litter
Definitions from Wiktionary, a free dictionary
Contents |
[edit] English
[edit] Etymology
From French litière, from lit, ‘bed’, from Latin lectus; confer Greek λέκτρον. Had the sense ‘bed’ in very early English, but then came to mean ‘portable couch’, ‘bedding’, ‘strewn rushes (for animals)’, ...
[edit] Pronunciation
- Rhymes: -ɪtə(r)
[edit] Noun
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Singular |
Plural |
litter (countable and uncountable; plural litters)
- (countable) A platform mounted on two shafts, or a more elaborate construction, designed to be carried by two (or more) people to transport one (in luxury models sometimes more) third person(s) or (occasionally in the elaborate version) a cargo, such as a religious idol.
- (countable) The offspring of a mammal born in one birth.
- (uncountable) Material used as bedding for animals.
- (uncountable) Collectively, items discarded on the ground.
- (uncountable) Absorbent material used in an animal's litter tray
- (uncountable) Layer of fallen leaves and similar organic matter in a forest floor.
[edit] Synonyms
- (platform designed to carry a person or a load): palanquin, sedan chair, stretcher
[edit] Derived terms
[edit] Translations
platform designed to carry a person or a load
animals born in one birth
bedding for animals
discarded items
[edit] Verb
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Infinitive |
Third person singular |
Simple past |
Past participle |
Present participle |
to litter (third-person singular simple present litters, present participle littering, simple past and past participle littered)
- (intransitive) To drop or throw trash without properly disposing of it (as discarding in public areas rather than trash receptacles).
- By tossing the bottle out the window, he was littering.
- (transitive) To give birth to, used of animals.
[edit] Translations
drop or throw trash without properly disposing of it

