sludge

noun

ˈsləj 

1

: mud, mire

especially : a muddy deposit (as on a riverbed) : ooze

2

: a muddy or slushy mass, deposit, or sediment: such as

a

: precipitated solid matter produced by water and sewage treatment processes

b

: muddy sediment in a steam boiler

c

: a precipitate or settling (such as a mixture of impurities and acid) from a mineral oil

3

: slush sense 5

sludgy

ˈslə-jē 

adjective

Synonyms

• guck
• gook
• mire
• muck
• mud
• ooze
• slime
• slop
• slush

Examples of sludge in a Sentence

after a day of heavy rain, the fairgrounds had turned into pure sludge

I can't bring myself to read that sludge.

Recent Examples on the Web

Torrents of poisonous sludge pouring through collapsed tailings dams have contaminated waterways in Brazil, Canada, and elsewhere and killed hundreds of people—in addition to the hundreds, possibly thousands, of miners who die in workplace accidents each year. —Vince Beiser, WIRED, 30 Nov. 2024

Even The Daily Mail picked it up—the surest sign that a story has become part of the Internet’s lowbrow sludge. —Frederick Dreier, Outside Online, 21 Nov. 2024

As a result, sludge in healthcare marketing causes: • Ineffective communication. —Harshit Jain, Forbes, 5 Nov. 2024

Then Elon Musk, the world richest’s man, got involved, meming the squirrel to oblivion while his minions began cranking out AI sludge of former President Donald Trump and Peanut standing triumphantly, together. —Elisabeth Garber-Paul, Rolling Stone, 4 Nov. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Middle English slugge, perhaps alteration of slicche mud, slush; akin to Old High German slīh mire

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Kids Definition

sludge

noun

ˈsləj 

1

: mud, mire

2

: a muddy or slushy mass

especially : solid matter produced by water and sewage treatment processes

sludgy

ˈsləj-ē 

adjective

Medical Definition

sludge

1 of 2 noun

ˈsləj 

: a semisolid precipitated mass or deposit

biliary sludge

especially : sludged blood

sludge

2 of 2 intransitive verb

sludged; sludging

: to form sludge

positions that cause blood to sludge

—L. K. Altman