sludgy

American

[sluhj-ee] / ˈslʌdʒ i /

adjective

sludgier, sludgiest

of or relating to sludge.
covered, lined with, or containing sludge.

sludgy British

/ ˈslʌdʒɪ /

adjective

consisting of, containing, or like sludge

"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

Etymology

Origin of sludgy

First recorded in 1775–85; sludge + -y ¹

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:

sludgy sludgier

That project is part of a trio of proposed pipelines that aim to deliver heavy oil from western Canada to Gulf Coast refineries able to process the sludgy crude.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 21, 2026

“A Big Bold Beautiful Journey” is sticky sweet and sludgy and so cloyingly aesthetic that the roadkill bleeds ropes of twee entrails.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 19, 2025

Cook over low heat under sludgy and thick; the cherries will have given up their juices.

From Salon ● May 6, 2025

It received mixed reviews, with The New York Times calling it a "sludgy travesty", while The Express praised Smith but said the show is a "catastrophic musical misfire".

From BBC ● Apr. 11, 2024

And now Bryson was sitting alone on the living room floor, trying to swallow sludgy oats and forget it all.

From "Look Both Ways" by Jason Reynolds

Here, though, the number was Mr. LeBlanc’s alone, and he gave in to his sludgier impulses, his voice oozing awkwardly around the lyrics, compressing them into unintelligibility.

From New York Times ● Jul. 23, 2010

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Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023