Synonyms: sediment, ooze, silt, mud More Synonyms of sludge
sludge in British English
(slʌdʒ)
noun
1.
soft mud, snow, etc
2.
any deposit or sediment
3.
a surface layer of ice that has a slushy appearance
4.
(in sewage disposal) the solid constituents of sewage that precipitate during treatment and are removed for subsequent purification
Word origin
C17: probably related to slush
sludge in American English
(slʌdʒ)
noun
1.
mud, mire, or ooze covering the ground or forming a deposit at the bottom of bodies of water
2.
spongy lumps of drift ice
3.
any heavy, slimy deposit, sediment, or mass, as the waste resulting from oil refining, the mud brought up by a mining drill, the precipitate in a sewage tank, the sediment in a steam boiler or crankcase, etc.
Derived forms
sludgy (ˈsludgy)
adjectiveWord forms: ˈsludgier or ˈsludgiest
Word origin
var. of slutch, sludge, mud: akin to ME sluchched, muddy, prob. ult. < IE base *(s)leu-, to hang limply > sleet, MHG slote, mud, ooze
Examples of 'sludge' in a sentence
sludge
The man was walking along a beach when he stepped into thick sludge.
The Sun (2013)
But she put it in the mixer and it turned out like a thick sludge.
Times, Sunday Times (2007)
Instead it was a thick, hard sludge.
The Sun (2015)
An alternative cover story would have been the leak of toxic sludge from a factory in Hungary.
Times, Sunday Times (2010)
The technology has been used on sewage sludge for more than a century and also produces a residue that is a valuable fertiliser.
Times, Sunday Times (2010)
While the capital blames those upstream for limiting its flow, those downstream complain of the toxic sludge it deposits.
Times, Sunday Times (2012)
It turns into thick sludge.
Times, Sunday Times (2009)
She said that the snow and sludge had helped to boost sales of boots, while tablet computers and smartphones continued to sell well.
Times, Sunday Times (2013)
In other languages
sludge
British English: sludge NOUN
Sludge is thick mud, sewage, or industrial waste.
More than a million gallons of sludge has seeped into the water.
American English: sludge
Brazilian Portuguese: resíduo
Chinese: 淤泥
European Spanish: lodo residual
French: boue
German: Schlamm
Italian: fanghiglia
Japanese: へどろ
Korean: 진창
European Portuguese: resíduo
Latin American Spanish: lodo residual
(noun)
Definition
any muddy or slushy sediment
All dumping of sludge will be banned.
Synonyms
sediment
ocean sediments
ooze
He thrust his hand into the ooze and brought out a large toad.
silt
The lake was almost solid with silt and vegetation.
mud
Their lorry got stuck in the mud.
muck
This congealed muck was interfering with the filter.
residue
slop
mire
the muck and mire of farmyards
slime
the muck and slime at the bottom of the pond
slush
slob (Irish)
dregs
gloop (informal)
Seeslime
Nearby words of
sludge
slow
slow down
slowly
sludge
slug
sluggish
sluggishness
Synonyms of 'sludge'
sludge
Explore 'sludge' in the dictionary
Additional synonyms
in the sense of ooze
Definition
a soft thin mud, such as that found at the bottom of a lake, river, or sea
He thrust his hand into the ooze and brought out a large toad.
Synonyms
mud,
clay,
dirt,
muck,
silt,
sludge,
mire,
slime,
slob (Irish),
gloop (informal),
alluvium
in the sense of silt
Definition
a fine sediment of mud or clay deposited by moving water
The lake was almost solid with silt and vegetation.
Synonyms
sediment,
deposit,
residue,
ooze,
sludge,
alluvium
in the sense of slime
Definition
soft runny mud or any sticky substance esp. when disgusting or unpleasant