Standard Lemma guide

midden

noun · 7 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

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  • /ˈmɪdən/
  • Southern-England: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
  • rhymes with -ɪdən

1

noun

Meaning 1

A dung heap.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

2

noun

Meaning 2

A refuse heap usually near a dwelling.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

3

noun

Meaning 3

An accumulation, deposit, or soil derived from occupation debris, rubbish, or other by-products of human activity, such as bone, shell, ash, or decayed organic materials; or a pile or mound of such materials, often prehistoric.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Topics: archaeology, history, human-sciences, sciences

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

4

noun

Meaning 4

A shelter made of vegetation and other materials by packrats.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Topics: biology, natural-sciences, zoology

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

5

noun

Meaning 5

An accumulation of dried urine and fecal deposits made by hyraxes.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Topics: biology, natural-sciences, zoology

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

6

noun

Meaning 6

a heap of dung or refuse

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: dunghill, muckheap, muckhill

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: pile, heap, mound, agglomerate, cumulation, cumulus

7

noun

Meaning 7

(archeology) a mound of domestic refuse containing shells and animal bones marking the site of a prehistoric settlement

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: eitchen midden, kitchen midden

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: dump, garbage dump, trash dump, rubbish dump, wasteyard, waste-yard, dumpsite

History

Etymology

From Middle English midding, myddyng, from Old Danish mykdyngja, (a compound of Old Norse myk, myki (“muck, manure”) and dyngja (“dung, dungpile”)), whence also Danish møgdynge and mødding, Norwegian mødding, dialectal Swedish mödding.

Across languages

Translations

15 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Finnish: tunkio — refuse heap
  • Galician: coañeira — refuse heap
  • German: Müllgrube — refuse heap
  • German: Müllhaufen — refuse heap
  • Serbo-Croatian: smetlište — refuse heap
  • Spanish: basural — refuse heap
  • Ukrainian: купа сміття (kupa smittja) — refuse heap
  • Danish: køkkenmødding — archeology: prehistoric pile of bones and shells
  • Finnish: tunkio — archeology: prehistoric pile of bones and shells
  • Icelandic: eldhúshaugur — archeology: prehistoric pile of bones and shells
  • Irish: carnán bruscair — archeology: prehistoric pile of bones and shells
  • Japanese: 貝塚 (kaidzuka) — archeology: prehistoric pile of bones and shells
  • Korean: 패총 (paechong) — archeology: prehistoric pile of bones and shells
  • Portuguese: cascal — archeology: prehistoric pile of bones and shells
  • Spanish: conchero — archeology: prehistoric pile of bones and shells