Library / English Dictionary

DUST

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

 I. (noun) 

Sense 1

Meaning:

Fine powdery material such as dry earth or pollen that can be blown about in the air

Example:

the furniture was covered with dust

Classified under:

Nouns denoting substances

Hypernyms ("dust" is a kind of...):

particulate; particulate matter (a small discrete mass of solid or liquid matter that remains individually dispersed in gas or liquid emissions (usually considered to be an atmospheric pollutant))

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "dust"):

chalk dust (dust resulting from writing with a piece of chalk)

fallout; radioactive dust (the radioactive particles that settle to the ground after a nuclear explosion)

Derivation:

dust (remove the dust from)

dusty (covered with a layer of dust)

Sense 2

Meaning:

Free microscopic particles of solid material

Example:

astronomers say that the empty space between planets actually contains measurable amounts of dust

Classified under:

Nouns denoting substances

Hypernyms ("dust" is a kind of...):

material; stuff (the tangible substance that goes into the makeup of a physical object)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "dust"):

interplanetary dust (microscopic particles in the interplanetary medium)

Derivation:

dust (distribute loosely)

dust (cover with a light dusting of a substance)

Sense 3

Meaning:

The remains of something that has been destroyed or broken up

Synonyms:

debris; detritus; dust; junk; rubble

Classified under:

Nouns denoting substances

Hypernyms ("dust" is a kind of...):

rubbish; scrap; trash (worthless material that is to be disposed of)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "dust"):

slack (dust consisting of a mixture of small coal fragments and coal dust and dirt that sifts out when coal is passed over a sieve)

Derivation:

dust (rub the dust over a surface so as to blur the outlines of a shape)

 II. (verb) 

Sense 1

Meaning:

Remove the dust from

Example:

dust the cabinets

Classified under:

Verbs of touching, hitting, tying, digging

Hypernyms (to "dust" is one way to...):

clean; make clean (make clean by removing dirt, filth, or unwanted substances from)

"Dust" entails doing...:

remove; take; take away; withdraw (remove something concrete, as by lifting, pushing, or taking off, or remove something abstract)

Sentence frames:

Somebody ----s
Somebody ----s something

Derivation:

dust (fine powdery material such as dry earth or pollen that can be blown about in the air)

duster (a piece of cloth used for dusting)

Sense 2

Meaning:

Rub the dust over a surface so as to blur the outlines of a shape

Example:

The artist dusted the charcoal drawing down to a faint image

Classified under:

Verbs of touching, hitting, tying, digging

Hypernyms (to "dust" is one way to...):

blur; smear; smudge; smutch (make a smudge on; soil by smudging)

Sentence frame:

Somebody ----s something

Sentence example:

They dust sugar over the cake

Derivation:

dust (the remains of something that has been destroyed or broken up)

Sense 3

Meaning:

Distribute loosely

Example:

He scattered gun powder under the wagon

Synonyms:

disperse; dot; dust; scatter; sprinkle

Classified under:

Verbs of touching, hitting, tying, digging

Hypernyms (to "dust" is one way to...):

discharge (pour forth or release)

Troponyms (each of the following is one way to "dust"):

spray (scatter in a mass or jet of droplets)

spray (be discharged in sprays of liquid)

plash; spatter; splash; splatter; splosh; swash (dash a liquid upon or against)

splash; splosh; sprinkle (cause (a liquid) to spatter about, especially with force)

bespangle (dot or sprinkle with sparkling or glittering objects)

aerosolise; aerosolize (disperse as an aerosol)

Sentence frames:

Somebody ----s something
Something ----s something
Somebody ----s something PP

Derivation:

dust (free microscopic particles of solid material)

Sense 4

Meaning:

Cover with a light dusting of a substance

Example:

dust the bread with flour

Classified under:

Verbs of touching, hitting, tying, digging

Hypernyms (to "dust" is one way to...):

cover (provide with a covering or cause to be covered)

Sentence frames:

Somebody ----s somebody with something
Somebody ----s something PP

Sentence example:

They dust the cake with sugar

Derivation:

dust (free microscopic particles of solid material)

Credits

 Context examples: 

Drylands are the main sources of Earth's atmospheric dust.

(Sleeping sands of the Kalahari awaken after more than 10,000 years, NSF)

Each closet needed but a glance, for all were empty, and all, by the dust that fell from their doors, had stood long unopened.

(The Strange Case Of Dr. Jekyll And Mr. Hyde, by Robert Louis Stevenson)

“Those are the lights of Harwich, I suppose,” said the secretary, pulling on his dust coat.

(His Last Bow, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

As he clattered up, Alleyne could see that the roan horse was gray with dust and flecked with foam, as though it had left many a mile behind it.

(The White Company, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

Mate, he was saying, it's because I thinks gold dust of you—gold dust, and you may lay to that!

(Treasure Island, by Robert Louis Stevenson)

Begone, vile insect! Or rather, stay, that I may trample you to dust!

(Frankenstein, by Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley)

They flashed past us in a rolling cloud of dust, and I had just a glimpse of the pale, handsome face of the master, and of the dark, shrivelled features of the man.

(Rodney Stone, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

It filters the air you breathe, removing dust, germs, and irritants.

(Nose Injuries and Disorders, NIH)

In allergies, exposure to mold, pollen or dust may trigger sneezing, watery eyes, and coughing.

(Initiator, NCI Dictionary)

Car emissions, chemicals from factories, dust, pollen and mold spores may be suspended as particles.

(Air Pollution, Environmental Protection Agency)