muck

1 of 2

noun

1
: soft moist farmyard manure
2
: slimy dirt or filth
3
a
: defamatory remarks or writings
b
: rubbish, nonsense
mindless muck
4
a(1)
: dark highly organic soil
(2)
: mire, mud
b
: something resembling muck : gunk
5
: material removed in the process of excavating or mining

muck

2 of 2

verb

mucked; mucking; mucks

transitive verb

1
a
: to clean up
especially : to clear of manure or filth
usually used with out
b
: to clear of muck
2
: to dress (something, such as soil) with muck
3
: to dirty with or as if with muck : soil

intransitive verb

1
: to move or load muck (as in a mine)
2
a
: to engage in aimless activity
usually used with about or around
b
: putter, tinker
usually used with about or around
mucking around with his computer
c
: interfere, meddle
usually used with about or around
mucker noun

Examples of muck in a Sentence

Noun Clean that muck off your shoes. spattered with muck from the pigpen Verb you can't work in the garden and not expect to muck your clothes
Recent Examples on the Web
Noun
The muck was reportedly filled with the typical construction byproducts of sand, silt, and water, but also accelerants used to set the grout in the tunnels. Demetrius Simms, Robb Report, 27 Feb. 2024 For example, if someone anywhere else in the country gets trapped in an outhouse toilet, is submerged to the waist in fetid muck and must be extracted by fire fighters, Florida Man is jealous and will consider suing for copyright infringement. Greg Cote, Miami Herald, 26 Feb. 2024 Here’s what Bloomberg Businessweek found: The muck pooling in the tunnel at the north end of the Las Vegas Strip had the consistency of a milkshake and, in some places, sat at least two feet deep. Andy Kalmowitz / Jalopnik, Quartz, 26 Feb. 2024 Archaeologists have so far pulled over two dozen bronze works from the muck, ranging from busts to statues to votive offerings. Elizabeth Heath, Discover Magazine, 17 Feb. 2024 Targeted advertisements and algorithms that melt our online feeds into a homogenous muck. Lauren Peace, Orlando Sentinel, 2 Jan. 2024 These are ideal for wet, muddy, or slushy conditions, with full waterproofing and a taller height to keep the muck away from your feet. Maggie Slepian, Travel + Leisure, 9 Feb. 2024 Surrounded by muck and covered in grime, a large object sat on the seafloor off the southern coast of Italy. Aspen Pflughoeft, Miami Herald, 6 Feb. 2024 For reasons that are both legitimate and stupefying, the university presidents and athletic directors responsible for the basketball programs have opted to stick with coaches who are clearly stuck in the muck. Jon Wilner, The Mercury News, 7 Feb. 2024
Verb
Javon Hargrave, the 49ers defensive tackle tasked with mucking things up in the middle, is very familiar with Thuney. Danny Emerman, The Mercury News, 6 Feb. 2024 Then, one film critic swept in and mucked it all up. Nick Romano, EW.com, 13 Dec. 2023 In short, a nakedly profit-seeking agenda — one that came at the direct expense of both staff and readers — was in place long before the publisher started mucking around with AI. Brian Merchant, Los Angeles Times, 1 Dec. 2023 But now, climate change is seriously mucking with hops. Matt Simon, WIRED, 16 Oct. 2023 Mammalian cells don’t love researchers’ hands mucking around their DNA. Jason Mast, STAT, 18 Oct. 2023 By dealing with them, the emotions won't muck around in the unconscious, stealthily interfering with our mental health and peace of mind. Avery Hurt, Discover Magazine, 16 Oct. 2023 Newsom may have mucked this up, giving into his worst political instincts by talking about making a decision, rather than just making the decision. Erika D. Smith, Los Angeles Times, 4 Oct. 2023 His administration’s mucking around with COVID-19, climate science, vaccinations, the EPA … all these and more had vast domestic and international repercussions, and from which the world is still reeling. Phil Plait, Scientific American, 14 Sep. 2023

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'muck.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Noun

Middle English muk, perhaps from Old English -moc; akin to Old Norse myki dung

First Known Use

Noun

13th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Verb

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

Time Traveler
The first known use of muck was in the 13th century

Dictionary Entries Near muck

Cite this Entry

“Muck.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/muck. Accessed 19 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

muck

1 of 2 noun
ˈmək
1
: soft moist barnyard manure
2
3
a
: dark rich soil
b
: mud, mire
mucky
ˈmək-ē
adjective

muck

2 of 2 verb
1
: to clean up
especially : to clear of manure or filth
2
: to dress with muck
3
: to dirty with or as if with muck

More from Merriam-Webster on muck

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