soil
Pluralsoils (some meanings)
Pluralsoils (some meanings)
- 1The top layer of the ground, made of earth, tiny bits of rock, and dead plant matter, where plants grow.
Like a cozy bed where plant roots can rest and find food.
Good soil helps vegetables grow strong and healthy.
She filled the pot with fresh soil before planting the seeds.
UsageSay some soil or a bag of soil.
- 2
- 3
- 4A dirty mark or stain that makes something no longer clean.
Like the dark ring a dirty collar leaves on a white shirt.
She scrubbed the soil from the collar before washing the shirt.
A little soap will lift most soil out of the carpet.
UsageCommon in laundry talk: ground-in soil.
Similardirt, grime, filth, stain
Note
Less common meanings
- 5
- 6To make your clothes dirty by going to the bathroom in them by accident.
The sick child soiled his clothes during the night.
Older patients sometimes soil themselves when they cannot move quickly.
UsageSay soil yourself, soiled himself.
Similarfoul
- 7
- 8Animal waste such as dung or compost, used to make the ground richer for growing plants.
Like food for the ground, helping plants grow strong.
Long ago, farmers spread night soil on their fields.
In some old cities, workers collected night soil and sold it to farms.
UsageMostly in night soil.
Similarmanure, dung, muck, compost
Note
- 9To spoil or ruin something so that it no longer works or counts.
- 10To add manure to ground so that plants will grow better.
- 11A bag for holding dirty items, such as soiled laundry.
- 12A wet or marshy place where a hunted animal, like a boar or deer, goes to escape.
As Deere being ſtrucke flie thorow many ſoiles, / Yet ſtill the ſhaft ſitcks faſt, ſo ;
1603, John Marston, John Webster - 13To feed cattle or horses cut green grass indoors instead of letting them graze outside.
Showing meanings only.
Practice
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Origins
It comes from Middle English soile meaning "ground, earth," partly from a Latin word for "seat" confused with one for "ground," and partly from an Old English word sol meaning "mud."
Checked 1 Nov 2026 · 3 facts
- Soil comes from Middle English soile, meaning ground or earth. en.wiktionary.org
- The Latin source was solium, meaning seat, confused with solum, meaning soil or ground. dictionary.obspm.fr
- Soil derives partly from Old English sol, meaning mud. en.wiktionary.org
It comes from Middle English soilen meaning "to make dirty," from Old French and Old English words with the same meaning.
Checked 1 Nov 2026 · 2 facts
- The verb comes from Middle English soilen, meaning to make dirty. en.wiktionary.org
- Its Middle English ancestry includes Old French and Old English words meaning to make dirty. en.wiktionary.org