dung

[duhng]

See more synonyms for dung on Thesaurus.com

noun

excrement, especially of animals; manure.

verb (used with object)

to manure (ground) with or as if with dung.

Origin of dung

before 1000; Middle English, Old English; cognate with Low German, German dung; compare Icelandic dyngja heap, dung, Swedish dynga dung, muck, Old High German tunga manuring

Related formsdung·y, adjective

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Related Words for dungy

dusty, murky, muddy, disheveled, crummy, unkempt, grimy, messy, nasty, sloppy, filthy, greasy, polluted, contaminated, spotted, foul, black, defiled, bedraggled, sullied

Examples from the Web for dungy

Contemporary Examples of dungy

Dungy later rejoined the team, at great personal distress, out of a sense of duty.
The NFL's Spiritual Guru
Bryan Curtis
February 3, 2010
Later, as a head coach with Tampa Bay, and then the Indianapolis Colts, Dungy also cut a chaste figure.
The NFL's Spiritual Guru
Bryan Curtis
February 3, 2010
Locksley later said, “I see Coach Dungy being a guy with a wealth of experience and knowledge, not just in football, but in life.”
The NFL's Spiritual Guru
Bryan Curtis
February 3, 2010
But you can also believe that Dungy, having worked in the media glare of the NFL for years, knows that mentoring is not so simple.
The NFL's Spiritual Guru
Bryan Curtis
February 3, 2010
Dungy, who is 54, has always been a defiantly pious figure in the NFL.
The NFL's Spiritual Guru
Bryan Curtis
February 3, 2010

Historical Examples of dungy

The animals rolled luxuriously in the brown, dungy mixture, and Genesmere made his coffee strong.
Red Men and White
Owen Wister

British Dictionary definitions for dungy

dung

noun

1. excrement, esp of animals; manure
2. (as modifier)dung cart
something filthy

verb

(tr) to cover (ground) with manure

Derived Formsdungy, adjective

Word Origin for dung

Old English: prison; related to Old High German tunc cellar roofed with dung, Old Norse dyngja manure heap

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for dungy

dung

Old English dung "manure, fertilizer," common Germanic (cf. Old Frisian and Old Saxon dung "manure;" Old High German tunga "manuring," tung "underground room covered with manure;" German Dung; Old Norse dyngja "heap of manure, women's apartment; Swedish dynga "dung, muck;" Danish dynge "heap, mass, pile"), from PIE *dhengh- "covering" (cf. Lithuanian dengti "to cover," Old Irish dingim "I press").

The word recalls the ancient Germanic custom (reported by Tacitus) of covering underground shelters with manure to keep in warmth in winter. The meaning "animal excrement," whether used as fertilizer or not, is from late 13c.

The whole body of journeymen tailors is divided into two classes, denominated Flints and Dungs: the former work by the day and receive all equal wages; the latter work generally by the piece [1824].

Dung beetle attested by 1630s.