garbage

noun

gar·​bage ˈgär-bij 

1

a

: food waste

b

: discarded or useless material

2

a

: trash sense 1b

b

: inaccurate or useless data

Synonyms of garbage

• trash
• debris
• rubbish
• junk
• dust
• litter
• sewage
• truck

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

Tonje played 30 minutes in the win — including almost the entire fourth quarter — nearly tripling his previous career total of NBA minutes played (12 across five garbage-time appearances). —Zack Cox, Boston Herald, 13 Apr. 2026

Knowing what not to put down a garbage disposable can help preserve your appliance and your peace of mind. —Jamie Cuccinelli, Martha Stewart, 12 Apr. 2026

The lack of fuel has worsened the country’s other longtime problems, from pumping water, picking up garbage to producing food, among others. —Nora Gámez Torres, Miami Herald, 12 Apr. 2026

First built in 1989, the waste-to-energy facility burns garbage and produces enough energy to power about 25,000 homes, according to Hennepin County. —Conor Wight, CBS News, 10 Apr. 2026

Word History

Etymology

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).

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Phrases Containing garbage

• a lot of garbage/nonsense
• garbage can
• garbage disposal
• garbage time
• garbage truck

Kids Definition

garbage

noun

gar·​bage ˈgär-bij 

1

: food waste

2

: discarded or useless material : refuse

3

: something inferior, worthless, or useless

a show that's garbage