Illustration of litter
- litter 1a
1
a
: a covered and curtained couch provided with shafts and used for carrying a single passenger
a litter carried on the shoulders of four men—
Edwin Tunis
Edwin Tunis
b
: a device (such as a stretcher) for carrying a sick or injured person
The wounded soldier was carried to the rear by litter.
2
a(1)
: material used as bedding for animals
Fibrous peat was used as litter for livestock.
(2)
: material used to absorb the urine and feces of animals
b
: the uppermost slightly decayed layer of organic matter on the forest floor
3
: the offspring at one birth of a multiparous animal
a litter of puppies
4
a
: trash, wastepaper, or garbage lying scattered about
trying to clean up the roadside litter
b
: an untidy accumulation of objects
a shabby writing-desk covered with a litter of yellowish dusty documents—Joseph Conrad
Joseph Conrad
littered; littering; litters
1
2
: to give birth to a litter of (young)
3
a
: to strew with scattered articles
b
: to scatter about in disorder
c
: to lie about in disorder
their upside-down hats littered the top of the bar—Michael Chabon
Michael Chabon
d
: to mark with objects scattered at random
a book littered with misprints
Synonyms
Noun
- agglomerate
- agglomeration
- alphabet soup
- assortment
- botch
- clutter
- collage
- crazy quilt
- farrago
- gallimaufry
- grab bag
- gumbo
- hash
- hodgepodge
- hotchpotch
- jambalaya
- jumble
- jungle
- macédoine
- medley
- mélange
- menagerie
- miscellanea
- miscellany
- mishmash
- mixed bag
- montage
- motley
- muddle
- olio
- olla podrida
- omnium-gatherum
- pastiche
- patchwork
- patchwork quilt
- potpourri
- ragbag
- ragout
- rummage
- salad
- salmagundi
- scramble
- shuffle
- smorgasbord
- stew
- tumble
- variety
- welter
Examples of litter in a Sentence
Noun
We decided to pick up the litter in the park.
Her desk was covered with a litter of legal documents.
Verb
Paper and popcorn littered the streets after the parade.
a desk littered with old letters and bills
It is illegal to litter.
He had to pay a fine for littering.
Recent Examples on the WebUSA TODAY, 27 Apr. 2024
The silent crickets were found in both leaf litter and caves, suggesting researchers caught adaptation in action.
—Irene Wright, Miami Herald, 25 Apr. 2024
More than 300 streetlights were improved or added, 40 police cameras were installed, 180 tons of litter and dumping were cleaned up, and 17,688 linear feet of sidewalks were added, among other neighborhood improvements.
—Kamal Morgan, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 25 Apr. 2024
The two-plus minute video also caught glimpses of piles of litter scattered along the beach and women twerking.
—Chris Eberhart, Fox News, 22 Apr. 2024
Indy's litter brigade:New gang roaming the streets of Indianapolis is targeting ... litter?
—Karl Schneider, The Indianapolis Star, 19 Apr. 2024
Advertisement The city and fairgrounds announced April 16 in a joint statement that the settlement ensures appropriate levels of public safety and noise management, as well as traffic control, parking and litter abatement.
—Luke Harold, San Diego Union-Tribune, 17 Apr. 2024
In years past, the spring litter survey of Ecorse Creek was done on foot and by kayak.
—Bill Laytner, Detroit Free Press, 11 Apr. 2024
However, other more common pathogens are also found in poultry litter.
—Susanne Rust, Los Angeles Times, 18 Apr. 2024
Kaetlyn Liddy, NBC News, 18 Apr. 2024
The ranks of journalists in professional newsrooms has dropped precipitously, and failed news organizations litter the landscape.
—Alan Murray, Fortune, 9 Apr. 2024
Ostensibly taking place in New Jersey, the film more accurately resides in a make-believe littered with random pop-culture references and reckless genre transitions.
—Tim Grierson, Los Angeles Times, 29 Mar. 2024
Because of the need for trains to roll relatively slowly through Los Angeles traffic, the train tracks through that area are littered with the debris of a million package thefts.
—Bradley Brownell / Jalopnik, Quartz, 23 Mar. 2024
The yellow lids keep the recycling dry and prevent paper, aluminum and plastic from flying around and littering the streets and sidewalks.
—Mike Hendricks, Kansas City Star, 22 Mar. 2024
Examples of this are littered everywhere in the NFL.
