mud

American  

[muhd] / mʌd /

noun

1. wet, soft earth or earthy matter, as on the ground after rain, at the bottom of a pond, or along the banks of a river; mire.

2. Informal. scandalous or malicious assertions or information.

   The opposition threw a lot of mud at our candidate.

3. Slang. brewed coffee, especially when strong or bitter.

4. a mixture of chemicals and other substances pumped into a drilling rig chiefly as a lubricant for the bit and shaft.

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verb (used with object)

mudded, mudding

1. to cover, smear, or spatter with mud.

   to mud the walls of a hut.

2. to stir up the mud or sediment in.

   waders mudding the clear water.

verb (used without object)

mudded, mudding

1. to hide in or burrow into mud.

mud British  

/ mʌd /

noun

1. a fine-grained soft wet deposit that occurs on the ground after rain, at the bottom of ponds, lakes, etc

2. informal slander or defamation

3. informal not at all clear

4. to disgrace or defame someone

5. informal a humorous drinking toast

6. informal someone is disgraced

7. informal to slander; vilify

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verb

1. (tr) to soil or cover with mud

mud Idioms  

1. see clear as mud; name is mud; sling mud at.

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• unmudded
  adjective

Etymology

Origin of mud

1300–50; Middle English mudde, mode < Middle Low German mudde. Cf. mother ²

Explanation

Mud is very wet dirt. On rainy days, you might enjoy putting on your tall rubber boots and squishing around in the mud. When you mix soil with water, you get mud — a soft, almost sticky material. Mud results from a damp environment or a recent rain. There's also the mud that masons or bricklayers use to stick stones together — it resembles mud, though it's actually mortar or plaster, and to use it when building is to mud. The word mud also showed up in 1920s as slang" meaning "bad coffee," and if your "name is mud," you've got a bad reputation.

Example Sentences

"I think everything needs to be demolished," casino worker Eduardo Gutierrez Jr. said after returning to his apartment to retrieve belongings now covered in mud.

From Barron's • Jun. 9, 2026

The mud in the pit is sifted and shovelled.

From BBC • Jun. 3, 2026

They say wild animals shouldn’t be taken out of their natural habitat; capybaras love water, mud, and grass, and it’s cruel to take them away from it.

From Slate • May 27, 2026

Obeid has become a key logistics hub for the Sudanese army, and incessant attacks from UAV-stalked skies push soldiers to splatter mud on vehicles to obscure them from drone optics.

From Los Angeles Times • May 24, 2026

The river eyes lay in Torak’s palm in a nest of green mud, glowing faintly, like the moon on a misty night.

From "Wolf Brother" by Michelle Paver

Related Words

• clay
• muck
• silt
• sludge
• slush