gullywashed out
Cut up or ruined by a hard rain, like a dirt road after a gullywasher.
Also called gully-washed out, washed out.
Updated September 24, 2026
gullywashed out pronunciation
/GULL-ee-wosht OWT/
Meaning
Said of land, a driveway, or a back road when heavy rain has carved ruts and washed the dirt away. It is stronger than "muddy." The place is chewed up. Folks also use it for a person or plan that got hit so hard they feel washed out and done in.
How folks use it
- “That lane's gullywashed out. We ain't getting the truck through till we dump some gravel.”
- “After three days of storms, the garden beds were gullywashed out.”
Origin and etymology
Built off gullywasher, the Southern and Midland name for a hard, short downpour that can carve gullies. Speakers turned that into gullywashed out for the damage left behind. Gullywasher shows up in print around the early 1900s; the washed-out form lives mostly in rural Southern and Appalachian talk.
Frequently asked questions
Is gullywashed out the same as washed out?
Close, but gullywashed out leans harder on erosion. Think ruts and chunks of road gone, not just a puddle you can splash through.