How to Use bilge in a Sentence

bilge

noun
  • That magazine prints a lot of bilge about celebrities.
  • The men had to sleep on the deck because the bilge backed up and the smell was so bad.
    — Roxanne Washington, cleveland.com, 25 Mar. 2018
  • Wastewater and bilge drained into the bay.
    — Steven Rosenfeld, Mercury News, 6 Sep. 2025
  • But if the bilge filled up and the bilge pump failed, that would leave the motor submerged.
    — Ian McNanie, Popular Mechanics, 20 Mar. 2018
  • Crocs and Kevlar gloves and weapons-grade sunglasses slosh around the bilge.
    — Ben Lowy, Smithsonian, 23 May 2018
  • Leave the bilge plug out during transport (in some states, this is required by law).
    — Dinah Voyles Pulver, USA Today, 3 May 2026
  • But the escape hatches were still sealed; the bilge pumps hadn’t been used; the air hatches were closed.
    — Carl Engelking, Discover Magazine, 23 Aug. 2017
  • Boaters can pump out their bilge and holding tanks at no charge at one of two facilities in the harbor.
    — Phil Diehl, San Diego Union-Tribune, 26 Apr. 2026
  • This includes bilge drains, cooler compartments, baitwells and livewells.
    — Arkansas Online, 21 Oct. 2025
  • Drain all water from the boat, including the motors, bilge, live wells, and bait buckets.
    — Abigail Rosenthal, Chron, 6 Aug. 2021
  • The plant often hitches rides on boat propellers, in bilge water and on floatplane floats.
    — Author: Elizabeth Earl, Anchorage Daily News, 20 June 2019
  • The whalemen spend several days cleaning the ship and themselves, from the bilges to the top of the mainmast.
    — Longreads, 21 Sep. 2017
  • Down in the bilge, in a duffel bag, were a radio, sextant, compass and clock, in case of emergency.
    — The Economist, 29 Aug. 2020
  • The young adult male, which rescuers named Gilbert, was drinking water from a boat's bilge pump at the marina.
    — David Goodhue, Sun-Sentinel.com, 7 July 2018
  • Sailors of yore sang to pass the time and to coordinate their efforts in hoisting sails and anchors, and manning the bilge pumps.
    — David Sharp, Star Tribune, 29 Jan. 2021
  • My smuggling vessel thrashed violently back and forth, swamped to the point of sinking, with the bilge pumps set to overdrive.
    — Martin Suarez, Rolling Stone, 13 Sep. 2025
  • Then all at once Finley was up and pushing against my chest, spluttering between us what looked like a gallon of sea bilge.
    — Charna Flam, People.com, 25 Aug. 2025
  • In a building across a gully was a wooden rowboat, its blue paint peeling and prickly pear cactus growing in the bilge.
    — Washington Post, 4 Feb. 2022
  • The researchers found pieces of the ships, including bronze nails, lead pipes from a bilge pump and parts of a large iron anchor, likely broken in a storm.
    — Livia Gershon, Smithsonian Magazine, 23 Dec. 2021
  • Disinfecting live wells and bilges with a bleach solution (one-half cup bleach to 5 gallons of water).
    — Keith Matheny, Freep.com, 3 July 2026
  • Remove drain plugs and drain all water from bilges, ballast tanks and live wells before transporting a watercraft.
    — Keith Matheny, Freep.com, 3 July 2026
  • The time Microsoft’s chatbot Tay was trained by Twitter users to parrot racist bilge.
    — Tad Friend, The New Yorker, 7 May 2018
  • Officials also noticed flooding in the bilge and secured the source before towing the vessel.
    — Andrea Klick, Oc Register, 18 Aug. 2025
  • So Systrom gathered a team to sort through massive piles of bilge, buffoonery, and low-grade extortion on the platform.
    — WIRED, 14 Aug. 2017
  • The bilge pumps were not operational, and the AAV began taking on water.
    — Samantha Hendrickson, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, 12 Aug. 2021
  • The sharp drop in steam pressure also shut down both bilge pumps, so both passengers and crew worked strenuously as part of a bucket brigade to fight off the rising water.
    — Jennifer Ouellette, Ars Technica, 6 Dec. 2022
  • Allain took off in a skiff for Christensen while the Mork sisters tried to keep the boat afloat, Betty at the wheel and Marie on the bilge pump.
    — David Reamer, Anchorage Daily News, 10 Oct. 2022
  • The loss of its transmission also affected the operation of the vehicle’s bilge pumps, the Marines said.
    — Andrew Dyer, San Diego Union-Tribune, 25 Mar. 2021
  • Various rare items were also visible aboard the ancient wreck, including a wooden bilge pump and a capstan, a wide cylinder used for winding up lengths of rope.
    — William J. Broad, New York Times, 22 July 2019
  • Unlike the posh flag cabin Haley was assigned to sleep in, the bilge at the bottom of the ship typically fills with water and mosquitos.
    — Karissa Waddick, USA Today, 1 July 2026

Some of these examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'bilge.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

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