litter

Meanings

1. 1
   noun

   Rubbish or trash left lying on the ground.

   Please don't drop litter in the park.

2. 2
   verb

   To leave rubbish lying around untidily.

   Cigarette butts littered the ground.

3. 3
   noun

   A group of young animals born to one mother at the same time.

   The dog gave birth to a litter of six puppies.

Appears in

Simplified etymology

Litter entered Middle English with the meaning "bed," following its Latin source lectus. The modern sense "rubbish left lying about" developed by the mid-18th century through the use of straw or rushes as bedding that was later discarded when dirty. A litter of young animals probably took its name from the sheltered bed where the mother gave birth.

From Middle English litere, lytere, etc., from Anglo-Norman litere, litiere, etc., from Old French litiere (“bedding; bed of loose straw; litter”), from Late Latin lectuāria (“bedding; blankets”), from Latin lectus (“bed; couch”) + -āria (“forming related nouns”), from Proto-Italic *lektos (“[thing] lain upon”), from *leɣō (“to lie down”), from Proto-Indo-European *legʰ-. Cognate with French lit and litière.

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External links

• Google Images
• Cambridge Dictionary
• Wiktionary