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as in land
the solid part of our planet's surface as distinguished from the sea and air at the first sound of gunfire we hit the dirt

Synonyms & Similar Words

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as in dung
solid matter discharged from an animal's alimentary canal tread carefully, as there's cow dirt all over the pasture

Synonyms & Similar Words

Example Sentences

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.
Recent Examples of dirt One of the younger dogs was stretched on the dirt in front, apparently lifeless. Frank C. Hibben, Outdoor Life, 13 Feb. 2025 The city in 3 has scrubbed off the dirt and exchanged Lola’s video game aesthetic for something colder and more clinical. Scott Roxborough, The Hollywood Reporter, 12 Feb. 2025 This ensures dirt stays off the other belongings in my suitcase while making my travel-day outfit feel a little more spruced up. Theresa Holland, Travel + Leisure, 11 Feb. 2025 Even the soil must be removed, then filled in with more dirt to prevent erosion. Uma Raja, Sun Sentinel, 6 Feb. 2025 See All Example Sentences for dirt
Recent Examples of Synonyms for dirt
Noun
  • Rent a small car or Vespa to zip around the narrow roads, discovering vineyards with volcanic soil, prehistoric villages, and underwater caves along the way.
    Nicole Kliest, Vogue, 17 Feb. 2025
  • This step-by-step guide explains how to propagate hoya plants by rooting cuttings in water or layering in soil.
    Sheryl Geerts, Better Homes & Gardens, 17 Feb. 2025
Noun
  • Before this administration, no senior American official would have suggested that the U.S. should take anything but a leadership role in facing a major threat — let alone the greatest land war on the European continent since World War II.
    Ian Kelly, Chicago Tribune, 21 Feb. 2025
  • Here’s more from my seriously unserious conversation with Alva about the fictitious land deal (edited for clarity and brevity).
    Ryan Fonseca, Los Angeles Times, 21 Feb. 2025
Noun
  • Rory McIlroy lifted it out of the muck yet somehow controlled the 88-yard shot so well the ball caught the back of the green and spun back to 6 inches from the pin.
    Brody Miller, The Athletic, 14 Feb. 2025
  • His character, Leclerc, is a member of the mission's team, and photos show him in the muck alongside Zora and Duncan.
    EW.com, EW.com, 6 Feb. 2025
Noun
  • Here’s some of what the inspector found: About nine pieces of rodent dung in the lobby behind the drink station counter.
    David J. Neal, Miami Herald, 28 Jan. 2025
  • Hundreds of barefoot pilgrims undertook a parikrama one morning, picking around heaps of cow dung dotting the road.
    Omkar Khandekar, NPR, 5 Jan. 2025
Noun
  • Reddish light, which travels more directly in the air, manifests to ground observers during sunrises and sunsets when the sun is near the horizon and its incoming light travels at a longer, low-angle path through Earth's atmosphere.
    Eric Lagatta, USA TODAY, 19 Feb. 2025
  • The water ice on the surface of the world suggests that there should be more water hidden below ground.
    Jeffrey Kluger, TIME, 18 Feb. 2025
Noun
  • Maryland has made great strides in restoring underwater grasses in the Upper Bay, but inflows of raw sewage have to be hampering that progress.
    Reader Commentary, Baltimore Sun, 24 Feb. 2025
  • Questions mixed in the air with the smells of sewage and dust kicked up by bulldozers.
    New York Times, New York Times, 21 Feb. 2025
Noun
  • Even those Republicans who are wary of his volatile leadership style, penchant for vulgarity and willingness to violate conservative orthodoxies are generally reluctant to air those criticisms publicly.
    Mike Lillis, The Hill, 21 Dec. 2024
  • Corbet’s awkward forcing of his characters into his conceptual framework leads to absurdities and vulgarities—not least in the depiction of László’s first and only Black acquaintance, a laborer named Gordon (Isaach De Bankolé), as a heroin addict.
    Richard Brody, The New Yorker, 3 Jan. 2025
Noun
  • Hackman was discovered in the mud room, adjacent to the kitchen, with his sunglasses at his side.
    Zack Sharf, Variety, 28 Feb. 2025
  • Vacuum and spot-shampoo the carpeting and carpeted floor mats using a home rug-cleaning spray to avoid permanent stains from ground-in mud or road salt.
    Jim Gorzelany, Forbes, 28 Feb. 2025

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Cite this Entry

“Dirt.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/dirt. Accessed 3 Mar. 2025.

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