muck

[muhk]

noun

1. moist farmyard dung, decaying vegetable matter, etc.; manure.

2. a highly organic, dark or black soil, less than 50 percent combustible, often used as a manure.

3. mire; mud.

4. filth, dirt, or slime.

5. defamatory or sullying remarks.

6. a state of chaos or confusion.

   to make a muck of things.

7. Chiefly British Informal.,  something of no value; trash.

8. (especially in mining) earth, rock, or other useless matter to be removed in order to get out the mineral or other substances sought.

verb (used with object)

1. to manure.

2. to make dirty; soil.

3. to remove muck from (sometimes followed byout ).

4. Informal.

   1. to ruin; bungle (often followed byup ).

   2. to put into a state of complete confusion (often followed byup ).

verb phrase

1. muck about / around,  to idle; waste time; loiter.

muck

/ mʌk /

noun

1. farmyard dung or decaying vegetable matter

2. Also called: muck soil. an organic soil rich in humus and used as a fertilizer

3. dirt or filth

4. earth, rock material, etc, removed during mining excavations

5. slang,  rubbish

6. See Lord Muck Lady Muck

7. slang,  to ruin or spoil

verb

1. to spread manure upon (fields, gardens, etc)

2. to soil or pollute

3. (often foll by out) to clear muck from

Word History and Origins

Origin of muck¹

1200–50; Middle English muc, muk < Old Norse myki cow dung

Word History and Origins

Origin of muck¹

C13: probably of Scandinavian origin; compare Old Norse myki dung, Norwegian myk

Example Sentences

He also examined the history of those peculiar twists and turns on the city perimeter, mucking through L.A.’s long-simmering stew of real estate grabs, water politics and annexation schemes.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

But it was the Bruins who were doing most of the mucking up.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

The company’s alleged violations include starting to dig without approval, releasing untreated water onto city streets and spilling muck from its trucks, according to a new document obtained by City Cast Las Vegas and ProPublica.

Read more on Salon

"There are consequences, we are not mucking around now," he said.

Read more on BBC

Trying to rob his employer one night with a mop dipped in toxic muck, Winston is shot and thrown into said slop.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• dirt 
• goo 
• gunk 
• manure 
• mud 
• slime 
• sludge 
• trash