dirty adjective - Definition, pictures, pronunciation and usage notes | Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary at OxfordLearnersDictionaries.com

Definition of dirty adjective from the Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary

dirty

adjective
 
/ˈdɜːti/
 
/ˈdɜːrti/
(comparative dirtier, superlative dirtiest)
Idioms
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    not clean

  1. not clean
    • dirty hands/clothes/dishes
    • My thumb had left a dirty mark on the paper.
    • Try not to get too dirty!
    • She didn't want to get her dress dirty.
    • They found him huddled under a dirty old blanket
    • I always get given the dirty jobs (= jobs that make you become dirty).
    Synonyms dirtydirtydusty filthy muddy soiled grubby stainedThese words all describe somebody/​something that is not clean.dirty not clean; covered with dust, soil, mud, oil, etc:
    • If your hands are dirty, go and wash them.
    dusty full of dust; covered with dust:
    • There were shelves full of dusty books.
    filthy very dirty and unpleasant:
    • It’s absolutely filthy in here.
    muddy full of or covered in mud:
    • Don’t you come in here with those muddy boots on!
    soiled (rather formal) dirty, especially with waste from the body:
    • soiled nappies/​diapers
    grubby (rather informal) rather dirty, usually because it has not been washed:
    • He hoped she wouldn’t notice his grubby shirt cuffs.
    stained (often in compounds) covered with stains; marked with a stain (= a dirty mark that is difficult to remove):
    • a pair of paint-stained jeans
    Patterns
    • dirty/​dusty/​filthy/​muddy/​soiled/​grubby/​stained clothes
    • dirty/​dusty/​filthy/​grubby hands
    • a dirty/​dusty/​filthy room
    • to get dirty/​dusty/​filthy/​muddy/​stained
    Extra Examples
    • Everything in the room was incredibly dirty.
    • Go and play football if you like, but don't get dirty!
    • He's not frightened of getting his hands dirty.
    • The soot had made everything dirty.
    • If your hands are dirty, go and wash them.
    • The dirty clothes go in the washing machine.
    Oxford Collocations Dictionaryverbs
    • be
    • feel
    • look
    adverb
    • extremely
    • fairly
    • very
    See full entry
  2. offensive

  3. [usually before noun] connected with sex in an offensive way
    • a dirty joke/book
    • He's got a dirty mind (= he often thinks about sex).
  4. unpleasant/dishonest

  5. [usually before noun] (informal) unpleasant or dishonest
    • That's a dirty lie!
    • They discovered her dirty little secret.
    • She's a dirty player.
    • He's a great man for doing the dirty jobs (= jobs which are unpleasant because they involve being dishonest or mean to people).
    • You dirty liar!
  6. colours

  7. [only before noun] not bright
    • a dirty brown carpet
  8. drugs

  9. (North American English, slang) using illegal drugs
Idioms
air/wash your dirty laundry/linen in public
  1. (disapproving) to discuss your personal affairs in public, especially something embarrassing
(do somebody’s) dirty work
  1. (to do) the unpleasant or dishonest jobs that somebody else does not want to do
    • Next time you can get somebody else to do your dirty work for you!
    • He always gets someone else to do the dirty work for him.
    • The drugs gang used children to do their dirty work for them.
do the dirty on somebody
  1. (British English, informal) to cheat somebody who trusts you; to treat somebody badly or unfairly
    • I'd never do the dirty on my friends.
down and dirty (North American English, informal)
  1. behaving in an unfair or aggressive way, especially because you want to win
    • The candidate again got down and dirty with his rival.
    • The online campaign was getting down and dirty.
  2. rude and making you feel shocked
    • The singer got down and dirty at the club last night and made headlines again.
    • The singers are a down-and-dirty duo from Ohio.
  3. Alliteration in idioms
get your hands dirty
  1. to do physical work
    • He's not frightened of getting his hands dirty.
give/shoot somebody a dirty look
  1. (informal) to look at somebody in a way that shows you are annoyed with them
See dirty in the Oxford Advanced American DictionarySee dirty in the Oxford Learner's Dictionary of Academic English
ensure
verb
 
 
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