bogs

Noun

bog (plural bogs)

1. An area of decayed vegetation (particularly sphagnum moss) which forms a wet spongy ground too soft for walking.
   • Near-synonyms: fen, slough, moor

   Synonyms:

   marsh, swamp, mire, fen, slough, moor

   1. (specifically, wetland science) An acidic, chiefly rain-fed (ombrotrophic), peat-forming wetland. (Contrast an alkaline fen, and swamps and marshes.)
      • Bogs are acidic, nutrient poor, and have a low species diversity, whereas fens are less acidic and have higher nutrient levels and species diversity. Typically, the herbaceous layer in bogs is dominated by sphagnum moss, whereas[…]1996, Geological Survey (U.S.), National Water Summary on Wetland Resources, →ISBN, page 214
   2. (uncountable) Boggy ground.
      • He laughed each time a camel sank down, and he laughed as they strained and pulled and struggled to get the beast on to its clumsy feet again. So sure on sand, so clumsy in bog!1931, Ion L. Idriess, Lasseter's Last Ride, Sydney: Angus and Robertson, page 101
2. (figuratively) Confusion, difficulty, or any other thing or place that impedes progress in the manner of such areas.
   • ...quagmires and bogges of Romish superstition...1614, John King, Vitis Palatina, page 30

   Synonyms:

   mire, quagmire, morass

3. (Australia, Ireland, New Zealand, UK, slang) A place to defecate: originally specifically a latrine or outhouse but now used for any toilet.
   • I'm on the bog
4. (Australia, New Zealand, slang) An act or instance of defecation.

See all 21 meanings of bog