dust

[duhst]

noun

1. earth or other matter in fine, dry particles.

2. a cloud of finely powdered earth or other matter in the air.

3. any finely powdered substance, as sawdust.

4. the ground; the earth's surface.

5. the substance to which something, as the dead human body, is ultimately reduced by disintegration or decay; earthly remains.

6. British.

   1. ashes, refuse, etc.

   2. junk.

7. a low or humble condition.

8. anything worthless.

9. disturbance; turmoil.

10. gold dust.

11. the mortal body of a human being.

12. a single particle or grain.

13. Archaic.,  money; cash.

verb (used with object)

1. to wipe the dust from.

   to dust a table.

2. to sprinkle with a powder or dust.

   to dust rosebushes with an insecticide.

3. to strew or sprinkle (a powder, dust, or other fine particles).

   to dust insecticide on a rosebush.

4. to soil with dust; make dusty.

verb (used without object)

1. to wipe dust from furniture, woodwork, etc.

2. to become dusty.

3. to apply dust or powder to a plant, one's body, etc..

   to dust with an insecticide in late spring.

dust

/ dʌst /

noun

1. dry fine powdery material, such as particles of dirt, earth or pollen

2. a cloud of such fine particles

3. the powdery particles to which something is thought to be reduced by death, decay, or disintegration

4. 1. the mortal body of man

   2. the corpse of a dead person

5. the earth; ground

6. informal,  a disturbance; fuss (esp in the phrases kick up a dust, raise a dust )

7. something of little or no worth

8. informal,  (in mining parlance) silicosis or any similar respiratory disease

9. short for gold dust

10. ashes or household refuse

11. 1. to fail completely or cease to exist

    2. to fall down dead

12. something that is very disappointing

13. to outdo someone or something comprehensively or with ease

    leaving their competitors in the dust

14. to depart angrily or contemptuously

15. to confuse or mislead

verb

1. (tr) to sprinkle or cover (something) with (dust or some other powdery substance)

   to dust a cake with sugar

   to dust sugar onto a cake

2. to remove dust by wiping, sweeping, or brushing

3. archaic,  to make or become dirty with dust

Other Word Forms

• dustless adjective
• redust verb (used with object)
• undusted adjective
• well-dusted adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of dust¹

before 900; Middle English; Old English dūst; cognate with German Dunst vapor

Word History and Origins

Origin of dust¹

Old English dūst; related to Danish dyst flour dust, Middle Dutch dūst dust, meal dust, Old High German tunst storm

Idioms and Phrases

Idioms

1. shake the dust from one's feet, to depart in anger or disdain; leave decisively or in haste, especially from an unpleasant situation.

   As the country moved toward totalitarianism, many of the intelligentsia shook the dust from their feet.

2. lick the dust,

   1. to be killed; die.

   2. to humble oneself abjectly; grovel.

      He will resign rather than lick the dust.

3. throw dust in someone's eyes, to mislead; deceive.

   He threw dust in our eyes by pretending to be a jeweler and then disappeared with the diamonds.

4. make the dust fly, to execute with vigor or speed.

   We turned them loose on the work, and they made the dust fly.

5. leave one in the dust, to overtake and surpass a competitor or one who is less ambitious, qualified, etc..

   Don't be so meek, they'll leave you in the dust.

6. bite the dust,

   1. to be killed, especially in battle; die.

   2. to suffer defeat; be unsuccessful; fail.

      Another manufacturer has bitten the dust.

7. dust off,

   1. Baseball. (of a pitcher) to throw the ball purposely at or dangerously close to (the batter).

   2. to take out or prepare for use again, as after a period of inactivity or storage.

      I'm going to dust off my accounting skills and try to get a job in the finance department.

   3. to beat up badly.

      The gang of hoodlums dusted off a cop.

More idioms and phrases containing dust

• bite the dust
• dry as dust
• in the dust
• make the dust fly
• shake the dust from one's feet
• throw dust in someone's eyes
• watch my dust
• when the dust has settled

Example Sentences

Volunteers there fill hydration packs and pass out hundreds of peanut butter-and-jelly sandwiches, bananas, watermelon slices, potato chips, fruit pies and boiled potatoes dusted with salt.

Read more on Wall Street Journal

Steady profits and strengthening balance sheets have gradually won investors over to banks that had been left in the dust by U.S. rivals after the global financial crisis.

Read more on Wall Street Journal

There, American health inspectors typically forced aspiring braceros to strip naked before subjecting them to blood tests, X-rays, rectal exams and a final dusting of their bodies and clothes with DDT.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

Although Mars has an extremely thin atmosphere, it still experiences powerful winds that play a major role in shaping the planet’s climate and in distributing its ever-present dust.

Read more on Science Daily

Because the dust blocked shorter, bluer wavelengths, the star’s appearance shifted dramatically toward red.

Read more on Science Daily

Related Words

• dirt 
• earth 
• grime 
• lint 
• powder 
• sand 
• soil 
• soot