dirty

B1 · Intermediate

adj. unfair, dishonest, or breaking the rules.

adj. violating accepted standards of fairness, ethics, or legality.

“The politician was accused of using dirty tricks to win the election.”

“The investigation revealed a series of dirty financial deals that had been hidden from the board of directors for years.”

B2 · Upper Intermediate Informal

adj. related to sex in a way that some people find offensive or rude.

adj. morally offensive, indecent, or lewd, particularly in a sexual context.

“He was embarrassed when his friend told a dirty joke at the dinner table.”

“The censors demanded that several dirty passages be removed from the manuscript before it could be approved for general publication.”

C1 · Advanced Cooking Informal

adj. used to describe a cocktail, like a martini, that has olive juice in it.

adj. referring to a cocktail, typically a martini, prepared with the addition of olive brine or juice.

“She ordered a dirty martini with extra olives at the hotel bar.”

“The bartender noted that a truly dirty martini requires high-quality brine to balance the botanical notes of the gin.”

C1 · Advanced Cooking Slang

adj. used to describe food that is very high in fat or calories but tastes great.

adj. referring to food that is highly indulgent, often featuring excessive toppings or high caloric density.

“We went out for dirty fries covered in cheese and bacon after the game.”

“The menu specialized in dirty burgers, attracting a late-night crowd looking for maximalist comfort food.”

C1 · Advanced Music Technical

adj. having unwanted background noise or distortion in a recording.

adj. characterised by unwanted signal noise, distortion, or lack of acoustic clarity.

“The producer wanted a dirty guitar sound for the rock track.”

“The engineer spent hours trying to clean up the dirty audio feed from the remote location before the broadcast went live.”

B1 · Intermediate

v. to make something become not clean.

v. to soil or stain something; to cause a surface to become physically unclean.

“Try not to dirty your new shoes while walking through the park.”

“The children managed to dirty the white carpet within minutes of arriving home from their rainy football practice.”