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Added 9 October 2026

trash

/tɹæʃ/ noun

In Latin: quisquiliae, scrūta Wiktionary

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

Worthless material that is to be disposed of.
Worthless people.
Nonsensical talk or writing.

verb

Dispose of (something useless or old).
trash these old chairs
Express a totally negative opinion of.
The critics panned the performance

Origin

From Middle English trasch, trassh, probably a dialectal form of *trass (compare Orkney truss, English dialectal trous), from Old Norse tros (“rubbish, fallen leaves and twigs”), perhaps related to Proto-Germanic *þrakjaz (“dirt”). Pokorny instead derives it from Proto-Indo-European *dóru (“tree”). Compare Norwegian trask (“lumber, trash, baggage”), Swedish trasa (“rag, cloth, worthless fellow”), Swedish trås (“dry fallen twigs, wood-waste”). Compare also Old English þreax (“rottenness, rubbish”).

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

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