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Webster 1913 Edition

Soil

Soil

(soil)
,
Verb.
T.
[
imp. & p. p.
Soiled
(soild)
;
p. pr. & vb. n.
Soiling
.]
[OF.
saoler
,
saouler
, to satiate, F.
soûler
, L.
satullare
, fr.
satullus
, dim. of
satur
sated. See
Satire
.]
To feed, as cattle or horses, in the barn or an inclosure, with fresh grass or green food cut for them, instead of sending them out to pasture; hence (such food having the effect of purging them), to purge by feeding on green food;
as, to
soil
a horse
.

Soil

,
Noun.
[OE.
soile
, F.
sol
, fr. L.
solum
bottom, soil; but the word has probably been influenced in form by
soil
a miry place. Cf.
Saloon
,
Soil
a miry place,
Sole
of the foot.]
1.
The upper stratum of the earth; the mold, or that compound substance which furnishes nutriment to plants, or which is particularly adapted to support and nourish them.
2.
Land; country.
Must I thus leave thee, Paradise? thus leave
Thee, native
soil
?
Milton.
3.
Dung; faeces; compost; manure;
as, night
soil
.
Improve land by dung and other sort of
soils
.
Mortimer.
Soil pipe
,
a pipe or drain for carrying off night soil.

Soil

,
Verb.
T.
To enrich with soil or muck; to manure.
Men . . .
soil
their ground, not that they love the dirt, but that they expect a crop.
South.

Soil

,
Noun.
[OF.
soil
,
souil
, F.
souille
, from OF.
soillier
, F.
souiller
. See
Soil
to make dirty.]
A marshy or miry place to which a hunted boar resorts for refuge; hence, a wet place, stream, or tract of water, sought for by other game, as deer.
As deer, being stuck, fly through many
soils
,
Yet still the shaft sticks fast.
Marston.
To take soil
,
to run into the mire or water; hence, to take refuge or shelter.
O, sir, have you
taken soil
here? It is well a man may reach you after three hours’ running.
B. Jonson.

Soil

,
Verb.
T.
[OE.
soilen
, OF.
soillier
, F.
souiller
, (assumed) LL.
suculare
, fr. L.
sucula
a little pig, dim. of
sus
a swine. See
Sow
,
Noun.
]
1.
To make dirty or unclean on the surface; to foul; to dirty; to defile;
as, to
soil
a garment with dust
.
Our wonted ornaments now
soiled
and stained.
Milton.
2.
To stain or mar, as with infamy or disgrace; to tarnish; to sully.
Shak.
Syn. – To foul; dirt; dirty; begrime; bemire; bespatter; besmear; daub; bedaub; stain; tarnish; sully; defile; pollute.

Soil

,
Verb.
I.
To become soiled;
as, light colors
soil
sooner than dark ones
.

Soil

,
Noun.
[See
Soil
to make dirty,
Soil
a miry place.]
That which soils or pollutes; a soiled place; spot; stain.
A lady's honor . . . will not bear a
soil
.
Dryden.

Webster 1828 Edition

Soil

SOIL

, v.t.
1.
To make dirty on the surface; to foul; to dirt; to stain; to defile; to tarnish; to sull; as, to soil a garment with dust. Out wonted ornaments now soil'd and stain'd.
2.
To cover or tinge with any thing extraneous; as, to soil the earth with blood.
3.
To dung; to manure.

Definition 2024

soil

soil

English

Soil at varying depths.

Noun

soil ‎(countable and uncountable, plural soils)

  1. (uncountable) A mixture of sand and organic material, used to support plant growth.
  2. (uncountable) The unconsolidated mineral or organic material on the immediate surface of the earth that serves as a natural medium for the growth of land plants.
  3. (uncountable) The unconsolidated mineral or organic matter on the surface of the earth that has been subjected to and shows effects of genetic and environmental factors of: climate (including water and temperature effects), and macro- and microorganisms, conditioned by relief, acting on parent material over a period of time. A product-soil differs from the material from which it is derived in many physical, chemical, biological, and morphological properties and characteristics.
  4. Country or territory.
    The refugees returned to their native soil.
    Kenyan soil
  5. That which soils or pollutes; a stain.
    • Dryden
      A lady's honour […] will not bear a soil.
  6. A marshy or miry place to which a hunted boar resorts for refuge; hence, a wet place, stream, or tract of water, sought for by other game, as deer.
    • Marston
      As deer, being stuck, fly through many soils, / Yet still the shaft sticks fast.
  7. Dung; compost; manure.
    night soil
    • Mortimer
      Improve land by dung and other sort of soils.
Synonyms
Derived terms
Related terms
Translations
See also

