manure
Americannoun
-
excrement, especially of animals, or other refuse used as fertilizer.
-
any natural or artificial substance for fertilizing the soil.
verb (used with object)
-
manures,
present (3rd person singular)
-
manured,
past participle, past
-
manuring
present participle
noun
-
animal excreta, usually with straw, used to fertilize land
-
any material, esp chemical fertilizer, used to fertilize land
verb
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
manuresimple
-
manuressimple
-
have manuredperfect
-
has manuredperfect
-
am manuringprogressive
-
are manuringprogressive
-
is manuringprogressive
-
have been manuringperfect progressive
-
has been manuringperfect progressive
Past
-
manuredsimple
-
had manuredperfect
-
was manuringprogressive
-
were manuringprogressive
-
had been manuringperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of manure
1350–1400; Middle English manouren to till, cultivate < Middle French manouvrer to do manual work. See maneuver
Explanation
Gardeners use the word manure to mean a fertilizer made from animal waste. Manure is good for helping plants grow and stay healthy. When you spread manure on your vegetable garden, you're feeding the soil and plants with nutrients that encourage growth. The manure itself might be, for example, a combination of cow dung and straw, or slightly decomposed chicken waste. Sometimes the word manure is used for any kind of fertilizer, including those made entirely from plants. The earliest meaning of manure was "to cultivate land," from an Old French root word, manouvrer, "to work with the hands or cultivate."
Vocabulary lists containing manure
Unit 3: Compelling Evidence
Looking to grow your vocabulary? Check out this interactive, curated word list from our team of English language specialists at Vocabulary.com – one of over 17,000 lists we've built to help learners worldwide!
Charlotte's Web
Interested in learning more words like this one? Our team at Vocabulary.com has got you covered! You can review flashcards, quiz yourself, practice spelling, and more – and it's all completely free to use!
Because of Mr. Terupt
Want to remember this word for good? Start your learning journey today with our library of interactive, themed word lists built by the experts at Vocabulary.com – we'll help you make the most of your study time!
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
That is because she uses green manure and legume crops.
From Barron's ● Oct. 12, 2026
A resident in the area, who asked not to be named, told the BBC a muck spreader, which are normally used to distribute farmyard manure, had been used to spread medical waste.
From BBC ● Sep. 8, 2026
Try selling that cart of manure to the public.
From Salon ● Aug. 28, 2026
They also leave behind a vital source of manure.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 23, 2026
Wagons and carriages rumbled down the streets, stirring up clouds of flies from the manure left to broil in the July sun.
From "The City Beautiful" by Aden Polydoros
Farmers argued the new rules around storing manures were too heavy-handed and costly, and they should be able to manage their spreading based on weather conditions.
From BBC ● May 22, 2026
This includes more efficient use of manures and extracting nutrients from sewage, and using more legume crops in rotations to take advantage of the fact that they enhance nutrients in the soil.
From Salon ● Jan. 11, 2023
The company also sells bulk-aged and screened manures, organic fertilizers and custom soil mixes.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 1, 2020
Over decades, both chemical fertilizers and chicken manure and other manures have been applied to the berry crops to provide extra nitrogen to help maximize berry growth.
From Textbooks ● Jan. 1, 2015
Later there would also be need for seeds and artificial manures, besides various tools and, finally, the machinery for the windmill.
From "Animal Farm: A Fairy Story" by George Orwell
At Heligan, the soil was manured, aerated, and assiduously double dug for centuries; plants must have been queuing at the gates.
From The New Yorker ● Aug. 2, 2019
We Yahoos who pledged our manured acres and sacred honor for loans to the Yazoos are paying to the last acre, the last cow, the last pig.
From Time Magazine Archive
Every boulevard shrub had been freshly manured to make the capital a little greener for its first visit, this week, from a U.S.
From Time Magazine Archive
Within two days, both the chicken culture and a similar culture from heavily manured soil produced the same antibiotic.
From Time Magazine Archive
The trees in these orchards are manured at least once in two years, especially after they reach the full bearing age.
From The Nut Culturist A Treatise on Propogation, Planting, and Cultivation of Nut Bearing Trees and Shrubs Adapted to the Climate of the United States by Andrew S. Fuller
The difference may be due to monks manuring crops in friary gardens with their own faeces, the study suggests.
From BBC ● Aug. 18, 2022
Less is known about the manuring practices of lower classes in the town.
From Science Magazine ● Aug. 18, 2022
When traditional methods became too unprofitable to protect their independence, farmers began manuring their fields and clearing wood lots to boost productivity.
From Textbooks ● Jan. 18, 2018
Carl Vogt defined thought to be a secretion of the brain, and Moleschott regarded life as a mere mode of matter and man's existence after life only as the manuring of the fields.
From Church History, Vol. 3 of 3 by J. H. Kurtz
And heather taken for litter cannot be taken in larger quantities than is necessary for manuring the lands in respect of which the right is enjoyed.
From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 6, Slice 7 "Columbus" to "Condottiere" by Various
Random Word
Spin the wheel and learn a new word!
Get a wordDefinitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
