sludge

noun

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\ 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 Before this cease and desist order, Denali had already been issued a warning letter and two notices of violations for its sludge operations in Marshall, Lawrence and Colbert Counties, according to ADEM records. — Dennis Pillion | Dpillion@al.com, al, "Alabama shuts down poultry waste sludge operation north of Birmingham," 11 Mar. 2021 Rogers Water Utilities also operates a sludge dryer and has budgeted $19 million for two new units, said Brent Dobler, superintendent. — Laurinda Joenks, Arkansas Online, "Springdale wants sludge dryer completed," 27 Feb. 2021 Coal ash, a toxic substance produced by coal power plants that is often stored as sludge in special ponds, have been particularly exposed. — New York Times, "Texas Blackouts Point to Coast-to-Coast Crises Waiting to Happen," 20 Feb. 2021 Deblais and colleagues put a blob of these sludge worms into a special device to measure the viscosity of the liquid around them. — Eric Niiler, Wired, "Researchers Are Studying These Worm Blobs to Build Robots," 17 Feb. 2021 While a year of lockdown has left many of us feeling down, the song serves as a divine source of encouragement to power through the sludge. — Katie Bain, Billboard, "First Spin: The Week's Best New Dance Tracks From Jungle, Zhu, Elkka, Floating Points & More," 26 Mar. 2021 But that didn’t bring much solace to those closer to the rising brown sludge. — New York Times, "Australia’s Worst Floods in Decades Quicken Concerns About Climate Change," 22 Mar. 2021 December, January and February felt like a slow march through sludge. — Jason Gay, WSJ, "As a Window Opens, a Plea for Patience and Grace," 12 Mar. 2021 But there's no low range for crawling over boulders, mucking through deep sludge, or grinding across ridiculous dunes. — John Pearley Huffman, Car and Driver, "2021 Honda Ridgeline Gets Slightly More Trucklike," 3 Mar. 2021

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.