Moistener Mois"ten·er noun One who, or that which, moistens. Johnson.

Moistful Moist"ful adjective Full of moisture. [ R.]

Moistless Moist"less adjective Without moisture; dry. [ R.]

Moistness Moist"ness noun The quality or state of being moist.

Moisture Mois"ture noun [ Confer Old French moistour , French moiteur .] 1. A moderate degree of wetness. Bacon.

2. That which moistens or makes damp or wet; exuding fluid; liquid in small quantity.

All my body's moisture
Scarce serves to quench my furnace-burning heat.

Shak.

Moistureless Mois"ture·less adjective Without moisture.

Moisty Moist"y adjective Moist. [ Obsolete]

Moither Moi"ther transitive verb [ Etymol. uncertain.] To perplex; to confuse. [ Prov. Eng.] Lamb.

Moither Moi"ther intransitive verb To toil; to labor. [ Prov. Eng.]

Mojarra Mo·jar"ra noun [ Spanish ] Any of certain basslike marine fishes (mostly of tropical seas, and having a deep, compressed body, protracile mouth, and large silvery scales) constituting the family Gerridæ , as Gerres plumieri , found from Florida to Brazil and used as food. Also, any of numerous other fishes of similar appearance but belonging to other families.

Mokadour Mok"a·dour noun [ Spanish mocador handkerchief.] A handkerchief. [ Obsolete]

Moke Moke noun A donkey. [ Cant] Thackeray.

Moke Moke noun A mesh of a net, or of anything resembling a net. Halliwell.

Moke Moke noun 1. A stupid person; a dolt; a donkey.

2. A negro. [ U. S.]

3. (Theat. Slang) [ More fully musical moke .] A performer, as a minstrel, who plays on several instruments.

Moky Mo"ky adjective [ Confer Icelandic mökkvi cloud, mist, mökkr a dense cloud, W. mwg smoke, and English muggy , muck .] Misty; dark; murky; muggy. [ Obsolete]

Mola Mo"la noun (Zoology) See Sunfish , 1.

Molar Mo"lar adjective [ Latin moles mass.] (Mech.) Of or pertaining to a mass of matter; -- said of the properties or motions of masses, as distinguished from those of molecules or atoms. Carpenter.

Molar Mo"lar adjective [ Latin molaris , from mola mill, from molere to grind in a mill. See Mill the machine.] Having power to grind; grinding; as, the molar teeth; also, of or pertaining to the molar teeth. Bacon.

Molar Mo"lar noun (Anat.) Any one of the teeth back of the incisors and canines. The molars which replace the deciduous or milk teeth are designated as premolars , and those which are not preceded by deciduous teeth are sometimes called true molars . See Tooth .

Molary Mo"la·ry adjective Same as 2d Molar .

Molasse Mo·lasse" noun [ French molasse , probably from mollasse flabby, flimsy, from Latin mollis soft.] (Geol.) A soft Tertiary sandstone; -- applied to a rock occurring in Switzerland. See Chart of Geology .

Molasses Mo·las"ses noun [ French mélasse , confer Spanish melaza , Portuguese melaço , from Latin mellaceus honeylike, honey-sweet, mel , mellis , honey. See Mellifluous , and confer Melasses .] The thick, brown or dark colored, viscid, uncrystallizable sirup which drains from sugar, in the process of manufacture; any thick, viscid, sweet sirup made from vegetable juice or sap, as of the sorghum or maple. See Treacle .

Mold Mold noun [ See Mole a spot.] A spot; a blemish; a mole. [ Obsolete] Spenser.

Mold, Mould Mold, Mould noun [ Middle English molde , Anglo-Saxon molde ; akin to Dutch mul , German mull , mulm , Old High German molt , molta , Icelandic mold , Danish muld , Swedish mull , Goth. mulda , and English meal flour. See Meal , and confer Mole an animal, Mull , v. ] [ The prevalent spelling is, perhaps, mould ; but as the u has not been inserted in the other words of this class, as bold , gold , old , cold , etc., it seems desirable to complete the analogy by dropping it from this word, thus spelling it as Spenser, South, and many others did. The omission of the u is now very common in America.] 1. Crumbling, soft, friable earth; esp., earth containing the remains or constituents of organic matter, and suited to the growth of plants; soil.

