MEANING
1. Decayed plant and other organic material used to improve soil for growing plants.
2. To collect or allow organic material to decay into matter that can be added to soil.
Use it for
describing the product of organic decay in a garden; showing dead vegetation returning to the soil; distinguishing useful decomposed material from ordinary refuseNames decomposed organic material returning to soil, offering a precise life-cycle detail rather than a generic synonym for rot. Writing functions: Decay / Deterioration.
Words that belong together
- a compost heap
- garden compost
- add compost to the soil
On the page
Steam rose from the compost heap behind the empty house.
She worked compost into the bed where her mother had grown roses.
He composted the fallen leaves instead of burning them.
Behind the abandoned greenhouse, the piled stems had slowly composted.
Word forms
- Base
- compost
- Past tense
- composted
- Past participle
- composted
- Present participle
- composting
Usage notes
Material noun normally uncountable: compost, some compost. Verb: composts; composted; composted; composting. Can be transitive or intransitive when describing organic matter breaking down into compost. Register: neutral. Commonness: common in gardening and environmental contexts (dictionary-informed qualitative editorial estimate; not a measured frequency).
Practice this word in a sentenceYour margin notes
Keep a thought for later. Sign in to save privately.