1
a
: a trough along the eaves to catch and carry off rainwater
b
: a low area (as at the edge of a street) to carry off surface water (as to a sewer)
c
: a trough or groove to catch and direct something
the gutters of a bowling alley
2
: a white space formed by the adjoining inside margins of two facing pages (as of a book)
3
: the lowest or most vulgar level or condition of human life
guttered; guttering; gutters
1
a
: to flow in rivulets
b
of a candle
: to melt away through a channel out of the side of the cup hollowed out by the burning wick
2
: to incline downward in a draft
the candle flame guttering
: of, relating to, or characteristic of the gutter
especially
: marked by extreme vulgarity, cheapness, or indecency
gutter politics
Synonyms
Noun
Adjective
Examples of gutter in a Sentence
Noun
one of his chores is to clean leaves and sticks out of the gutters before winter sets in
rainwater running off the road into the gutters
Adjective
a novel that does a good job of rendering the gutter language of that stratum of society
Recent Examples on the Web
Sophia Solano, Washington Post, 15 Apr. 2024
The lawsuit says he was knocked unconscious and landed headfirst into a gutter, suffering bruising to his head and body, as well as permanent scarring.
—Quinlan Bentley, The Enquirer, 12 Apr. 2024
Cal’s Mark Madsen Contract: $2.1 million Comment: The first-year coach has done superb work in lifting the Bears from the Pac-12 gutter to a mid-level finish.
—Jon Wilner, The Mercury News, 12 Mar. 2024
This example also bears some subtle aesthetic decisions that would ruffle the feathers of the Porsche orthodox, like the deletion of rain gutters in favor of a flush roofline (gutters were vanquished with the advent of the 996 series in 1997).
—Basem Wasef, Robb Report, 6 Mar. 2024
Prevent mosquito breeding by: Dumping water from containers, such as flower pots and buckets, storing or flipping kiddie pools, cleaning gutters, changing water in bird baths weekly.
—Karen Garloch, Charlotte Observer, 30 Jan. 2024
Diverter electrodes on either side of the stream could permit the drops to proceed straight to the paper, or else deflect them onto an absorbent pad or into a gutter to be collected and reused.
—Phillip W. Barth, IEEE Spectrum, 25 Mar. 2024
The classical method for dealing with stormwater is to get it out of town as quickly as possible, with gutters and sewers and canals.
—Matt Simon, WIRED, 15 Mar. 2024
Make sure gutters aren’t clogged as the standing water can attract bugs.
—Karl Schneider, The Indianapolis Star, 14 Mar. 2024
Ligaya Mishan, New York Times, 30 Aug. 2023
Advertisement :: Clouds of incense, guttering candles: Inside Lviv’s garrison church, singer Vasyl Hnypyuk’s high baritone rose and fell in cadence, supplementing the chanting of presiding priests.
—Laura King, Los Angeles Times, 26 June 2023
And for the umpteen transitions, tall, slim screens glide across the stage like screen-wipes displaying distractingly different, hyper-realist close-up images ranging from location-setting photos to a (worryingly out of focus) video of a guttering candle.
—David Benedict, Variety, 26 May 2023
Crews will be setting catch basins to grade, forming up curb and gutter cutout areas, and beginning to form up driveway aprons.
—Linda Gandee, cleveland, 15 June 2020
Never mind the explicitness of that time’s memento mori, all the skulls and guttering candles.
—Peter Schjeldahl, The New Yorker, 6 Apr. 2020
That might be a backhanded way of saying the Portofino is still wonderful—a four-wheeled panther, purring, prowling and guttering in the streets.
—Dan Neil, WSJ, 23 Jan. 2020
The four of them are watching me, their faces, lit by the moon and the guttering candles on the table, concerned.
—Longreads, 2 Jan. 2020
The cities can dictate whether or not it's curbed and guttered, concrete, setback limitations, the house size, the lot size and a number of other restrictions.
