sludge

noun

\ˈsləj

Definition of sludge

1 : mud, mire especially : a muddy deposit (as on a riverbed) : ooze

2 : a muddy or slushy mass, deposit, or sediment: such as

a : precipitated solid matter produced by water and sewage treatment processes

b : muddy sediment in a steam boiler

c : a precipitate or settling (such as a mixture of impurities and acid) from a mineral oil

3 : slush sense 5

Other Words from sludge Synonyms Example Sentences Learn More about sludge

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Synonyms for sludge

Synonyms

guck (or gook), mire, muck, mud, ooze, slime, slop, slush

Examples of sludge in a Sentence

after a day of heavy rain, the fairgrounds had turned into pure sludge I can't bring myself to read that sludge.

Recent Examples on the Web

The bottoms of the ponds are layered with solid pig waste that naturally sinks to form a sludge. — Ben Kesling, WSJ, "Florence Flooding Hits North Carolina Hog Farms Hard," 19 Sep. 2018 Biosolids are left over at a treatment plant after bacteria decomposes human waste into sludge fertile with nitrogen and phosphorus compounds. — Kevin Spear, OrlandoSentinel.com, "Rare Florida jewel, Blue Cypress Lake, sickens with pollution," 11 Apr. 2018 Within a month gasoline starts to separate, and after a year or two evaporates into a caramel-like sludge that coats the inside of your fuel tank. — Matt Jancer, Popular Mechanics, "How To Resurrect a Sleeping Car," 7 Feb. 2018 Hearing scheduled today There are multiple legal challenges to the sludge importation currently in the court system. — Dennis Pillion, AL.com, "Sludge fight: Legal battles over imported sewage waste rage on in Jefferson County," 19 Jan. 2018 Hall was not always opposed to the sludge operation using the rail yard in Parrish. — Dennis Pillion, AL.com, "Sewage sludge train cars in Birmingham to be moved after 'death smell' complaints," 6 Mar. 2018 Harrington is an expert who got the idea after being called in to help clean up after the Gold King Mine blowout in southern Colorado, which unleashed toxic sludge into waterways. — Alicia Acuna, Fox News, "Colorado town hopes to strike gold by converting abandoned mine into fresh water reservoir," 3 July 2018 Pictures taken in 1992 show standing pools of black sludge where two underground storage tanks were removed. — Brian Slodysko, Houston Chronicle, "Pence family gas stations left costly environmental legacy," 13 July 2018 Pictures taken in 1992 show standing pools of black sludge where two underground storage tanks were removed. — Brian Slodysko, chicagotribune.com, "Cleanup of Pence family gas stations cost Indiana more than $20 million," 13 July 2018

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