soil – English noun declension

English noun forms of soil

Noun: soil
Singularsoil
Pluralsoils

Sample Sentences

  • We bought a bag of soil for the houseplants.
  • Except during the season in town, she spends her year in golfing, either at St Magnus or Pau, for, like all good Americans, she has long since abjured her native soil. [1902, Robert Marshall Grade, The Haunted Major:]
  • Pro-democracy demonstrations in the Thai capital saw Germany's embassy become the focus Monday as the throngs of protesters gathered in front of the mission asked Berlin to investigate whether King Maha Vajiralongkorn is inappropriately conducting state business on German soil. [2020 October 27, Apornrath Phoonphongphiphat, Yuda Masayuki, “Thailand protesters query German embassy on absent king”, in Nikkei Asia, Nikkei Inc, retrieved 27 Oct 2020:]
  • And ſince not only a dead Fathers fame, / But more a Ladies honour muſt be touch’d, / Which nice as Ermines will not bear a Soil ; / Let all retire ; that you alone may hear / What ev’n in whiſpers I won’d tell your ear. [1690, John Dryden, Don Sebastian, King of Portugal: A Tragedy Acted at the Theatre Royal, London: Jo. Hindmarſh, act V, page 118:]
  • Precleaning treatments in combination with warewashing were evaluated for removing tahini soils. [2026 February 26, Jeremiah Kidd, David Buckley, Peter Teska, Amandeep K. Sandhu, Tina Gettis, Marc Boyer, Laurie Williams, Lauren S. Jackson, “Effectiveness of Manual and Mechanical Warewashing Methods for Removing Allergen- and Gluten-Containing Foods from Food-Contact Surfaces Used in Retail and Food Service Operations”, in Journal of Food Protection, volume 89, number 2, →DOI, page 100689:]
  • As Deere being ſtrucke flie thorow many ſoiles, / Yet ſtill the ſhaft ſitcks faſt, ſo ; [1603, John Marston, John Webster, The Malcontent, act III, scene i:]
  • night soil
  • HAving given you an Account of the way of ordering of Meadows, Paſtures and Arable Land, with ſeveral Sorts of Improvement of them ; I ſhall in the next place proceed to give an Account of the ſeveral ways uſed to improve Land by Manure, Dung, and other Sort of Soils. [1707, J[ohn] Mortimer, “Of Manuring, Dunging, and Soiling of Land”, in The Whole Art of Husbandry; Or, The Way of Managing and Improving of Land, 2nd edition, London: J. H. for H. Mortlock, and J. Robinſon, published 1708, page 66:]

Etymology

1. From Middle English soile, soyle, sule (“ground, earth”), partly from Anglo-Norman soyl (“bottom, ground, pavement”), from Latin solium (“seat, chair; throne”), mistaken for Latin solum (“ground, foundation, earth, sole of the foot”); and partly from Old English sol (“mud, mire, wet sand”), from Proto-Germanic *sulą (“mud, spot”), from Proto-Indo-European *sūl- (“thick liquid”). Cognate with Middle Low German söle (“dirt, mud”), Middle Dutch sol (“dirt, filth”), Middle High German sol, söl (“dirt, mud, mire”), Danish søle (“mud, muck”). Compare French seuil (“level; threshold”) and sol (“soil, earth; ground”). See also sole, soal, solum.
2. For the sole and soil relation, compare typologically Russian по́чва (póčva) akin to подо́шва (podóšva). See: Middle English Nouns 'soile', Latin Nouns 'solium', Latin Nouns 'solum', Old English Nouns 'sol', Danish Nouns 'søle', French Nouns 'seuil'.