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, or of preparing the earth for seed and raising crops by tillage; as, the culture of the soil.

To soil or sully; to tarnish, as reputation; to taint. He is . . . among the greatest prelates of this age, however his character may be defiled by . . . dirty hands. Swift.

To plant with a dibble; to make holes in (soil) with a dibble, for planting.

To turn up, or delve in, (earth) with a spade or a hoe; to open, loosen, or break up (the soil) with a spade, or other sharp instrument; to pierce, open, or loosen, as if with a spade. Be first to dig the ground. Dryden.

Soiled; sullied; of a dark or dusky color; dark brown; dirty. "Scraps of dingy paper." Macaulay.

To foul; to make filthy; to soil; as, to dirty the clothes or hands.

Having the corners of the leaves turned down and soiled by careless or long-continued usage; -- said of a book. Statute books before unopened, not dog-eared. Ld. Mansfield.

. 14. Dove tick (Zoöl.), a mite (Argas reflexus) which infests doves and other birds. -- Soiled dove, a prostitute. [Slang]

To wet and soil by dragging on the ground, mud, or wet grass; to drabble; to trail. Gray. With draggled nets down-hanging to the tide. Trench.

oilet stand. -- Top-dressing, manure or compost spread over land and not worked into the soil.

nic matter composing part of the surface of the globe, in distinction from the firm rock; soil of all kinds, including gravel, clay, loam, and the like; sometimes, soil favorable to the growth of plants; the visible surface of the globe; the ground; as, loose earth; rich earth. Give him a little earth for charity. Shak…

Any worm of the genus Lumbricus and allied genera, found in damp soil. One of the largest and most abundant species in Europe and America is L. terrestris; many others are known; -- called also angleworm and dewworm.

ne proprietor has in the estate of another proprietor, distinct from the ownership of the soil, as a way, water course, etc. It is a species of what the civil law calls servitude. Kent.

To make rich with manure; to fertilize; -- said of the soil; as, to enrich land by irrigation.

To make even or level; to level; to lay smooth. His temple Xerxes evened with the soil. Sir. W. Raleigh. It will even all inequalities Evelyn.

To engage in the business of tilling the soil; to labor as a farmer.

One who is devoted to the tillage of the soil; one who cultivates a farm; an agriculturist; a husbandman.

Fertile; productive; as, a fat soil; a fat pasture.

Hence; Richness; fertility; fruitfulness. Rich in the fatness of her plenteous soil. Rowe.

A peasant or cultivator of the soil among the Egyptians, Syrians, etc. W. M. Thomson.