ditch (dɪtʃ
)
Definitions
noun
- a narrow channel dug in the earth, usually used for drainage, irrigation, or as a boundary marker
- any small, natural waterway
- Irish a bank made of earth excavated from and placed alongside a drain or stream
- informal either of the gutters at the side of a tenpin bowling lane
- See last ditch
verb
- to make a ditch or ditches in (a piece of ground)
- (intr) to edge with a ditch
- slang to crash or be crashed, esp deliberately, as to avoid more unpleasant circumstances ⇒
he had to ditch the car
- (tr) slang to abandon or discard ⇒
to ditch a girlfriend
- slang to land (an aircraft) on water in an emergency
- (tr) US slang to evade ⇒
to ditch the police
Alternative Forms
ˈditcher noun ˈditchless adjectiveWord Origin
Old English dīc; related to Old Saxon dīk, Old Norse dīki, Middle High German tīch dyke, pond, Latin fīgere to stick, see dykeOld English related to Old Saxon Old Norse Middle High German dyke, pond, Latin to stick, see 1Synonyms
View thesaurus entryTranslations
- British English:
ditch
A ditch is a long narrow channel cut into the ground at the side of a road or field.Both vehicles landed in a ditch.dɪtʃ NOUN Both vehicles landed in a ditch.
- Spanish:
zanja
nf
- French:
fossé
nm
- German:
Graben
nm Gräben
- Chinese: 小沟 n
- Arabic: خَنْدَق n
- Portuguese: fosso nm
- Russian: канава nf
- Croatian: jarak nm
- Czech: stoka nf
- Danish: grøft nutr
- Dutch: sloot n
- Finnish: oja n
- Greek: χαντάκι nnt
- Italian: fosso nm
- Japanese: 溝 n
- Korean: 수로 n
- Norwegian: grøft nm
- Polish: rów nm
- Brazilian Portuguese: fosso nm
- European Spanish:
zanja
nf
- Swedish: dike nnt
- Thai: คูน้ำ n
- Turkish: hendek n
- Vietnamese: mương n
- British English:
ditch
If you ditch something, you get rid of it.I decided to ditch the sofa bed.dɪtʃ VERB I decided to ditch the sofa bed.
- Spanish:
desechar
v
- French:
abandonner
vt
- German:
abservieren
v
- Chinese: 抛弃 v
- Arabic: يَتْرُكُ v
- Portuguese: livrar-se de v
- Russian: выбрасывать v
- Croatian: odbaciti v
- Czech: pustit k vodě v
- Danish: skrotte v
- Dutch: afdanken v
- Finnish: hylätä v
- Greek: ξεφορτώνομαι v
- Italian: disfarsi v
- Japanese: 捨てる v
- Korean: 버리다 v
- Norwegian: kvitte (seg) med v
- Polish: zarzucić v zarzucać
- Brazilian Portuguese: livrar-se de v
- European Spanish:
desechar
v
- Swedish: göra sig av med v
- Thai: ทิ้ง v
- Turkish: sepetlemek v
- Vietnamese: bỏ v
Usage examples
He stood over Alistair impatiently while he pulled down his trousers and squatted in the ditch.
, A Worm of Doubt (1987)There's still time for the rejuvenated Cannon & Ball to make a last ditch pitch for the coveted Saturday slot.
Megastar (2004)They showed a chilling, grainy image of the Canadian soldiers conducting their exercises in a drainage ditch.
Edmonton Sun (2003)We can but hope they do the same, and ditch the Easter bonnets.
Glasgow Herald (2001)We had to cross over a deep ditch by means of a small footpath to reach our front garden.
, FRIENDS FOR LIFE (2003)