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Added 9 October 2026

soil

/sɔɪl/ noun

In Latin: humus Wiktionary

noun Definition from WordNet 3.1, Princeton University. Pronunciation from Wiktionary, via Kaikki.org. More about soil at Wordnik → Where our words come from →

The state of being covered with unclean things.
The part of the earth's surface consisting of humus and disintegrated rock.
Material in the top layer of the surface of the earth in which plants can grow (especially with reference to its quality or use).
the land had never been plowed

verb

Make soiled, filthy, or dirty.
don't soil your clothes when you play outside!

Origin

From Middle English soile, soyle, sule (“ground, earth”), partly from Anglo-Norman soyl (“bottom, ground, pavement”), from Latin solium (“seat, chair; throne”), mistaken for Latin solum (“ground, foundation, earth, sole of the foot”); and partly from Old English sol (“mud, mire, wet sand”), from Proto-Germanic *sulą (“mud, spot”), from Proto-Indo-European *sūl- (“thick liquid”). Cognate with Middle Low German söle (“dirt, mud”), Middle Dutch sol (“dirt, filth”), Middle High German sol, söl (“dirt, mud, mire”), Danish søle (“mud, muck”). Compare French seuil (“level; threshold”) and sol (“soil, earth; ground”). See also sole, soal, solum.

From Wiktionary, via Kaikki.org (CC BY-SA)

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