ditch

About 3.86 uses per million words.

Meaning

1. noun A trench; a long, shallow indentation, as for irrigation or drainage.

   Digging ditches has long been considered one of the most demanding forms of manual labor.

2. noun A raised bank of earth and the hedgerow on top.
3. verb To discard or abandon; to stop associating with (someone).

   Once the sun came out we ditched our rain-gear and started a campfire.

4. verb To deliberately crash-land an airplane on water.

   When the second engine failed, the pilot was forced to ditch; their last location was just south of the Azores.

5. verb To deliberately not attend classes; to play hookey.

   The truant officer caught Louise ditching with her friends, and her parents were forced to pay a fine.

6. verb To dig ditches.

   Enclosure led to fuller winter employment in hedging and ditching.

7. verb To dig ditches around.

   The soldiers ditched the tent to prevent flooding.

8. verb To throw into a ditch.

   The engine was ditched and turned on its side.

Similar words

trench chuck gutter trenching hole pit foxhole trough sludge gulf

Often followed by

and was in of or to on is effort

Word family

ditched ditches ditching