Definition of sludgenext
1
as in mud
soft wet earth after a day of heavy rain, the fairgrounds had turned into pure sludge

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2
as in corn
something (as a work of literature or music) that is too sentimental I can't bring myself to read that sludge

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Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of sludge An aerial view shows houses lying deluged in sludge after flash floods at Devighat, Bidur Municipality in Nepal's Nuwakot district on August 27, 2026. — Sam Meredith,evelyn Cheng, CNBC, 2 Sep. 2026 Residents sat in homes with walls washed away by the floods, shoveling sludge-like mud and rubble off balconies or window frames. — Victoria Milko, Los Angeles Times, 30 Aug. 2026 Venezuelan oil, by contrast, is heavy, sour sludge, which can more easily be distilled into asphalt, industrial oils, diesel and jet fuel. — David Goldman, CNN Money, 29 Aug. 2026 Pumping at high speeds creates a suction vortex (upconing) that violently draws heavy sludge into the production stream, fouling piping and destroying surface pumps. — Siddharth Misra, Fortune, 25 Aug. 2026 See All Example Sentences for sludge
Recent Examples of Synonyms for sludge
Noun
  • During the girls' junior high race, multiple parents walked the course trying to find shoes that were stuck in the mud.
    — Joe Kinsey OutKick, FOXNews.com, 20 Sep. 2026
  • Chief among the discoveries is a large mud brick housing complex connected to the southern entrance of the fortress.
    — Anne Doran, ARTnews.com, 18 Sep. 2026
Noun
  • Warehouses full of fish, salt, sugar and spices, stores of corn and hay, as well as horses and cattle that could not be rescued, were burned.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 28 Sep. 2026
  • One of two lists from the White House showed that China planned to trim duties on a variety of US agricultural goods including corn, wheat, sorghum, meat, dairy, vegetable oils and meals.
    — Reuters, NBC news, 28 Sep. 2026
Noun
  • The package recommends microwaving, so the chicken melts into the creamy goo.
    — Alex Beggs, Bon Appetit Magazine, 22 Sep. 2026
  • The researchers linked molecules from a viscous oil and a gas to produce a new variation of this polymer, resulting in a transparent, moldable goo with a consistency similar to Blu Tack.
    — New Atlas, New Atlas, 21 Sep. 2026

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Cite this Entry

“Sludge.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/sludge. Accessed 30 Sep. 2026.

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