Filth Meaning
/fɪlθ/Definition, CEFR level C1, pronunciation, examples, and quiz.
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Definition
nounDirt; foul matter; that which soils or defiles.
nounSmut; that which sullies or defiles the moral character; corruption; pollution.
Sentence Examples
Standing pools gather filth.
Filth and money lie close together.
There's a lot of filth in this city.
CEFR Practice Quiz
The abandoned house was covered in ____ after being left empty for ten years.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
The ancient ruins were covered in centuries of ____, which the archaeologists carefully brushed away.
Word Origin & History
From Middle English filth, from Old English fȳlþu, from Proto-West Germanic *fūliþu, equivalent to foul + -th (abstract nominal suffix).
Literary Quotations & Historical Citations
"Novv all theſe Precepts do not only tend to beget in us ſuch vertues and diſpoſitions, as are reaſonable and ſuitable to our nature, and every vvay for our temporal convenience and advantage; but ſuch, as do likevviſe exceedingly diſpoſe us to piety and religion, by purifying our ſouls from the droſs and filth of ſenſual delights."
— 1671, John Tillotson, “Phil[ippians] iij. 8.”, in Sermons Preach’d upon Several Occasions, London: […] A[nne] M[axwell] for Sa[muel] Gellibrand, […], →OCLC, pages 190–191:
"I think you're scum, I think you're filth. And as far as Elaine's concerned you're to get her out of your filthy mind right now."
— 1963, Charles Webb, The Graduate:
"They were filth, utter filth. I mean, and this tops it. She even bought the video of her sister dying, or at least the sex act that killed her."
— 2011, Jeremy Robert Hall, Summer Days:
"Riding through the city on my bike all day/'Cause the filth took away my licence"
— 2006, “LDN”, in Alright, Still, performed by Lily Allen:
"The British expatriate in Hong Kong has long been known as FILTH."
— 1994 September 8, Jojo Moyes, “Goodbye to the Hong Kong high life: Young Britons heading for a last outpost of empire are in for a shock, says Jojo Moyes”, in Independent:
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CEFR Practice Quiz
The abandoned house was covered in ____ after being left empty for ten years.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
The ancient ruins were covered in centuries of ____, which the archaeologists carefully brushed away.