sludge

== English == === Alternative forms === slutch (Northern England, Scotland) === Etymology === From Middle English slugge, sluche (“mud, mire”), probably an alteration of Middle English sliche, slicche ("mud, slush, tar"; whence Modern English slitch), from Old English *sliċ, from Proto-West Germanic *sliki, *slīk, from Proto-Germanic *slikiz, *slīką (“mud, slush”). Cognate with Dutch slijk, German Schlick. Compare also slush. === Pronunciation === IPA(key): /slʌd͡ʒ/ Rhymes: -ʌdʒ === Noun === sludge (countable and uncountable, plural sludges) Solids separated from suspension in a liquid. A residual semi-solid material left from industrial, water treatment, or wastewater treatment processes. A sediment of accumulated minerals in a steam boiler. A mass of small pieces of ice on the surface of a water body. (uncountable, music) Ellipsis of sludge metal. (behavioral science) Institutional policies that introduce tedium and inefficiency in processes. ==== Synonyms ==== (separated solids): mire, mud, ooze, slush ==== Derived terms ==== ==== Translations ==== === Verb === sludge (third-person singular simple present sludges, present participle sludging, simple past and past participle sludged) (intransitive, informal) To slump or slouch. (intransitive) To slop or drip slowly.