muck

Wet, dirty material that feels unpleasant.

• My boots are covered in muck.
• She washed the sticky muck off her hands.
• There was a pool of gray muck under the sink.

Similar words: sludge, slime, filth

Common phrases: covered in muck, sticky muck, wash off muck, thick muck

Dirt or anything unpleasant, disgusting, or worthless.

• Get that muck off the table.
• I won't eat that disgusting muck.
• The cleaner removed years of muck from the walls.

Similar words: dirt, filth, rubbish

Common phrases: clean off muck, disgusting muck, eat that muck

If you do this to something, you spoil it or cause it to go wrong.

• Don't muck this up.
• I mucked up the booking and chose the wrong date.
• The delay has mucked our plans up.

How to use it: muck something up (One small mistake mucked the whole plan up.)

Similar words: mess up, spoil, bungle

Common phrases: muck something up, muck up plans

To play or behave without being serious, often wasting time.

• The kids like to muck around.
• We spent the afternoon mucking about in the garden.
• Stop mucking around during the lesson.

How to use it: muck around/about (Stop mucking about and finish your homework.)

Similar words: fool around, mess about, play around

Common phrases: muck around, muck about, muck around with something

To remove waste and dirty bedding from a place where animals live.

• We need to muck out the stable.
• He mucked the pigs' pen out before breakfast.
• Who is mucking out the stalls today?

How to use it: muck out something / muck something out (She mucks the stable out every morning.)

Similar words: clean out

Common phrases: muck out stables, muck something out, muck out a stall, muck a stable