# trash, rubbish, litter



## olivia7957

Hello! since Im not a native, its very confusing for me when to use trash, rubbish, or litter. I cant get a nuance.
I'd appreciate it if someone could explain when to use whichone.. thank you!


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## EnchiladaJack

It's a regional thing.  In American English, you would rarely use "rubbish;" you're more likely to hear "trash" or "garbage."  In British English, "rubbish" is used more often than either "trash" or "garbage."

As for litter, I don't think I've ever heard it used in American English to mean anything other than (a) trash that has been improperly discarded outside of a trashcan (e.g. thrown on the ground), or (b) a group of animal offspring (e.g. "a litter of cats").


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## HSS

In American English, you'd more often than not distinguish between garbage and trash, the first referring to wet discard, such as from kitchen, and the second to dry discard, such as thrown-away paper, dust etc. Is there any such usage with different words meaning different types of waste in British English? Rubbish for both wet and dry kinds of discard?

Best,

Hiro


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## almostfreebird

I won't say "trash" for litter, because it conjures up the word "white trash".


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## Spira

almostfreebird said:


> I won't say "trash" for litter, because it conjures up the word "white trash".


 
I understand what you feel, but you have it slightly the wrong way round, as "white trash" is an expression referring to real trash, meaning garbage, bad, good to throw away, dismissable etc  
In this case specifically applied to the lowest social class of white Americans, usually from the south-east states. The implication (which could be hotly disputed) is that these representatives of the one-time so-called superior race have sunk lower than low - they have become no better than trash (garbage).
All very politically incorrect, of course.

The expression "white trash" is totally unused in the UK for the simple reason that the word trash is not used to describe garbage (rubbish) in the UK, and because relations between the whites and blacks are also rather different from in the US.


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## natkretep

EnchiladaJack said:


> As for litter, I don't think I've ever heard it used in American English to mean anything other than (a) trash that has been improperly discarded outside of a trashcan (e.g. thrown on the ground), or (b) a group of animal offspring (e.g. "a litter of cats").



What about animal droppings? As in 'dog litter', 'cat litter'.

Apart from the words mentioned, you also hear 'refuse' (the noun, with the stress on the first syllable) and 'waste'.

The people who collect them could be dustmen, rubbish collectors and refuse collectors.


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## mangoman

HSS said:


> In American English, you'd more often than not distinguish between garbage and trash, the first referring to wet discard, such as from kitchen, and the second to dry discard, such as thrown-away paper, dust etc. Is there any usage with different words meaning different types of refuge like that in British English? Rubbish for both wet and dry kinds of discard?
> 
> Best,
> 
> Hiro



In everyday usage, both would be called "rubbish". We also have "waste paper", as in "waste paper bin", for what would be called "trash" in a "trashcan" in AE, even though it might contain e.g. orange peel or plastic, as well as paper.

"Refuse" is hardly used in everyday speech, it's jargon used by local government and waste contractors.

"Dust" used to be used for all kinds of rubbish: "I'm putting the dust out". But it's largely disappeared, except as part of "dustbin" (any kind of bin, for any kind of rubbish), and that some older people still call the guy who collects the rubbish "the dustman", and most people call him "the dustbin man".


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## mangoman

natkretep said:


> What about animal droppings? As in 'dog litter', 'cat litter'.




Not in British English. Dog or cat "shit", or "mess".

"Cat litter" is something else entirely: a kind of gravel that people buy and put in a tray for their cat to go to the toilet in.


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## mangoman

EnchiladaJack said:


> As for litter, I don't think I've ever heard it used in American English to mean anything other than (a) trash that has been improperly discarded outside of a trashcan (e.g. thrown on the ground), or (b) a group of animal offspring (e.g. "a litter of cats").



In British English, the same, plus:



mangoman said:


> "Cat litter" is something else entirely: a kind of gravel that people  buy and put in a tray for their cat to go to the toilet in.


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## HSS

Is a half-eaten apple that's thrown away trash? I'd call it garbage. But is it because it's not mixed with other food and not dirty that the apple here is called trash?(Nibbling on an apple, _the warden Harris is speaking to Sawyer, a prisoner working in front of him_)
WARDEN HARRIS: Don't think I can't extend your stay, Ford. All it takes  is one call. One call.
(_He drops his apple onto the floor_)
WARDEN HARRIS: How about you  get that *trash*?
(Lost, Every Man for Himself)​


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## Smc6288

To answer your more recent question, I have to go back to your prior response and disagree with you.



HSS said:


> In American English, you'd more often than not distinguish between garbage and trash, the first referring to wet discard, such as from kitchen, and the second to dry discard, such as thrown-away paper, dust etc.


 

I was born and raised in America and never once did I make that distinction between garbage and trash. The two words are completely interchangeable today in the U.S.

AKA - we can have a trash can or a garbage can - both mean the same thing. The person who collects is usually a garbageman or a garbage collector, but I have heard trash collector.

Therefore, yes.  An apple that is thrown away can be considered both trash or garbage.


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## HSS

Oh, I see, Smc. I've kept calling something like gook from dinner only garbage, but I may be able to call it trash too, right?

