dusty

adjective

ˈdə-stē How to pronounce dusty (audio)
dustier; dustiest
Synonyms of dustynext
1
: covered or abounding with dust
2
: consisting of dust : powdery
3
: resembling dust
4
: lacking vitality : dry
dusty scholarship
5
British : unsatisfactory
—used especially in the phrases dusty answer and not so dusty
dustily
ˈdə-stə-lē How to pronounce dusty (audio)
adverb
dustiness
ˈdə-stē-nəs How to pronounce dusty (audio)
noun

Synonyms of dusty

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Examples of dusty in a Sentence

He pulled dusty candlesticks from the shelf. His new tie is a dusty blue.
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
The state was apportioned a bare 300,000 acre-feet a year in 1928, when Las Vegas was merely a dusty outpost miles from the Hoover Dam construction site. — Business Columnist, Los Angeles Times, 22 Oct. 2026 On July 2, 2025, a burst with energy equivalent to 1,000 suns blazing for 10 billion years lit up Fermi’s detectors, heading from a dusty galaxy about eight billion light-years from Earth. — Robin George Andrews, Scientific American, 20 Oct. 2026 Life more than 35 years of contact lens use, dusty sound stages, teleprompter screens and dry Los Angeles weather all contributed. — Samantha Agate, Sacbee.com, 19 Oct. 2026 Video shared by an activist at the scene, Amit Orfali, shows the French mayor, wearing a tricolor sash, leaning against a vehicle while sitting on the dusty ground. — ABC News, 17 Oct. 2026 See All Example Sentences for dusty

Word History

First Known Use

13th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of dusty was in the 13th century

Phrases Containing dusty

Rhymes for dusty

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Browse Nearby Words

dust wrapper
dusty
dusty aqua
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Cite this Entry

“Dusty.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/dusty. Accessed 27 Oct. 2026.

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Kids Definition

dusty

adjective
ˈdəs-tē How to pronounce dusty (audio)
dustier; dustiest
1
: filled or covered with dust
2
: resembling dust
dusty soil
dustily
-tə-lē How to pronounce dusty (audio)
adverb
dustiness
-tē-nəs How to pronounce dusty (audio)
noun
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