dirty
verb
- (cause to) become dirty
adjective
- not clean
Wiktionary
Pronunciation: /ˈdɜːti/ / /ˈdɝti/ / [ˈdɝɾi]
adj
Etymology: From Middle English dirti, alteration of earlier dritti, equivalent to dirt + -y. Cognate with Middle Low German drēterich (“dirty”). See also drite.
- Unclean; covered with or containing unpleasant substances such as dirt or grime.
“Despite a walk in the rain, my shoes weren't too dirty.”
“Many persons are more comfortable when they are dirty than when they are clean; but that does not recommend dirt as a national policy.”
- That makes one unclean; corrupting, infecting.
“Don't put that in your mouth, dear. It's dirty.”
- Morally unclean; obscene or indecent, especially sexually.
“At the reception, Uncle Nick got drunk and told dirty jokes to the bridesmaids.”
“He sets up little cameras 'cause he likes to watch her pee / He likes to watch her pee, he's trembling with glee / He sets up little cameras 'cause he likes to watch her pee / What a dirty little bastard he can be”
- Dishonorable; violating accepted standards or rules.
“He might have scored, but it was a dirty trick that won him the penalty.”
“The world 'as got me snouted jist a treat; Crool Forchin's dirty left 'as smote me soul.”
- Corrupt, illegal, or improper.
“I won't accept your dirty money!”
- Out of tune.
“You need to tune that guitar: the G string sounds dirty.”
- Of color, discolored by impurities.
“The old flag was a dirty white.”
- Containing data needing to be written back to memory or disk.
“Occasionally it reads the sector into a dirty buffer, which means it needs to sync the dirty buffer first.”
“Notice that an asterisk has been added to the filename in the edit window tabs. This is a simple reminder that the file is “dirty” and needs saving.”
- Carrying illegal drugs among one's possessions or inside of one's bloodstream.
“None of y'all get into my car if you're dirty.”
- Used as an intensifier, especially in conjunction with "great".
“He lives in a dirty great mansion.”
- Sleety; gusty; stormy.
“dirty weather”
“Storms of wind, clouds of dust, an angry, dirty sea.”
- Of an alcoholic beverage, especially a cocktail or mixed drink: served with the juice of olives.
“dirty martini”
- Of food, indulgent in an unhealthy way.
“You can call it quick-and-dirty if you like, but there are billions of dollars out there riding on the supposition that fast food is not necessarily dirty food.”
“Dirty keto refers to an approach that follows the typical keto macro ratios, but the components include “dirty” foods like fast food, packaged convenience foods, processed meats, artificially sweetened diet sodas and sports drinks, and unhealthy […]”
- Of food, covered in an array of indulgent toppings.
“Lardo in Portland, Oregon, serves "dirty fries" topped with fried rosemary, peppers, lardons, and Parmesan.”
“Piled high and oozing all the trimmings, the dirty burgers here are decidedly good – spice things up with jalapeños, brie or a seriously sticky BBQ sauce.”
- Spreading harmful radiation over a wide area.
“a dirty explosion”
“a dirty bomb”
- Having the undercarriage or flaps in the down position.
- Of an audio recording: containing unwanted noise.
- Producing much ash.
adv
Etymology: From Middle English dirti, alteration of earlier dritti, equivalent to dirt + -y. Cognate with Middle Low German drēterich (“dirty”). See also drite.
- In a dirty manner.
“to play dirty”
noun
Etymology: From Middle English dirti, alteration of earlier dritti, equivalent to dirt + -y. Cognate with Middle Low German drēterich (“dirty”). See also drite.
- Anything that is dirty.
“I had to get started on the trays. […] I started emptying it from the bottom, putting the dirties in the water. Then I could put the clean ones in the empty spaces to dry while I pulled more dirties from the next shelf up.”
“Dirty eggs are grouped roughly in three classes: (A) Plain dirties, those to which soil or dung adheres; […]”
verb
Etymology: From Middle English dirti, alteration of earlier dritti, equivalent to dirt + -y. Cognate with Middle Low German drēterich (“dirty”). See also drite.
- To make (something) dirty.
- To stain or tarnish (somebody) with dishonor.
- To debase by distorting the real nature of (something).
- To become soiled.
“The markers for the slow line signals have been arranged at cab level, but for the inner fast lines they have had to be kept low in the "six-foot", with the result that they tend to be badly dirtied by passing traffic.”