dirty

[[t]dɜ͟ː(r)ti[/t]]

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dirtier, dirtiest, dirties, dirtying, dirtied

1) ADJ-GRADED If something is dirty, it is marked or covered with stains, spots, or mud, and needs to be cleaned.

She still did not like the woman who had dirty fingernails...

The dress had been brightly coloured, but it was stained and dirty now.

Syn:

grubby

Ant:

clean

2) VERB To dirty something means to cause it to become dirty.

[V n] He was afraid the dog's hairs might dirty the seats...

[V n] With poor quality tapes you could also risk dirtying the heads on your video recorder.

3) ADJ-GRADED: usu ADJ n (disapproval) If you describe an action as dirty, you disapprove of it and consider it unfair, immoral, or dishonest.

The gunman had been hired by a rival Mafia family to do the dirty deed.

ADV: ADV after v

Dirty is also an adverb.

Jim Browne is the kind of fellow who can fight dirty, but make you like it.

4) ADJ-GRADED: usu ADJ n If you describe something such as a joke, a book, or someone's language as dirty, you mean that it refers to sex in a way that some people find offensive.

He laughed at their dirty jokes and sang their raucous ballads...

Of course lots of kids read dirty books in their rooms and hide them under the mattress.

Syn:

smutty

ADV: ADV after v

Dirty is also an adverb.

I'm often asked whether the men talk dirty to me. The answer is no.

5) ADJ: ADJ n (emphasis) Dirty is used before words of criticism to emphasize that you do not approve of someone or something. [INFORMAL]

You dirty liar, don't try to be funny with me. I made you what you are.

6) PHRASE: V inflects (disapproval) If you say that someone washes their dirty linen in public, you disapprove of their discussing or arguing about unpleasant or private things in front of other people. There are several other forms of this expression, for example wash your dirty laundry in public, or in American English, air your dirty laundry in public.

The spectacle of the former naval officers washing their dirty linen in public was distinctly embarrassing...

We shouldn't wash our dirty laundry in public and if I was in his position, I'd say nothing at all.

7) PHRASE: N inflects, PHR after v If someone gives you a dirty look, they look at you in a way which shows that they are angry with you. [INFORMAL]

Jack was being a real pain. Michael gave him a dirty look and walked out.

8) PHRASE: N inflects, usu vlink PHR (disapproval) Dirty old man is an expression some people use to describe an older man who they think shows an unnatural interest in sex.

He was always trying it on. But now he's 71, it's causing problems. He's just a dirty old man.

9) PHRASE: V inflects To do someone's dirty work means to do a task for them that is dishonest or unpleasant and which they do not want to do themselves.

As a member of an elite army hit squad, the army would send us out to do their dirty work for them.

10) PHRASE: N inflects A dirty weekend is a weekend during which two people go away together, mainly in order to have sex. [BRIT, INFORMAL]

11) PHRASE: v-link PHR If you say that an expression is a dirty word in a particular group of people, you mean it refers to an idea that they strongly dislike or disagree with.

Marketing became a dirty word at the company.