Thanks, Smc.

Hiro


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## Tricksy

I agree with Smc6288's distinction.  Though the two words can be used interchangeably, but I generally use the word _garbage_ to describe discarded food and other wet or sticky items, and _trash_ to describe waste paper and other dry items or a mixture of both.  The machine attached to a sink drain that grinds up food waste is called a _garbage disposal_, and the machine that squashes dry waste into a small bundle is called a _trash compactor._


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## Smc6288

HSS said:


> Oh, I see, Smc. I've kept calling something like gook from dinner only garbage, but I may be able to call it trash too, right?


 
Yes, my mother would tell me to "Take out the trash" or to "Empty the garbage can" - both while referring to the bin full of "rubbish" in our kitchen.  Which word you use entirely depends on whatever word first pops into your head.


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## Learned Hand

While trash and garbage are generally used interchangeably, there are instances where you would make the distinction.  My sister recently started composting.  She insists we separate the trash, paper and plastic products, from the garbage like food.

Some sinks also have garbage disposals that let you dump food into your sink.  You would never say trash disposal for this feature.


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## stdaaviid

And which one of them is consider more formal than the others? e.g. "May  I collect your ...? Rubbish/garbage/trash? (Colleting rubbish in an  office)

Thanks,

David


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## ewie

stdaaviid said:


> And which one of them is consider more formal than the others? e.g. "May  I collect your ...? Rubbish/garbage/trash? (Colleting rubbish in an  office)


Hullo David.  As far as I'm concerned (British English), _rubbish_ is neutral in register: it's the word everyone uses.
As stated above, _trash _and _garbage_ are predominantly American English terms.
_Refuse_ is the very formal or jargon term, used only by town councils etc.

_Litter_ is used in both countries to refer to rubbish/trash/garbage thrown or dropped in the street.


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## RM1(SS)

Tricksy said:


> I agree with Smc6288's distinction.  Though the two words can be used interchangeably, but I generally use the word _garbage_ to describe discarded food and other wet or sticky items, and _trash_ to describe waste paper and other dry items or a mixture of both.



That's the way I was taught, though which term I would use for a mixture would depend on the relative proportions of each.


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## Egmont

Smc6288 said:


> ... I was born and raised in America and never once did I make that distinction between garbage and trash. The two words are completely interchangeable today in the U.S. ...


I think "in the U.S." is far to broad a statement. There are regional factors at work here. I was raised mostly in one part of the U.S., where this distinction was not made. Then I moved to another region, where the distinction was observed in everyday speech. People would look at you strangely if you referred to a piece of waste paper as "garbage." 

The most one can say is that in a specific part of the U.S., where a poster lives or lived, the distinction is not made and the words are interchangeable. Some words are used identically throughout the U.S., but far from all of them!


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## stdaaviid

Thank you all for your help!

David


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## Elwintee

ewie said:


> Hullo David.  As far as I'm concerned (British English), _rubbish_ is neutral in register: it's the word everyone uses. [...]



Perhaps this is off-topic, but I can't resist saying that here in the UK 'Rubbish!', when shouted at politicians during a meeting is far from *neutral*.  It is a very effective form of heckling, indicating that they are talking nonsense with which you profoundly disagree.  US citizens are deprived if they cannot use that, as a fiercely rolled 'r', then the double-b sound, followed by a disgusted 'sh' at the end seems far more insulting that shouting 'garbage' or even 'trash'.


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## wandle

Reminds me of the Morecambe and Wise catchphrase: _'What do you think of it so far?' 'Rubbish!'_


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## Yaroslava

I always throw away grabage in the morning. Is it ok with this phrase about throwing away? Or there is another one? And when should I use the word trash? Is there any difference between "trash" and "garbage"

Moderator note: this thread has been merged with an earlier one.


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## sdgraham

It depends. What do you mean specifically by "throw away?" In other words, please describe the action.

When I want to throw something away, I do so by putting it *in* the trash or garbage. 

Once a week, I put the garbage *out* to be picked up or if I have large trash I *dispose* of it by taking it the dump.

If you search for garbage, trash and rubbish you will find many, many related discussions.


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## Yaroslava

I mean I have a lot of used stuff in my trash bin in the kitchen and I get rid of it every morning. Do you get this?


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## Egmont

The difference between _trash_ and _garbage_ is a matter of regional usage. I grew up in an area where they meant the same: anything that is discarded. Then I moved to an area where _garbage_ meant only food waste, including items removed during food preparation and food that was prepared but not eaten. Everything else was _trash. _The distinction mattered, because the town where I lived at the time collected garbage from residents - but not trash. We had to keep the two separate and dispose of our trash on our own. If the garbage collectors found trash mixed with your garbage, you were warned once (maybe twice, it was a few decades ago). After that, they stopped collecting your garbage.

(We didn't use the word _rubbish_ much in this context.)


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## Keith Bradford

sdgraham said:


> ...When I want to throw something away, I do so by putting it *in* the trash or garbage.
> 
> Once a week, I put the garbage *out* to be picked up or if I have large trash I *dispose* of it by taking it the dump.
> 
> ...



