[Elamur Dictionary](https://md.dictionary.elamur.ai/free/en/) · [this page in HTML](https://dictionary.elamur.ai/free/en/english/dud/)

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# dud

noun (a dud, duds); adjective (a dud battery)

«dud» in the English dictionary: everyday — its meanings, how the lessons use it, and examples, each with its tree on Mova.

## Everyday

1. (informal) Something that does not work properly or is useless, like a firework that does not go off or a dead battery. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/D/dud/#m1)
2. (informal) A person or thing that fails or disappoints. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/D/dud/#m2)
3. duds (US, informal, old): clothes. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/D/dud/#m3)
4. (military) A bomb or shell that did not explode. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/D/dud/#m4)

### In the lessons

In everyday life, a dud battery, light bulb or firework; in safety lessons, a «dud» firework must never be picked up because it may still go off; in stories, a disappointing plan or present; phrases: «a dud firework», «turned out to be a dud».

### Examples

- The last firework was a dud. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/D/dud/#x1)
- This battery is a dud; let's try another. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/D/dud/#x2)
- The new phone turned out to be a dud. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/D/dud/#x3)
- Never go back to a dud firework: it might explode. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/D/dud/#x4)
- (informal) The film was a dud, and nobody went to see it. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/D/dud/#x5)
- One of the eggs was a dud and did not hatch. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/D/dud/#x6)
- (US, old informal) He put on his best duds for the party. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/D/dud/#x7)

### Note

Informal. Safety: wait at least 30 minutes and let an adult deal with a dud firework or unexploded bomb.

## On Mova

- [Trees and pragmatics of «dud» in the school dictionary](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/D/dud/): every meaning and example parsed by Mova, with its dependency tree and frames.
- [«dud» in the school dictionary](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/dictionaries/school/w/dud.html) on Mova free.