Dictionary.com
definitions
  • synonyms

excrement

[ek-skruh-muh nt]
See more synonyms for excrement on Thesaurus.com
noun
  1. waste matter discharged from the body, especially feces.
Show More

Origin of excrement

1525–35; < Latin excrēmentum, equivalent to excrē- (perfect stem of excernere to excrete) + -mentum -ment
Related formsex·cre·men·tous [ek-skruh-men-tuh s] /ˌɛk skrəˈmɛn təs/, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for excrement

Historical Examples

  • Excrement, eks′kre-ment, n. useless matter discharged from the animal system: dung.

    Chambers's Twentieth Century Dictionary (part 2 of 4: E-M)

    Various

  • Excrement was allowed to remain in and around the houses indefinitely, or was thrown into the streets regardless of consequences.

    Industrial Cuba

    Robert P. Porter

  • There is found no Excrement in the Case, but the two Skins only, just now mentioned.

  • Borne down by numbers, by superior force, by brute matter, he finds in his soul an expression: "Excrement!"

    Les Misrables

    Victor Hugo

British Dictionary definitions for excrement

excrement

noun
  1. waste matter discharged from the body, esp faeces; excreta
Show More
Derived Formsexcremental (ˌɛkskrɪˈmɛntəl) or excrementitious (ˌɛkskrɪmɛnˈtɪʃəs), adjective

Word Origin

C16: from Latin excrēmentum, from excernere to sift, excrete
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 excrement

n.

1530s, "waste discharged from the body," from Latin excrementum, from stem of excretus, past participle of excernere "to sift out, discharge," from ex- "out" (see ex-) + cernere "sift, separate" (see crisis). Originally any bodily secretion, especially from the bowels; exclusive sense of "feces" is since mid-18c.

Show More
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
excrement in Medicine

excrement

(ĕk′skrə-mənt)
n.
  1. Waste matter or any excretion cast out of the body, especially feces.
Show More
The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.