Etymology 2

From Middle English soilen, soulen, suylen ‎(“to sully, make dirty”), partly from Old French soillier, souillier ‎(“to soil, make dirty, wallow in mire”), from Old Frankish *sauljan, *sulljan ‎(“to make dirty, soil”); partly from Old English solian, sylian ‎(“to soil, make dirty”), from Proto-Germanic *sulwōną, *sulwijaną, *saulijaną ‎(“to soil, make dirty”), from Proto-Indo-European *sūl- ‎(“thick liquid”). Cognate with Old Saxon sulian ‎(“to soil, mire”), Middle Dutch soluwen, seulewen ‎(“to soil, besmirch”), Old High German solagōn, bisullen ‎(“to make dirty”), German dialectal sühlen ‎(“to soil, make dirty”), Danish søle ‎(“to make dirty, defile”), Swedish söla ‎(“to soil, make dirty”), Gothic 𐌱𐌹𐍃𐌰𐌿𐌻𐌾𐌰𐌽 ‎(bisauljan, “to bemire”).

Verb

soil ‎(third-person singular simple present soils, present participle soiling, simple past and past participle soiled)

  1. (transitive) To make dirty.
    • Milton
      Our wonted ornaments now soiled and stained.
  2. (intransitive) To become dirty or soiled.
    Light colours soil sooner than dark ones.
  3. (transitive, figuratively) To stain or mar, as with infamy or disgrace; to tarnish; to sully.
    (Can we find and add a quotation of Shakespeare to this entry?)
  4. (reflexive) To dirty one's clothing by accidentally defecating while clothed.
  5. To make invalid, to ruin.
  6. To enrich with soil or muck; to manure.
    • South
      Men […] soil their ground, not that they love the dirt, but that they expect a crop.
Synonyms
Derived terms
Translations

Noun

soil ‎(plural soils)

  1. (uncountable, euphemistic) Faeces or urine etc. when found on clothes.
  2. (countable, medicine) A bag containing soiled items.
Translations
Synonyms
  • (faeces or urine etc.): dirt

Etymology 3

From Middle English soyl, from Old French soil, souil ‎(“quagmire, marsh”), from Frankish *sōlja, *saulja ‎(“mire, miry place, wallow”), from Proto-Germanic *sauljō ‎(“mud, puddle, feces”), from Proto-Indo-European *sūl- ‎(“thick liquid”). Cognate with Old English syle, sylu, sylen ‎(“miry place, wallow”), Old High German sol, gisol ‎(“miry place”), German Suhle ‎(“a wallow, mud pit, muddy pool”).

Noun

soil ‎(plural soils)

  1. A wet or marshy place in which a boar or other such game seeks refuge when hunted.

Etymology 4

Old French saoler, saouler ‎(“to satiate”).

Verb

soil ‎(third-person singular simple present soils, present participle soiling, simple past and past participle soiled)

  1. To feed, as cattle or horses, in the barn or an enclosure, with fresh grass or green food cut for them, instead of sending them out to pasture; hence (such food having the effect of purging them), to purge by feeding on green food.
    to soil a horse

Anagrams

Basque

Adjective

soil

  1. bald

See also

  • burusoil

Rohingya

Etymology

From Bengali.

Noun

soil

  1. rice

Etymology

From Middle English soile, soyle, sule ‎(“ground, earth”), partly from Anglo-Norman soyl ‎(“bottom, ground, pavement”), from Latin solium ‎(“seat, threshold, place”), mistaken for Latin solum ‎(“ground, foundation, earth, sole of the foot”); and partly from Old English sol ‎(“mud, mire, wet sand”), from Proto-Germanic *sulą ‎(“mud, spot”), from Proto-Indo-European *sūl- ‎(“thick liquid”). Cognate with Middle Low German söle ‎(“dirt, mud”), Middle Dutch sol ‎(“dirt, filth”), Middle High German sol, söl ‎(“dirt, mud, mire”), Danish søle ‎(“mud, muck”). See also sole, soal.

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /sɔɪl/

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