rhizoverbBeta
DictionaryditchDug channel
noun / verb

ditch

DICH/dɪtʃ/

A narrow channel dug in the ground.

A shallow ditch carries rainwater away from the road after storms.

Long narrow drainage ditch freshly dug alongside farm path, exposed earth and shallow water.
Etymology
ditchOld Englishditch, trench

Old English dic named an excavation. Ditch preserves that hollow-in-the-ground meaning, while the related word dike also came to name the bank of earth thrown up beside it.

In context

Dose Of History9:02
Jackson fortified a line along the Rodriguez Canal, a dry drainage ditch that ran perpendicular to the Mississippi River
The BLOODBATH of British Troops at New Orleans Was Hidden From History

More examples

  • We dug a ditch along the edge of the garden.
  • Irrigation ditches carry water to the crops.
  • The crew ditched the wet field to improve drainage.

Forms

ditch · ditches · ditched · ditching

Similar words

trench
Often deeper, dug for utilities, foundations, or military protection.
channel
May be natural rather than dug, especially in waterways.