dung
/ˈdʌŋ/noun, verb, interjection
dung is spelled D-U-N-G: 4 letters and one syllable. It appears 1.7 times per million words in written English, the 21,516th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data, counting Dung, the name). As a noun, dung means “Manure; animal excrement” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of dung is dungs.
How many letters and syllables are in dung?
| Letters | 4: D-U-N-G |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 1 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | 1.7 times per million words; the 21,516th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation and the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How common is dung?
Dung appears 1.7 times per million words in written English, the 21,516th most frequent word form in the list. The list counts every capitalisation together, so this includes Dung, the name.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce dung?
- /ˈdʌŋ/
- /dʊŋ/
- /dʊŋɡ/
Dung has one syllable (counted from its American pronunciation in the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: LL-Q1860_(eng)-I_learned_some_phrases-dung.wav, En-us-dung.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Words people confuse with dung
Also written: dong.
Sources: English Wiktionary (homophones, alternative spellings).
Forms of dung
- dungs plural, present, singular, he/she/it
- dunging participle, present
- dunged participle, past
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does dung mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
Manure; animal excrement.
- 2
A type of manure, as from a particular species or type of animal.
- 3
UKobsoleteslangA tailor's employee, usually one who is paid by the piece rather than by the day.
verb
- 1
To fertilize with dung.
- 2
To immerse or steep, as calico, in a bath of hot water containing cow dung, done to remove the superfluous mordant.
- 3
To release dung: to defecate.
- 4
colloquialTo discard (especially rubbish); to chuck out.
interjection
- 1
Alternative spelling of dong (“sound of a bell”).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Dung in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | bouse, fumier, purin |
| German | Dünger, Mist , düngen |
| Portuguese | estrume, esterco |
| Spanish | excremento, estiércol |
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.
Where does dung come from?
From Middle English dung, dunge, donge, from Old English dung (“dung; excrement; manure”), from Proto-West Germanic *dungu, from Proto-Germanic *dungō (“dung”), from Proto-Indo-European *dʰengʰ- (“to cover”). Superseded non-native Middle English fen (“dung, excrement, filth”), from Old French fien, fiente (“dung, manure”).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).