soil
1the portion of the earth's surface consisting of disintegrated rock and humus.
a particular kind of earth: sandy soil.
the ground as producing vegetation or as cultivated for its crops: fertile soil.
a country, land, or region: an act committed on American soil.
the ground or earth: tilling the soil.
any place or condition providing the opportunity for growth or development: Some believe that poverty provides the soil for crime.
Origin of soil
1Other words from soil
- soilless, adjective
Words Nearby soil
Other definitions for soil (2 of 3)
to make unclean, dirty, or filthy, especially on the surface: to soil one's clothes.
to smirch, smudge, or stain: The ink soiled his hands.
to sully or tarnish, as with disgrace; defile morally: to soil one's good name.
to become soiled: White soils easily.
Origin of soil
2Other words for soil
Other definitions for soil (3 of 3)
to feed (confined cattle, horses, etc.) freshly cut green fodder for roughage.
Origin of soil
3Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024
How to use soil in a sentence
To take care of the problem for real, the firefighters on the ground might cut down the tree, and break it up, and stir up the soil to make sure everything is out, and dig lines around it.
How aerial firefighters battle blazes from the skies | Rob Verger | August 27, 2020 | Popular-ScienceThe US, through a government initiative called Operation Warp Speed, has already spent more than $5 billion to get drug makers to manufacture vaccines on its soil.
Every country wants a covid-19 vaccine. Who will get it first? | Katie McLean | August 13, 2020 | MIT Technology Review“This entire biosphere of cells, equivalent in size to the world’s soils, hardly has enough energy to survive,” said James Bradley, a geobiologist at Queen Mary University of London and the lead author of the new modeling study.
‘Zombie’ Microbes Redefine Life’s Energy Limits | Jordana Cepelewicz | August 12, 2020 | Quanta MagazineInstruments on the rover and lander will test Mars’ soil composition and magnetic and gravitational fields and will probe Mars’ interior.
The Perseverance rover caps off a month of Mars launches | Lisa Grossman | July 30, 2020 | Science NewsThe Water Authority said its sales earlier this year dropped 14 percent, in part because Southern California had a really nice, wet winter, meaning the reservoirs and soils aren’t as parched as they have been during past droughts.
Environment Report: Why Your Water Bill Might Spike | MacKenzie Elmer | July 27, 2020 | Voice of San Diego
Marx forecast that the profit motive would lead to overworking and exhausting the fertility of our soil and other natural systems.
American Democracy Under Threat for 250 Years | Jedediah Purdy | December 28, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTThe others are difficult to identify, since they reacted with other oxygen-bearing molecules in the soil.
Under the new requirements, simply being born on U.S. soil would no longer be enough.
The Progressive Case Against Birthright Citizenship | Keli Goff | December 15, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTThe ground was fertile, with alluvial, or unconsolidated, soil.
In an interview with The Daily Beast in September, Paul said he was against the idea of U.S. forces on Middle East soil.
Rand Paul Declares War on ISIS—and Allows Boots on the Ground | Olivia Nuzzi | November 24, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTEggs and nestlings were found lying on the bare soil at the inner ends of the burrows; no nesting material was found.
Summer Birds From the Yucatan Peninsula | Erwin E. KlaasThis has a warm though a thin soil, which must be highly favorable to the Vine to induce so exclusive a devotion to it.
Glances at Europe | Horace GreeleyWhatever the species, it is well to imitate the natural conditions as much as possible in the way of soil.
How to Know the Ferns | S. Leonard BastinFor instance, the Limestone Polypody is not happy unless there is a certain amount of lime present in the soil.
How to Know the Ferns | S. Leonard BastinBroken crocks should be strewn upon the tray, and on to this is heaped peaty soil mixed with sand.
How to Know the Ferns | S. Leonard Bastin
British Dictionary definitions for soil (1 of 3)
/ (sɔɪl) /
the top layer of the land surface of the earth that is composed of disintegrated rock particles, humus, water, and air: See zonal soil, azonal soil, intrazonal soil, horizon (def. 4), horizon (def. 5) Related adjective: telluric
a type of this material having specific characteristics: loamy soil
land, country, or region: one's native soil
the soil life and work on a farm; land: he belonged to the soil, as his forefathers had
any place or thing encouraging growth or development
Origin of soil
1British Dictionary definitions for soil (2 of 3)
/ (sɔɪl) /
to make or become dirty or stained
(tr) to pollute with sin or disgrace; sully; defile: he soiled the family honour by his cowardice
the state or result of soiling
refuse, manure, or excrement
Origin of soil
2British Dictionary definitions for soil (3 of 3)
/ (sɔɪl) /
(tr) to feed (livestock) freshly cut green fodder either to fatten or purge them
Origin of soil
3Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
Scientific definitions for soil
[ soil ]
The loose top layer of the Earth's surface, consisting of rock and mineral particles mixed with decayed organic matter (humus), and capable of retaining water, providing nutrients for plants, and supporting a wide range of biotic communities. Soil is formed by a combination of depositional, chemical, and biological processes and plays an important role in the carbon, nitrogen, and hydrologic cycles. Soil types vary widely from one region to another, depending on the type of bedrock they overlie and the climate in which they form. In wet and humid regions, for example, soils tend to be thicker than they do in dry regions. See more at A horizon B horizon C horizon. See illustration at ABC soil.
The American Heritage® Science Dictionary Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
Cultural definitions for soil
Notes for soil
The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
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