dredge

1 of 3

verb (1)

dredged; dredging

transitive verb

1
a
: to dig, gather, or pull out with or as if with a dredge (see dredge entry 2)
dredging oysters in the bay
often used with up
dredge up silt from the canal bottom
b
civil engineering : to deepen (a waterway) with a machine that removes earth usually by buckets on an endless chain or a suction tube : to deepen with a dredge (see dredge entry 2 sense 2)
2
: to bring to light by deep searching
often used with up
dredging up memories

intransitive verb

1
: to use a dredge
dredging for oysters
2
: to search deeply

dredge

2 of 3

noun

1
: an apparatus usually in the form of an oblong iron frame with an attached bag net used especially for gathering fish and shellfish
2
civil engineering : a machine for removing earth usually by buckets on an endless chain or a suction tube
3
nautical : a barge used in dredging

dredge

3 of 3

verb (2)

dredged; dredging

transitive verb

: to coat by sprinkling (as with flour)
dredge the chicken in flour
The fish is dredged with a cornmeal mixture and fried.

Examples of dredge in a Sentence

Verb (1) I've been dredging my memory bank, and I simply can't remember her name
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Verb
The dunes will be built from sand and sediment that will be dredged from the gulf or local ship channels. Xander Peters, Smithsonian Magazine, 27 June 2024 State of play: Workers are set to dredge and pipe 140,000 cubic yards of sand — enough to fill 43 Olympic swimming pools — to the shore between First and 22nd avenues, per a county news release. Kathryn Varn, Axios, 16 July 2024
Noun
Walk leaders will first discuss the Los Cerritos Wetlands and then take participants through heritage coastal sage scrub and dredge spoils. Jaclyn Cosgrove, Los Angeles Times, 31 Oct. 2024 The project, which is designed to include periodic nourishments every five to seven years for 50 years, got off to a rocky start when an original dredge location was delivering more rocks and pebbles than expected and a new borrow location had to be found. Laylan Connelly, Orange County Register, 31 Oct. 2024 See all Example Sentences for dredge 

Word History

Etymology

Verb (1)

derivative of dredge entry 2

Noun

perhaps from Old English *drecge; akin to Old English dræge dragnet, dragan to draw

Verb (2)

obsolete dredge, noun, sweetmeat, from Middle English drage, drege, from Anglo-French dragee, modification of Latin tragemata sweetmeats, from Greek tragēmata, plural of tragēma sweetmeat, from trōgein to gnaw

First Known Use

Verb (1)

1508, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1a

Noun

1602, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Verb (2)

1596, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of dredge was in 1508

Dictionary Entries Near dredge

Cite this Entry

“Dredge.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/dredge. Accessed 27 Nov. 2024.

Kids Definition

dredge

1 of 3 verb
dredged; dredging
1
a
: to dig, gather, or pull out with or as if with a dredge
dredged up scallops from the sea bottom
b
: to deepen (as a waterway) with a dredge
2
: to bring to light by deep searching
dredging up memories

dredge

2 of 3 noun
1
: an iron frame with an attached net used especially to catch fish or shellfish
2
: a machine for removing earth usually by buckets on a continuous chain or by a suction tube

dredge

3 of 3 verb
dredged; dredging
: to coat (food) by sprinkling (as with flour)
Etymology

Noun

probably from Old English dragan "to pull, drag"

Verb

from obsolete dredge (noun) "a candied fruit," derived from early French dragee (same meaning), from Latin tragemata (plural) "candied fruits," from Greek tragēmata (same meaning), derived from trōgein "to gnaw"

More from Merriam-Webster on dredge

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!