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garbage can

See more synonyms for garbage can on Thesaurus.com
noun
  1. a container, usually of metal or plastic, for the disposal of waste matter, especially kitchen refuse.
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Compare trash can.

Origin of garbage can

An Americanism dating back to 1905–10
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for garbage can

Historical Examples

  • The hunchback was sitting on a garbage-can, almost at the entrance.

    The Best Short Stories of 1917

    Various

  • I know what they smell like; I can describe it exactly: they smell like a garbage-can.

    The Ship Dwellers

    Albert Bigelow Paine

British Dictionary definitions for garbage can

garbage can

noun
  1. US and Canadian a large, usually cylindrical container for refuse, esp one used by a householdAlso called: ash bin, ash can, trash can, (in Britain (and certain other countries)) dustbin
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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