Definition of silt
1 : loose sedimentary material with rock particles usually 1⁄20 millimeter or less in diameter; also : soil containing 80 percent or more of such silt and less than 12 percent of clay
2 : a deposit of sediment (as by a river)
From the M-W Editors
Recent Examples of silt from the Web
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Keller said his agency usually spends all its time dredging silt, so assisting in a serious situation like Friday's was a change of pace.
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This spot, like many on the Brule and other rivers in the state, had become choked with silt; trout reproduction was drastically reduced.
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Mobile Bay, about 30 miles long and half as wide, is fed from the north by five rivers, so that depending on the tide and inland rains, the bay smells some days of sea salt, and others of river silt.
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Both Ohio and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, which maintains the shipping channels, have been working on finding new ways of the silt that is dredged from harbors to keep them navigable.
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Meanwhile, the lagoon — Southern California’s only freshwater lagoon — has been filling with silt and sediment since the last time it was dredged in 1983.
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In lower-salinity conditions, their eggs sink to the bottom and are covered by silt or gobbled by predators.
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Otherwise, not only will vehicles and heavy equipment get stuck in the fine silt, but the playa's notoriously flat surface will be damaged.
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All that sandy soil and silt from the crumbling banks – combined with spillway debris washing down – have created massive new sandbars and covered large portions of the river bottom.
These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'silt.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Origin and Etymology of silt
Middle English cylte, probably of Scandinavian origin; akin to Norwegian dialect sylt beach flooded at high tide; akin to Old High German sulza salt marsh, Old English sealt salt
Other Geology Terms
anthracite, boulder, cwm, erratic, igneous, intrusive, mesa, sedimentary, swale
silt
Definition of silt
intransitive verb
: to become choked or obstructed with silt —often used with up the channel silted up
transitive verb
: to choke, fill, cover, or obstruct with silt or mud
Examples of silt in a Sentence
The entrance to the creek had silted shut.
First Known Use of silt
1799
Other Geology Terms
anthracite, boulder, cwm, erratic, igneous, intrusive, mesa, sedimentary, silt, swale
SILT Defined for English Language Learners
silt
playDefinition of silt for English Language Learners
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: sand, soil, mud, etc., that is carried by flowing water and that sinks to the bottom of a river, pond, etc.
silt
Definition of silt for English Language Learners
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: to become blocked, filled, or covered with silt
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: to block, fill, or cover (something) with silt
SILT Defined for Kids
Definition of silt for Students
1 : particles of small size left as sediment from water
2 : a soil made up mostly of silt and containing little clay
Definition of silt for Students
silted
;silting
: to fill, cover, or block with silt
Learn More about silt
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See words that rhyme with silt Spanish Central: Translation of silt Nglish: Translation of silt for Spanish speakers Britannica English: Translation of silt for Arabic speakers Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about silt
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