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| dirt·y [ dúrtee ] |
adjective (comparative dirt·i·er, superlative dirt·i·est) |
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| Definition: |
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1. not clean: marked by or covered in dirt
  dirty fingernails
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2. causing dirt: creating dirt or pollution
a battered truck with a dirty engine
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3. making somebody grimy: likely to cause somebody to be filthy or grimy
Working on cars is a dirty job.
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4. not kept up: lacking care and maintenance, especially of dwellings in a neighborhood
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5. not honest or legal: lacking honesty or moral integrity, especially if the rules of a game or law have been broken
dirty tactics
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6. malicious: characterized by extreme meanness and cruelty
a dirty lie
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7. sexually suggestive: concerned with sex, especially in a way that is obscene or suggestive
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8. angry: expressing anger, displeasure, or disapproval
a dirty look
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9. lacking brightness or clarity: lacking in luster or clarity
(
often used in combination
)
The walls were a dirty green.
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10. stormy: characterized by heavy rain and strong winds
dirty weather
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11. radioactive: producing radioactive contamination
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12. despicable: behaving in a nasty or despicable way
(
informal
)
a dirty rascal
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13. relating to illegal drugs: relating to the use or sale of illegal drugs by somebody
(
slang
)
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adverb (comparative dirt·i·er, superlative dirt·i·est) |
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| Definition: |
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1. unfairly: in an unfair or dishonest way
You have to fight dirty if you want to win.
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2. suggestively: in a sexually suggestive or indecent way
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verb (past and past participle dirt·ied, present participle dirt·y·ing, 3rd person present singular dirt·ies) |
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| Definition: |
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1. transitive and intransitive verb make or become dirty: to make something or somebody dirty, or become dirty
He wouldn't want to dirty his hands with that kind of work.
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2. transitive verb dishonor something: to make something seem less honest or honorable
to dirty their reputation
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| dirt·i·ly adverb |
| dirt·i·ness noun |
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get your hands dirty
1. to perform menial or manual labor or work very hard
2. to perform or participate in a degrading or unpleasant act
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| Word Key: Synonyms |
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dirty, filthy, grubby, grimy, soiled, squalid, unclean
CORE MEANING: not clean
dirty marked by or covered in dirt;
Diesel engines have very dirty exhaust emissions.
Each year, over a million children die from diarrhea spread by dirty water.
filthy extremely or disgustingly dirty;
Just look at your shoes - they're filthy!
I was taken into a filthy room with little furniture.
grubby slightly dirty;
a rather grubby handkerchief
Traveling always made her feel grubby.
grimy heavily ingrained with accumulated dirt;
the faint light from a grimy window
The rescue workers' faces were tired and grimy.
soiled stained or marked, especially during normal use;
soiled bed linen
His white shirt was a little soiled.
squalid neglected, insanitary and unpleasant;
living in squalid conditions
She died alone in a squalid rooming house.
unclean dirty and insanitary, or impure in moral or religious contexts;
unclean water supplies
After such violent experiences, the victims often say they feel unclean.
People with leprosy were regarded as ritually unclean. |
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