midden
Americannoun
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archaic a dunghill or pile of refuse
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dialect a dustbin
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dialect an earth closet
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See kitchen midden
Etymology
Origin of midden
1300–50; Middle English midding < Old Danish mykdyngja, equivalent to myk manure + dyngja pile ( Danish mødding )
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
The project overall is called the Super Midden, based on midden - a word mostly used by archaeologists to describe ancient rubbish dumps.
From BBC ● Jul. 16, 2025
So far, none of the tribes he works with has insisted on midden preservation — though that’s a conversation he’d like to intensify in the coming year, as the erosion threat increases.
From Seattle Times ● Jul. 28, 2023
One theory archaeologists are knocking about is the trove or artifacts might have been a midden or pit where detritus was tossed.
From Washington Times ● Apr. 27, 2019
“A shell heap or shell midden — it’s basically their trash.”
From New York Times ● Jan. 16, 2017
Shifre, who had been looking at the midden with its bright flags of clothing, heard Hannah’s shout and turned.
From "The Devil's Arithmetic" by Jane Yolen
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
