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Alley vs Ditch - What's the difference?

alley | ditch |

As nouns the difference between alley and ditch

is that alley is a narrow street or passageway, especially one through the middle of a block giving access to the rear of lots or buildings or alley can be a glass marble or taw while ditch is or ditch can be a trench; a long, shallow indentation, as for irrigation or drainage.

As a verb ditch is

or ditch can be to discard or abandon.

alley

English

(wikipedia alley)

Etymology 1

(etyl) and (etyl) alee, feminine of .

Noun

(en noun)
  • A narrow street or passageway, especially one through the middle of a block giving access to the rear of lots or buildings.
    • The parking lot to my friend's apartment building is in the alley .
  • (baseball) The area between the outfielders, the gap.
    • He hit one deep into the alley .
  • (bowling) An establishment where bowling is played; bowling alley.
  • (tennis) The extra area between the sidelines or tramlines on a tennis court that is used for doubles matches.
  • A walk or passage in a garden or park, bordered by rows of trees or bushes.
  • * Milton
    • I know each lane and every alley green.
  • A passageway between rows of pews in a church.
  • (perspective drawing) Any passage having the entrance represented as wider than the exit, so as to give the appearance of length.
  • The space between two rows of compositors' stands in a printing office.
    • Derived terms
    * alleyway * up someone's alley

    See also

    * alleyway * bunnyrun * gennel, ginnel, gunnel, jennel * jitty * lane * passage * snicket * wynd

    Etymology 2

    Diminutive of (alabaster).

    Noun

    (en noun)
  • A glass marble or taw.

    • Anagrams

    *

    ditch

    English

    Etymology 1

    From earlier deche, from (etyl) dechen, from (etyl) .

    Verb

    (es)

    • Noun

    (en-noun)

    • Etymology 2

    From (etyl) dich, from (etyl) .

    Noun

    (es)
  • A trench; a long, shallow indentation, as for irrigation or drainage.
    • Digging ditches has long been considered one of the most demanding forms of manual labor.
    Derived terms
    * ditchdigger * ditch weed * ditcher * ox is in the ditch
    See also
    * fosse * moat

    Verb

  • To discard or abandon.
    • Once the sun came out we ditched our rain-gear and started a campfire.
  • To deliberately crash-land an airplane on the sea.
    • When the second engine failed, the pilot was forced to ditch ; their last location was just south of the Azores.
  • To deliberately not attend classes; to play hookey.
    • The truant officer caught Louise ditching with her friends, and her parents were forced to pay a fine.
  • To dig ditches.
    • Enclosure led to fuller winter employment in hedging and ditching .
  • To dig ditches around.
    • The soldiers ditched the tent to prevent flooding.
  • To throw into a ditch.
    • The engine was ditched and turned on its side.
    Synonyms
    * abandon * discard * dump * jettison * lose * shed * See also