bog

¹

[bog, bawg]

noun

British Slang.

1. a lavatory; bathroom.

bog

²

[bog, bawg]

noun

1. wet, spongy ground with soil composed mainly of decayed vegetable matter.

2. an area or stretch of such ground.

verb (used with or without object)

bogged, bogging 

1. to sink in or as if in a bog (often followed bydown ).

   We were bogged down by overwork.

verb phrase

1. bog in,  to eat heartily and ravenously.

bog

/ bɒɡ /

noun

1. wet spongy ground consisting of decomposing vegetation, which ultimately forms peat

2. an area of such ground

3. a place or thing that prevents or slows progress or improvement

4. a slang word for lavatory

5. slang,  the act or an instance of defecating

bog

1. An area of wet, spongy ground consisting mainly of decayed or decaying peat moss (sphagnum) and other vegetation. Bogs form as the dead vegetation sinks to the bottom of a lake or pond, where it decays slowly to form peat. Peat bogs are important to global ecology, since the undecayed peat moss stores large amounts of carbon that would otherwise be released back into the atmosphere. Global warming may accelerate decay in peat bogs and release more carbon dioxide, which in turn may cause further warming.

Other Word Forms

• boggish adjective
• boggy adjective
• bogginess noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of bog¹

1780–90; probably shortening of bog-house; compare bog to defecate, boggard (16th century) privy, of obscure origin

Origin of bog²

1495–1505; < Irish or Scots Gaelic bogach soft ground ( bog soft + -ach noun suffix); bog ¹ ( def. 4 ) perhaps a different word

Word History and Origins

Origin of bog¹

C13: from Gaelic bogach swamp, from bog soft

Example Sentences

The matter has since been bogged down in court.

Read more on MarketWatch

Moscow is bogged down militarily in Ukraine and so would struggle to engage members of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization in conventional combat.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

Without unanimous consent to proceed, the final Senate vote could end up bogged down by procedural delays.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

The perfunctory signage and wall text seem to be deliberate: How many visitors want to get bogged down in details, the GEM seems to reason.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

It could be used only for final passage votes, not for procedural motions that already bog down the legislative process before debate even begins.

Read more on Barron's

Related Words

• lowland 
• marshland 
• wetlands www.thesaurus.com