fatberg

American  

[fat-burg] / ˈfæt bɜrg /

noun

1. a solid lump in a sewer system consisting of waste that does not break down, as congealed cooking fat, cleansing wipes, and cotton balls.

   Cities must deal with the growing problem of large and small fatbergs that cause sewage backups and street flooding.

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Etymology

Origin of fatberg

First recorded in 2000–05; fat ( def. ) (in the sense “greasy substance”) + (ice)berg ( def. )

Example Sentences

Last year, a fatberg weighing roughly the same as three double-decker buses was cleared from an east London sewer.

From BBC • Feb. 9, 2025

Q. How did Swedish plumbers respond to news of Stockholm’s fatberg?

From Washington Post • May 20, 2021

Workers trying to remove a huge fatberg clogging a Birmingham sewer hope high-pressure jets will tackle the "horrible, gunky mess".

From BBC • May 2, 2021

The thought of the accumulated mass I’d consumed and discarded over the years was repellent, like my own personal version of London’s infamous fatberg.

From New York Times • Jan. 20, 2020

Combined with fat and grease that has been tipped down sinks, it is already starting to build up into a fatberg.

From The Guardian • Dec. 20, 2019