I agree with that, making allowance for regional variations (in Britain 'trash/garbage' = *rubbish *and 'the dump' *= the tip*).


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## Myridon

Yaroslava said:


> I mean I have a lot of used stuff in my trash bin in the kitchen and I get rid of it every morning. Do you get this?


You "threw away" the used stuff when you put it in the trash bin.  The process of getting rid of the contents of the trash bin is something else.  Most of us put this out by the street or alley so a truck can come by and pick it up, so we say something like "set out", "put out" or "take out" the trash.


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## Yaroslava

I get this. Being said we put it out into some special stuff like stairwell box in Moscow districts and there we normally smoke or chat with folks stopped by, I have no idea how to call this trash box in English then.


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## Susan Y

On each floor of the apartment block I live in we have a cupboard with an opening to the rubbish chute (also known as garbage chute). Perhaps this is what you mean? Each morning I empty the small rubbish bin in my kitchen into this chute. I call it _putting the rubbish out_ or _putting the rubbish down the chute_.


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## Doktor Zlo

Yaroslava said:


> I get this. Being said we put it out into some special stuff like stairwell box in Moscow districts and there we normally smoke or chat with folks stopped by, I have no idea how to call this trash box in English then.



Yeah, like Susan Y said, that's a _garbage chute/rubbish chute._


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## Yaroslava

Guys you've helped me so much!


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## zaffy

Smc6288 said:


> Yes, my mother would tell me to "Take out the trash" or to "Empty the garbage can" - both while referring to the bin full of "rubbish" in our kitchen. Which word you use entirely depends on whatever word first pops into your head.



And what would a BE mum say? Do these work?

_Take out the rubbish.
Take out the bin._


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## ewie

Probably _Take the bin out_. Or _Go and empty the bin._

DISCLAIMER: I Am Not A Mum. (I'm not even a dad.)


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## Via32

Hi, 

What would you refer to a piece of paper/a cigarette butt/an empty plastic bottle/etc lying on the street? Is it trash? Litter? Garbage? Rubbish? Something else?

An example sentence I'd like to use the word in:
'Ahh don't touch it, it's just trash/litter/garbage/rubbish/... and it's dirty!'

Thank you in advance.


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## Tegs

You will probably find this earlier post from this thread useful:



EnchiladaJack said:


> It's a regional thing.  In American English, you would rarely use "rubbish;" you're more likely to hear "trash" or "garbage."  In British English, "rubbish" is used more often than either "trash" or "garbage."
> 
> As for litter, I don't think I've ever heard it used in American English to mean anything other than (a) trash that has been improperly discarded outside of a trashcan (e.g. thrown on the ground), or (b) a group of animal offspring (e.g. "a litter of cats").


As for this question:


Via32 said:


> What would you refer to a piece of paper/a cigarette butt/an empty plastic bottle/etc lying on the street?


1. Paper - rubbish
2. cigarette butt - a cigarette butt
3. Bottle of any kind, empty or full - rubbish.



Via32 said:


> Ahh don't touch it, it's just trash/litter/garbage/rubbish/... and it's dirty!'



Presuming you are speaking to a child, I wouldn't use any of those, I would just say "Don't touch that, it's dirty!"


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## Via32

Tegs said:


> As for this question:
> 
> 1. Paper - rubbish
> 2. cigarette butt - a cigarette butt
> 3. Bottle of any kind, empty or full - rubbish.
> 
> 
> 
> Presuming you are speaking to a child, I wouldn't use any of those, I would just say "Don't touch that, it's dirty!"



Thank you Tegs, very interesting. So you wouldn't consider cigarette butts rubbish? How about any unidentifiable piece of anything (be it paper/plastic/metal) lying on the street? You don't have a collective term for _everything_ that shouldn't be on the street but in a trash can?


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## dojibear

Via32 said:


> You don't have a collective term for _everything_ that shouldn't be on the street but in a trash can?


In AE, anything that should be put in a trash can, but instead is dropped on the street (or the sidewalk, or a grassy area, or a public park, or any other public place) is called *litter*.

A person that does this action is a *litterbug*.

The verb for doing this action is *littering* ("to litter").


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## Tegs

Via32 said:


> How about any unidentifiable piece of anything (be it paper/plastic/metal) lying on the street?


"Metal" is very vague - large pieces of metal, for example, are "junk". A small pile of stuff together on the ground is "rubbish" whatever it's made of. 


Via32 said:


> you wouldn't consider cigarette butts rubbish?


An individual cigarette butt is what you asked about initially, and that I would call "a cigarette butt", not "rubbish". A pile of them in an ashtray would be "cigarette butts", not "rubbish". If they're in a collection of other things on the ground, then they're part of a pile of "rubbish".


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## a little edgy

In AE, the things you describe would be called "trash" (or possible "garbage" in some areas - it's regional) if they were very numerous. "What a disgrace! The streets are filled with trash." 

If they was only one cigarette butt or plastic bag, we would probably call it "litter".


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## Via32

Thank you everyone, I understand that litter/rubbish is my word then, depending on what region I am in.


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