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Noun: soil  soyl
  1. Material in the top layer of the surface of the earth in which plants can grow (especially with reference to its quality or use)
    "good agricultural soil";
    - land, ground
     
  2. The part of the earth's surface consisting of humus and disintegrated rock
    - dirt
     
  3. The geographical area under the jurisdiction of a sovereign state
    "American troops were stationed on Japanese soil";
    - territory
     
  4. Anything regarded as making something unclean
    - dirt, filth, grime, stain, grease, grunge
Verb: soil  soyl
  1. Make soiled, filthy, or dirty
    "don't soil your clothes when you play outside!";
    - dirty, begrime, grime, colly [archaic], bemire [archaic]
     
  2. (of someone's image or good reputation) damage, place under suspicion or cast doubt upon
    - defile, sully, corrupt, taint, cloud, tarnish, stain
     
  3. Make dirty or spotty, as by exposure to air
    - tarnish, stain, maculate [literary], sully, defile
     
  4. Make dirty by defecation
    "he soiled his pants"

Derived forms: soils, soiling, soiled

Type of: alter, article, blob, blot, change, deflower, dirtiness, earth, fleck, geographic area, geographic region, geographical area, geographical region, ground, impair, mar, modify, object, physical object, pollute, spoil, spot, uncleanness, vitiate

Antonym: clean

Encyclopedia: Soil, Soil