sludge

[sluhj]

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR sludge ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

mud, mire, or ooze; slush.

a deposit of ooze at the bottom of a body of water.

any of various more or less mudlike deposits or mixtures.

the sediment in a steam boiler or water tank.

broken ice, as on the sea.

a mixture of some finely powdered substance and water.

sediment deposited during the treatment of sewage.

Also called activated sludge. Bacteriology. sewage sediment that contains a heavy growth of microorganisms, resulting from vigorous aeration.

a fine, mudlike powder produced by a mining drill.

Nearby words

Origin of sludge

1640–50; variant of dial. slutch, slitch, Middle English slich slime, wet mud (compare its derivative slucched muddy); apparently of expressive orig.

Related formsde-sludge, verb (used with object), de-sludged, de-sludg·ing.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for sludge

Forensic tests showed the birds died after becoming coated in sludge, Hubbard said.
Two Texas Regulators Tried to Enforce the Rules. They Were Fired.|David Hasemyer, InsideClimate News|December 9, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Rain had fallen heavily overnight and the streets were caked in sludge.
Inside a Russian-Occupied Police Station in Ukraine|David Patrikarakos|April 13, 2014|DAILY BEAST
The sludge was sent by rail and spread around on a defunct resort ranch near Sierra Blanca.
U.S. Drug and Immigration Checkpoints Take Toll on Border Towns|Andrew Becker, G. W. Schulz|June 18, 2013|DAILY BEAST
In 1992 the EPA removed 97,000 tons of liquid waste, and 60 tons of sludge from the site.
Our Most Polluted States|The Daily Beast|May 19, 2010|DAILY BEAST

One who has noticed it in the Teviot says, that the inhabitants there call it "sludge."
Notes and Queries, Vol. V, Number 129, April 17, 1852|Various
Sludge testifies to his religion even after he has lost his dignity and his honour.
Robert Browning|G. K. Chesterton
Appliances are made for this purpose, by which the sludge is pressed to a consistency of about 50 per cent.
Scientific American Supplement, No. 467, December 13, 1884|Various
In the mean time, Rust and Sludge became exceedingly sociable.
The Knickerbocker, Vol. 22, No. 1, July 1843|Various
When the sludge is discharged water is added through M to the proper level.
Acetylene, The Principles Of Its Generation And Use|F. H. Leeds

British Dictionary definitions for sludge

sludge

noun

soft mud, snow, etc

any deposit or sediment

a surface layer of ice that has a slushy appearance

(in sewage disposal) the solid constituents of sewage that precipitate during treatment and are removed for subsequent purification

Word Origin for sludge

C17: probably related to slush

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 sludge

sludge

"mud, mire, ooze," 1640s, of uncertain origin, possibly a variant of Middle English slutch "mud, mire," or a variant of slush (n.).

sludge

noun

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Origin of sludge

Examples from the Web for sludge

sludge

noun

Word Origin for sludge

sludge