2. Earthy material; the matter of which anything is formed; composing substance; material.

The etherial mold ,
Incapable of stain.

Milton.

Nature formed me of her softest mold .

Addison.

Mold, Mould Mold, Mould transitive verb [ imperfect & past participle Molded or Moulded ; present participle & verbal noun Molding or Moulding .] To cover with mold or soil. [ R.]

Mold, Mould Mold, Mould noun [ From the past participle of Middle English moulen to become moldy, to rot, probably from Icelandic mygla to grow musty, mugga mugginess; confer Swedish mögla to grow moldy. See Muggy , and confer Moldy .] (Botany) A growth of minute fungi of various kinds, esp. those of the great groups Hyphomycetes , and Physomycetes , forming on damp or decaying organic matter.

» The common blue mold of cheese, the brick-red cheese mold, and the scarlet or orange strata which grow on tubers or roots stored up for use, when commencing to decay, are familiar examples. M. J. Berkley.

Mold, Mould Mold, Mould transitive verb To cause to become moldy; to cause mold to grow upon.

Mold, Mould Mold, Mould intransitive verb To become moldy; to be covered or filled, in whole or in part, with a mold.

Mold, Mould Mold, Mould noun [ Middle English molde , Old French mole , French moule , from Latin modulus . See Model .] [ For spelling, see 2d Mold , above.] 1. The matrix, or cavity, in which anything is shaped, and from which it takes its form; also, the body or mass containing the cavity; as, a sand mold ; a jelly mold . Milton.

2. That on which, or in accordance with which, anything is modeled or formed; anything which serves to regulate the size, form, etc., as the pattern or templet used by a shipbuilder, carpenter, or mason.

The glass of fashion and the mold of form.

Shak.

3. Cast; form; shape; character.

Crowned with an architrave of antique mold .

Pope.

4. (Architecture) A group of moldings; as, the arch mold of a porch or doorway; the pier mold of a Gothic pier, meaning the whole profile, section, or combination of parts.

5. (Anat.) A fontanel.

6. (Paper Making) A frame with a wire cloth bottom, on which the pump is drained to form a sheet, in making paper by hand.

Mold, Mould Mold, Mould transitive verb [ Confer French mouler , Old French moler , moller . See Mold the matrix.] 1. To form into a particular shape; to shape; to model; to fashion.

He forgeth and moldeth metals.

Sir M. Hale.

Did I request thee, Maker, from my clay
To mold me man?

Milton.

2. To ornament by molding or carving the material of; as, a molded window jamb.

3. To knead; as, to mold dough or bread.

4. (Founding) To form a mold of, as in sand, in which a casting may be made.

Moldable, Mouldable Mold"a·ble, Mould"a·ble adjective Capable of being molded or formed.

Moldboard, Mouldboard Mold"board`, Mould"board` noun 1. A curved plate of iron (originally of wood) back of the share of a plow, which turns over the earth in plowing.

2. (Founding) A follow board.

Molder, Moulder Mold"er, Mould"er noun One who, or that which, molds or forms into shape; specifically (Founding) , one skilled in the art of making molds for castings.

Molder, Moulder Mold"er, Mould"er intransitive verb [ imperfect & past participle Moldered or Mouldered ; present participle & verbal noun Moldering or Mouldering .] [ From Mold fine soft earth: confer Prov. German multern .] To crumble into small particles; to turn to dust by natural decay; to lose form, or waste away, by a gradual separation of the component particles, without the presence of water; to crumble away.

The moldering of earth in frosts and sun.

Bacon.

When statues molder , and when arches fall.

Prior.

If he had sat still, the enemy's army would have moldered to nothing.

Clarendon.

Molder, Moulder Mold"er, Mould"er transitive verb To turn to dust; to cause to crumble; to cause to waste away.

[ Time's] gradual touch
Has moldered into beauty many a tower.

Mason.

Moldery, