DUST


Meaning of DUST in English

— dustless , adj.

/dust/ , n.

1. earth or other matter in fine, dry particles.

2. a cloud of finely powdered earth or other matter in the air.

3. any finely powdered substance, as sawdust.

4. the ground; the earth's surface.

5. the substance to which something, as the dead human body, is ultimately reduced by disintegration or decay; earthly remains.

6. Brit.

a. ashes, refuse, etc.

b. junk 1 (def. 1).

7. a low or humble condition.

8. anything worthless.

9. disturbance; turmoil.

10. See gold dust .

11. the mortal body of a human being.

12. a single particle or grain.

13. Archaic. money; cash.

14. bite the dust ,

a. to be killed, esp. in battle; die.

b. to suffer defeat; be unsuccessful; fail: Another manufacturer has bitten the dust.

15. leave one in the dust , to overtake and surpass a competitor or one who is less ambitious, qualified, etc.: Don't be so meek, they'll leave you in the dust.

16. lick the dust ,

a. to be killed; die.

b. to humble oneself abjectly; grovel: He will resign rather than lick the dust.

17. make the dust fly , to execute with vigor or speed: We turned them loose on the work, and they made the dust fly.

18. shake the dust from one's feet , to depart in anger or disdain; leave decisively or in haste, esp. from an unpleasant situation: As the country moved toward totalitarianism, many of the intelligentsia shook the dust from their feet.

19. throw dust in someone's eyes , to mislead; deceive: He threw dust in our eyes by pretending to be a jeweler and then disappeared with the diamonds.

v.t.

20. to wipe the dust from: to dust a table.

21. to sprinkle with a powder or dust: to dust rosebushes with an insecticide.

22. to strew or sprinkle (a powder, dust, or other fine particles): to dust insecticide on a rosebush.

23. to soil with dust; make dusty.

v.i.

24. to wipe dust from furniture, woodwork, etc.

25. to become dusty.

26. to apply dust or powder to a plant, one's body, etc.: to dust with an insecticide in late spring.

27. dust off ,

a. Baseball. (of a pitcher) to throw the ball purposely at or dangerously close to (the batter).

b. to take out or prepare for use again, as after a period of inactivity or storage: I'm going to dust off my accounting skills and try to get a job in the finance department.

c. to beat up badly: The gang of hoodlums dusted off a cop.

[ bef. 900; ME; OE dust; c. G Dunst vapor ]

Random House Webster's Unabridged English dictionary.      Полный английский словарь Вебстер - Random House .