noun
night soil tank; excrement reservoir
A tank or pit for collecting human waste, traditionally used as fertilizer in agriculture. Often associated with historical or rural contexts. Cross-referenced with 肥溜め (こえだめ), which is a more common term for manure pit.
See also: 肥溜め
昔の農家では、糞溜めの肥やしを田んぼに使っていた。
In old farmhouses, they used the fertilizer from the night soil tank in the rice paddies.
糞溜めの清掃は重労働だった。
Cleaning the night soil tank was hard labor.
肥溜め is a more common and general term for a manure pit or compost pit, while 糞溜め specifically emphasizes human excrement.
Compound of 糞 (くそ, 'excrement') and 溜め (ため, 'accumulation, reservoir'). The reading だめ is a rendaku form of ため.