dumpster diving

American  

Or Dumpster diving

noun

1. the practice of foraging in garbage that has been put out on the street in dumpsters, garbage cans, etc., for discarded items that may still be valuable, useful, or fixable.

---

dumpster diving British  

/ ˈdʌmpstə /

noun

1. the practice of searching through dustbins for discarded but still usable or valuable objects such as food or clothes

---

Etymology

Origin of dumpster diving

First recorded in 1980–85

Example Sentences

The research team went through a process they called "dumpster diving" to find these natural antibiotics.

From BBC • Mar. 5, 2025

Easily available food from avian "dumpster diving," especially at fast-food restaurants, can prove lethal to the birds due to high quantities of salt, fat, sugar, grease and contaminants.

From Science Daily • Jan. 23, 2024

At a time when TikTok videos of dumpster diving are calling attention to discards, efforts have sprung up to salvage materials from renovations and demolitions so that they can be repurposed.

From New York Times • Nov. 29, 2022

I wanted to make sure he wasn’t a lunatic — a trauma response from the dumpster diving I had been doing in the online dating scene.

From Los Angeles Times • Aug. 12, 2022

“Nah. It’s safety glass. Besides, all those years of dumpster diving makes a dog tough. Scruffy, Tater, and me did a quick sweep of the kennels.”

From "Dog Squad" by Chris Grabenstein