muck

[ muhk ]

/ mʌk /

SEE SYNONYMS FOR muck ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

moist farmyard dung, decaying vegetable matter, etc.; manure.

a highly organic, dark or black soil, less than 50 percent combustible, often used as a manure.

mire; mud.

filth, dirt, or slime.

defamatory or sullying remarks.

a state of chaos or confusion: to make a muck of things.

Chiefly British Informal. something of no value; trash.

(especially in mining) earth, rock, or other useless matter to be removed in order to get out the mineral or other substances sought.

verb (used with object)

to manure.

to make dirty; soil.

to remove muck from (sometimes followed by out).

Informal.

to ruin; bungle (often followed by up).
to put into a state of complete confusion (often followed by up).

Verb Phrases

muck about/around, Informal. to idle; waste time; loiter.

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Origin of muck

1200–50; Middle English muc, muk < Old Norse myki cow dung

Words nearby muck

mucinoid, mucinosis, mucinous carcinoma, muciparous, muciparous gland, muck, muck about, muck bar, muck in, muck up, muck-a-muck

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2020

Example sentences from the Web for muck

After a long day of him wading and me watching him in the muck, cocktails were required.
Up to a Point: In Defense of Lobbyists|P. J. O’Rourke|October 25, 2014|DAILY BEAST
How nice of Bob Dylan to demonstrate that over a lifetime of work, even perfection sometime runs amok into a muck.
Bob Dylan: Why We Can Never Know Him|Elizabeth Wurtzel|November 9, 2013|DAILY BEAST
Italy, in the muck of an economic crisis, simply cannot afford to help everyone who lands on the shores.
Italy’s Shipwrecked Syrians Fare Better Than Most Migrants|Barbie Latza Nadeau|October 3, 2013|DAILY BEAST
The cops, of course, always attend Hempfest, not to muck up the vibe but to make sure no big, important laws are being flouted.
Seattle Police Hand Out Doritos at Hempfest|Winston Ross|August 18, 2013|DAILY BEAST

I had discreetly sloshed the muck in my Styrofoam cup onto the grass.
Pop Culture and the Recession|David Frum|April 30, 2012|DAILY BEAST
“Have a keer,” he advised as the girls trod through the muck.
Swamp Island|Mildred A. Wirt
I don't mean poetry or muck of that sort—serious literature.
The Wrong Twin|Harry Leon Wilson
Peruvian Guano, so serviceable in its first applications to light soils, may be composted with muck to the greatest advantage.
Peat and its Uses as Fertilizer and Fuel|Samuel William Johnson
One is forced to wonder to what extent covering the face with the mass of muck hinders the actor in his work.
Our Stage and Its Critics|"E.F.S." of "The Westminster Gazette"
Muck set a high price upon them, and the bargain was soon struck.
The Oriental Story Book|Wilhelm Hauff

British Dictionary definitions for muck

muck

/ (mʌk) /

noun

farmyard dung or decaying vegetable matter

Also called: muck soil an organic soil rich in humus and used as a fertilizer

dirt or filth

earth, rock material, etc, removed during mining excavations

slang, mainly British rubbish

See Lord Muck, Lady Muck

make a muck of slang, mainly British to ruin or spoil

verb (tr)

to spread manure upon (fields, gardens, etc)

to soil or pollute

(often foll by out) to clear muck from

Word Origin for muck

C13: probably of Scandinavian origin; compare Old Norse myki dung, Norwegian myk

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

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muck