbage. Raccoons were going through the garbage. Throw the can in the garbage. If you ask me, what he said is a bunch of garbage.

Recent Examples on the Web

The garbage from that neighborhood is taken to the Hartford trash-to-energy facility. — Dave Altimari, courant.com, "Police return to Hartford trash facility to search for clues in Jennifer Dulos’ disappearance. Judge takes no action on custody of her five children," 5 June 2019 Keep an empty plastic grocery sack on hand in case a garbage can isn’t nearby. — Alison Sherwood, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, "On-the-go, kid-friendly picnic spots in Milwaukee (and foods) for summer fun and memories," 5 June 2019 That some lazy, inconsiderate boob is using our public space as a garbage can is not necessarily unusual. — Bill Torpy, ajc, "Torpy at Large: Any excuse given for littering is garbage," 6 July 2018 Instead, put them into a bag and toss them into the garbage. — Jeff Lowenfels, Anchorage Daily News, "Here’s why this Alaska gardening columnist kills forget-me-not plants whenever he can – and thinks you should, too," 21 June 2018 Inside the school, security camera footage showed the three male suspects throwing objects, including a file cabinet, track hurdles and a garbage can, Loughran said. — Jennifer Johnson, chicagotribune.com, "Norridge police: Three arrested following break-in at Ridgewood High School," 20 June 2018 At this station, there will be gloves and bags, so volunteers can help remove all the garbage. — Michelle Jenkins, idahostatesman, "June rocks with Alive After Five, family festivals and free movie nights | Idaho Statesman," 26 May 2018 His imagination revealed itself with his trash elimination plan, where all the garbage would be strapped to rocket ships and shot into space. — Brendan Marks, charlotteobserver, "He loved his country so much he died for it. Here's how NASCAR is honoring him. | Charlotte Observer," 25 May 2018 There are immigrant stories delivered in English, Spanish, Farsi and Romanian and a survival story involving a dying Mother Nature figure and the great Pacific garbage patch. — Pam Kragen, sandiegouniontribune.com, "San Diego International Fringe Festival gets off to a smooth and diverse start," 25 June 2018

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

History and Etymology for garbage

Middle English, "poultry organs and body parts used for food, poultry refuse," borrowed from Anglo-French *garbage (implied in sergant garbagere "kitchen servant tasked with plucking and cleaning poultry"), of obscure origin

Note: On morphological, semantic, or chronological grounds unlikely to be related to Anglo-French garbeler, Middle English garbelen "to remove (impurities) from spices" (see garble entry 1) or to Middle French gaburge, grabuge "quarrel, brawl." The Anglo-French collocation sergant garbagere indicates currency of the word as early as 1318 (Household Ordinances of Edward II).

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