Ordure
/ˈɔːr.dʒər/noun
Filth, refuse, or excrement.
Did you know?Ordure entered English through French, and in older usage it could also mean moral corruption—proof that language has always turned dirt into a metaphor for spiritual decay.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Indo-European
PIE
*h₃er-
“to fit together, join”
Latin
Latin
ordināre
“to arrange, put in order”
Late Latin
Latin
ordinātūra
“arrangement; something ordered”
Old French
Old French
ordure
“dirt, filth, refuse”
Middle English
English
ordure
“filth, dung, refuse”
Modern English
English
ordure
“filth, refuse, or excrement”
Explore more surprising origins