Definitions
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.
- noun Dead wood, including fallen or standing trees, branches, and stumps.
- noun One that is burdensome or superfluous.
- noun Sports Fallen bowling pins that remain on the alley.
- noun Nautical The vertical planking between the keel of a vessel and the sternpost, serving as a reinforcement.
from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.
- noun (Naut.) A mass of timbers built into the bow and stern of a vessel to give solidity.
- noun Dead trees or branches; useless material.
- noun People who are unproductive; -- used especially in reference to employees.
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.
- noun
coarse woody debris - noun people judged to be
superfluous to an organization or project - noun money not realized by exiting a winning pump trade too early
from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.
- noun a branch or a part of a tree that is dead
- noun someone or something that is unwanted and unneeded
Etymologies
Sorry, no etymologies found.
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Examples
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He talks to a variety of educators -- including the controversial Washington, D.C., superintendent Michelle Rhee, whose efforts to prune the deadwood from the District of Columbia's dreadful public school system met only resistance from parents at the schools.
Marshall Fine: Will Waiting for 'Superman' Reach Its Intended Audience? Marshall Fine 2010
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We can not fix anything until the deadwood is kicked out of Washington and all perks taken from them.
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He talks to a variety of educators -- including the controversial Washington, D.C., superintendent Michelle Rhee, whose efforts to prune the deadwood from the District of Columbia's dreadful public school system met only resistance from parents at the schools.
Marshall Fine: Will Waiting for 'Superman' Reach Its Intended Audience? Marshall Fine 2010
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"We support management to promote more deadwood in pine forests as the level of natural deadwood is generally too low."
Dynamite Becomes Latest Weapon in Battle to Save Forests | Impact Lab 2006
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I have discovered a dangerous new addiction. the world of dvd screen capture. see – now i can say, “i think this shot in deadwood, ep 12 is really pretty.” and SHOW you!
hey, guess what 1 am is “late” for me now! « Magic Lantern Arts 2005
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I have discovered a dangerous new addiction. the world of dvd screen capture. see – now i can say, “i think this shot in deadwood, ep 12 is really pretty.” and SHOW you!
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Here and there she arranged natural objects — seashells, stones, weathered deadwood from the timberline in the High Sierra.
Ansel Adams at 100 2002
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Here and there she arranged natural objects — seashells, stones, weathered deadwood from the timberline in the High Sierra.
Ansel Adams at 100 2002
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This is often referred to as the deadwood dilemma.
Forbes.com: News CCAP 2011
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When it came to layoffs, "they made the assumption that the deadwood was the mothers," Calvert said.
sionnach commented on the word deadwood
Oh the Deadwood Stage is a-rollin' on over the plains
With the curtains flappin' and the driver slappin' the reins
A beautiful sky, a wonderful day
Whip crack-away, whip crack-away, whip crack-away
Oh the Deadwood Stage is a-headin' on over the hills
Where the Injun arrows are thicker than porcupine quills
Dangerous land, no time to delay
So whip crack-away, whip crack-away, whip crack-away
We're headin' straight for town, loaded down
With a fancy cargo, care of Wells and Fargo, Illinois - Boy!
Oh the Deadwood Stage is a-comin' on over the crest
Like a homin' pigeon that's a-hankerin' after its nest
Twenty-three miles we've covered today
So whip crack-away, whip crack-away, whip crack-away
The wheels go turnin' round, homeward bound
Can't you hear 'em hummin'
Happy times are comin' for to stay - hey!
We'll be home tonight by the light of the silvery moon
And my heart's a-thumpin' like a mandolin a-plunkin' a tune
When I get home, I'm fixin' to stay
So whip crack-away, whip crack-away, whip crack-away
Whip crack-away, whip crack-away, whip crack-away...
Introducin' Henry Miller, just as busy as a fizzy sarsparilla
Ain't a showman and he's smarter, operates the Golden Garter
Where the cream of Deadwood City come to dine
And I'm glad to say he's a very good friend of mine
Hi Joe, say where d'you get them fancy clothes
I know, off some fella's laundry line
Hi Beau, aren't you the Prairie Rose
Smellin' like a watermelon vine
Here's the man the Sheriff watches
On his gun there's more than twenty-seven notches
On the draw there's no-one faster and you're flirtin' with disaster
When Bill Hickok's reputation you malign
and I'm glad to say he's a very good friend of mine.
September 14, 2009