1
as in soil
the loose surface material in which plants naturally grow
dig into the dirt to a depth of about three inches
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
2
3
as in muck
foul matter that mars the purity or cleanliness of something
there's some dirt on your shoes
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
4
as in grossness
the quality or state of being obscene
appalled by the dirt in the author's novels
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
5
as in dung
solid matter discharged from an animal's alimentary canal
tread carefully, as there's cow dirt all over the pasture
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of dirt
Prepare the Area Remove any furniture, appliances, rugs, or other items from on top and below the deck, then clean the deck with a broom or blower to get rid of loose dirt and debris.
—
Timothy Dale, The Spruce, 29 May 2026
Building high-quality assets on the very dirt the legacy market abandoned, Winston, Muhammad, and their partners are ensuring that the people who hold the history in these neighborhoods finally have the power to own them.
—Stephanie Tharpe, Forbes.com, 29 May 2026
Something, anything to break the spell of poor play, bad luck and rampant injuries that have threatened to sink a once-promising season into the dirt.
—Cody Stavenhagen, New York Times, 28 May 2026
The flea larvae, which look like tiny maggots, worm their way into the carpet or mattress, feeding on the flea dirt that their parents left behind, says Benson.
—Arricca Elin Sansone, Southern Living, 28 May 2026
See All Example Sentences for dirt
Timothy Dale, The Spruce, 29 May 2026
Building high-quality assets on the very dirt the legacy market abandoned, Winston, Muhammad, and their partners are ensuring that the people who hold the history in these neighborhoods finally have the power to own them.
—Stephanie Tharpe, Forbes.com, 29 May 2026
Something, anything to break the spell of poor play, bad luck and rampant injuries that have threatened to sink a once-promising season into the dirt.
—Cody Stavenhagen, New York Times, 28 May 2026
The flea larvae, which look like tiny maggots, worm their way into the carpet or mattress, feeding on the flea dirt that their parents left behind, says Benson.
—Arricca Elin Sansone, Southern Living, 28 May 2026
See All Example Sentences for dirt
Recent Examples of Synonyms for dirt
Noun
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Cats become infected by eating raw meat, birds, mice or contaminated soil, and only cats that are actively shedding parasites in their stool can spread it.—
Dr. Megan Yanny,
Boston Herald,
31 May 2026
-
Plant them at least 12 inches apart from each other and bury them completely in soil, leaving only the leaves exposed.—
Asia London Palomba,
The Spruce,
31 May 2026
Noun
-
So how did Breslow land on Durbin as the target as opposed to, say, another infielder with more power but less defense?—
Mac Cerullo,
Boston Herald,
30 May 2026
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In it, a Native Hawaiian family struggles to reclaim the ancestral lands that colonization, tourism, and rampant development threaten to overrun.—
Gabrielle Bellot,
Literary Hub,
29 May 2026
Noun
-
People get mired in all kinds of muck and yuck by the slop on social media.—
Lance Eliot,
Forbes.com,
31 May 2026
-
Real estate executive Gloria Caulfield was the first to prominently step into the muck at the University of Central Florida.—
Andrew Nusca,
Fortune,
20 May 2026
Noun
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There are no great surprises from here on out, though the sheer, lusty grossness of the fallout is occasionally startling.—
Guy Lodge,
Variety,
16 Apr. 2026
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If an exclamation point only signified gore and grossness, this gothic rock opera would more than qualify.—
Rachel Simon,
Vulture,
6 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
To help the herd accept the calf after his time away, rescuers coated him in fresh elephant dung to mask any unfamiliar scents.—
Moná Thomas,
PEOPLE,
22 May 2026
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Release of dung increases soil organic carbon and helps build soil structure that improves water filtration and soil aeration.—
Paige Stein,
Hartford Courant,
4 May 2026
Noun
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In state elections this month an alliance led by above-ground communist parties was voted out in the southern state of Kerala, the first time in decades that Marxist political parties are not in power in any of India’s states or territories.—
Dhruv Tikekar,
CNN Money,
30 May 2026
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The project, which broke ground about a year ago, was funded through a combination of state matching funds and remaining city of Mission Viejo redevelopment funds.—
Heather McRea,
Oc Register,
29 May 2026
Noun
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As The Guardian reported back in 2021, the majority of homes in New York's Suffolk County rely on individual septic systems, and the town of Southampton has never built a centralized sewage network.—
Clara Molot,
Vanity Fair,
30 May 2026
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That metabolite is then excreted in urine, enters sewage systems, passes through wastewater treatment plants and, eventually, makes its way back into local rivers, lakes and coastal waters.—
Scott Travers,
Forbes.com,
30 May 2026
Noun
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Nestled between the layers is a genuinely heartfelt story that blooms from beneath all the aesthetic and verbal vulgarity, thus making innate, and intuitive, his ongoing, ever-evolving manifesto on the state of things.—
Siddhant Adlakha,
IndieWire,
16 May 2026
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In addition, prosecutors say swastikas, antisemitic slogans and vulgarity were spray-painted on pillars underneath M-53 and Canal, a brick wall near a business and an electrical box at a second business.—
Joseph Buczek,
CBS News,
22 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Dirt.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/dirt. Accessed 7 Jun. 2026.
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