Added 10 October 2026
sludge
/slʌd͡ʒ/ noun
noun Definition from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA). Pronunciation from Wiktionary, via Kaikki.org. More about sludge at Wordnik → Where our words come from →
- Solids separated from suspension in a liquid.
- A residual semi-solid material left from industrial, water treatment, or wastewater treatment processes.
- A sediment of accumulated minerals in a steam boiler.
verb
Origin
From Middle English slugge, sluche (“mud, mire”), probably an alteration of Middle English sliche, slicche ("mud, slush, tar"; whence Modern English slitch), from Old English *sliċ, from Proto-West Germanic *sliki, *slīk, from Proto-Germanic *slikiz, *slīką (“mud, slush”). Cognate with Dutch slijk, German Schlick. Compare also slush.
From Wiktionary, via Kaikki.org (CC BY-SA)