gutter

noun

/ˈɡʌtə(r)/

/ˈɡʌtər/

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[countable] a long curved channel made of metal or plastic that is fixed under the edge of a roof to carry away the water when it rains
- a blocked/leaking gutter
Topics Buildingsc2
[countable] a channel at the edge of a road where water collects and is carried away to drains
- I stepped off the pavement and walked in the gutter.
Topics Transport by car or lorryc2
the gutter
[singular] the bad social conditions or low moral standards sometimes connected with the lowest level of society
- She rose from the gutter to become a great star.
- the language of the gutter (= using swear words)

Word OriginMiddle English: from Old French gotiere, from Latin gutta ‘a drop’; the verb dates from late Middle English, originally meaning ‘cut grooves in’ and later (early 18th cent.) used of a candle which melts rapidly because it has become channelled on one side.

gutter

verb

/ˈɡʌtə(r)/

/ˈɡʌtər/

[intransitive] (literary)

Verb Forms

present simple I / you / we / they gutter	/ˈɡʌtə(r)/ /ˈɡʌtər/
he / she / it gutters	/ˈɡʌtəz/ /ˈɡʌtərz/
past simple guttered	/ˈɡʌtəd/ /ˈɡʌtərd/
past participle guttered	/ˈɡʌtəd/ /ˈɡʌtərd/
-ing form guttering	/ˈɡʌtərɪŋ/ /ˈɡʌtərɪŋ/

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(of a flame or candle) to burn in an unsteady way
- The candle guttered in the wind.
Word OriginMiddle English: from Old French gotiere, from Latin gutta ‘a drop’; the verb dates from late Middle English, originally meaning ‘cut grooves in’ and later (early 18th cent.) used of a candle which melts rapidly because it has become channelled on one side.