—Alex Zietlow, Charlotte Observer, 5 Apr. 2024
But the narrow passageway from talent competition to bonafide star is littered with artists who never successfully made that transition.
—Jessica Nicholson, Billboard, 4 Apr. 2024
My old office, meanwhile, was littered with dozens of boxes that had been brought up from A.M.I.’s offices in Boca Raton, Fla.
—Lachlan Cartwright, New York Times, 3 Apr. 2024
Noun
Most kittens who end up flooding shelters are often not accidental litters from house pets but offspring of community cats or cat colonies.
—USA TODAY, 27 Apr. 2024
The silent crickets were found in both leaf litter and caves, suggesting researchers caught adaptation in action.
—Irene Wright, Miami Herald, 25 Apr. 2024
More than 300 streetlights were improved or added, 40 police cameras were installed, 180 tons of litter and dumping were cleaned up, and 17,688 linear feet of sidewalks were added, among other neighborhood improvements.
—Kamal Morgan, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 25 Apr. 2024
The two-plus minute video also caught glimpses of piles of litter scattered along the beach and women twerking.
—Chris Eberhart, Fox News, 22 Apr. 2024
Indy's litter brigade:New gang roaming the streets of Indianapolis is targeting ... litter?
—Karl Schneider, The Indianapolis Star, 19 Apr. 2024
Advertisement The city and fairgrounds announced April 16 in a joint statement that the settlement ensures appropriate levels of public safety and noise management, as well as traffic control, parking and litter abatement.
—Luke Harold, San Diego Union-Tribune, 17 Apr. 2024
In years past, the spring litter survey of Ecorse Creek was done on foot and by kayak.
—Bill Laytner, Detroit Free Press, 11 Apr. 2024
However, other more common pathogens are also found in poultry litter.
—Susanne Rust, Los Angeles Times, 18 Apr. 2024
Verb
The lead-up to release day has been littered with puzzles, Easter eggs and other hallmarks of Swift’s ever-theorizing fan base.
—Kaetlyn Liddy, NBC News, 18 Apr. 2024
The ranks of journalists in professional newsrooms has dropped precipitously, and failed news organizations litter the landscape.
—Alan Murray, Fortune, 9 Apr. 2024
Ostensibly taking place in New Jersey, the film more accurately resides in a make-believe littered with random pop-culture references and reckless genre transitions.
—Tim Grierson, Los Angeles Times, 29 Mar. 2024
Because of the need for trains to roll relatively slowly through Los Angeles traffic, the train tracks through that area are littered with the debris of a million package thefts.
—Bradley Brownell / Jalopnik, Quartz, 23 Mar. 2024
The yellow lids keep the recycling dry and prevent paper, aluminum and plastic from flying around and littering the streets and sidewalks.
—Mike Hendricks, Kansas City Star, 22 Mar. 2024
Examples of this are littered everywhere in the NFL.
—Alex Zietlow, Charlotte Observer, 5 Apr. 2024
But the narrow passageway from talent competition to bonafide star is littered with artists who never successfully made that transition.
—Jessica Nicholson, Billboard, 4 Apr. 2024
My old office, meanwhile, was littered with dozens of boxes that had been brought up from A.M.I.’s offices in Boca Raton, Fla.
—Lachlan Cartwright, New York Times, 3 Apr. 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'litter.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Articles Related to litter
Dictionary Entries Near litter
Cite this Entry
“Litter.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/litter. Accessed 3 May. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
litter
1 of 2 noun
lit·ter
ˈlit-ər 
1
a
: a covered and curtained couch with poles to use for handles that is used for carrying a single passenger
b
: a device (as a stretcher) for carrying a sick or injured person
2
: material spread in areas where farm animals (as cows or chickens) are kept especially to absorb their urine and feces
3
: the young born to an animal at a single time
a litter of puppies
4
: a messy collection of things scattered about : rubbish
litter
2 of 2 verb1
: to give birth to young
2
a
: to cover with litter
b
: to scatter about in disorder
c
: to lie about in disorder
Medical Definition
litter
1 of 2 noun
lit·ter
ˈlit-ər
1
: a device (as a stretcher) for carrying a sick or injured person
2
: the offspring at one birth of a multiparous animal
litter
2 of 2 transitive verb
: to give birth to a litter of (young)
: to give birth to a litter
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