—David Taylor, Houston Chronicle, 29 Mar. 2018
Noun
From gutter cleaning and preparing your fireplace for winter, to what to do if your basement floods.
Contact us: Looking to buy your first home?
—Sophia Solano, Washington Post, 15 Apr. 2024
The lawsuit says he was knocked unconscious and landed headfirst into a gutter, suffering bruising to his head and body, as well as permanent scarring.
—Quinlan Bentley, The Enquirer, 12 Apr. 2024
Cal’s Mark Madsen Contract: $2.1 million Comment: The first-year coach has done superb work in lifting the Bears from the Pac-12 gutter to a mid-level finish.
—Jon Wilner, The Mercury News, 12 Mar. 2024
This example also bears some subtle aesthetic decisions that would ruffle the feathers of the Porsche orthodox, like the deletion of rain gutters in favor of a flush roofline (gutters were vanquished with the advent of the 996 series in 1997).
—Basem Wasef, Robb Report, 6 Mar. 2024
Prevent mosquito breeding by: Dumping water from containers, such as flower pots and buckets, storing or flipping kiddie pools, cleaning gutters, changing water in bird baths weekly.
—Karen Garloch, Charlotte Observer, 30 Jan. 2024
Diverter electrodes on either side of the stream could permit the drops to proceed straight to the paper, or else deflect them onto an absorbent pad or into a gutter to be collected and reused.
—Phillip W. Barth, IEEE Spectrum, 25 Mar. 2024
The classical method for dealing with stormwater is to get it out of town as quickly as possible, with gutters and sewers and canals.
—Matt Simon, WIRED, 15 Mar. 2024
Make sure gutters aren’t clogged as the standing water can attract bugs.
—Karl Schneider, The Indianapolis Star, 14 Mar. 2024
Verb
The restaurant was unexceptional — plastic chairs, coarse tablecloths, low guttering candles — and perfect.
—Ligaya Mishan, New York Times, 30 Aug. 2023
Advertisement :: Clouds of incense, guttering candles: Inside Lviv’s garrison church, singer Vasyl Hnypyuk’s high baritone rose and fell in cadence, supplementing the chanting of presiding priests.
—Laura King, Los Angeles Times, 26 June 2023
And for the umpteen transitions, tall, slim screens glide across the stage like screen-wipes displaying distractingly different, hyper-realist close-up images ranging from location-setting photos to a (worryingly out of focus) video of a guttering candle.
—David Benedict, Variety, 26 May 2023
Crews will be setting catch basins to grade, forming up curb and gutter cutout areas, and beginning to form up driveway aprons.
—Linda Gandee, cleveland, 15 June 2020
Never mind the explicitness of that time’s memento mori, all the skulls and guttering candles.
—Peter Schjeldahl, The New Yorker, 6 Apr. 2020
That might be a backhanded way of saying the Portofino is still wonderful—a four-wheeled panther, purring, prowling and guttering in the streets.
—Dan Neil, WSJ, 23 Jan. 2020
The four of them are watching me, their faces, lit by the moon and the guttering candles on the table, concerned.
—Longreads, 2 Jan. 2020
The cities can dictate whether or not it's curbed and guttered, concrete, setback limitations, the house size, the lot size and a number of other restrictions.
—David Taylor, Houston Chronicle, 29 Mar. 2018
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'gutter.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near gutter
Cite this Entry
“Gutter.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/gutter. Accessed 19 Apr. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
gutter
1 of 2 noun
gut·ter
ˈgət-ər 
1
a
: a trough along the eaves of a house to catch and carry off water
b
: a low area (as at a roadside) to carry off surface water
2
: a narrow channel or groove
gutter
2 of 2 verb1
: to form gutters in
2
a
: to flow in small streams
b
: to melt away by having wax stream down in channels
a guttering candle
3
: to flicker in a draft
Medical Definition
gutter
noun
gut·ter
ˈgət-ər
: a depressed furrow between body parts (as on the surface between a pair of adjacent ribs or in the dorsal wall of the body cavity on either side of the spinal column)
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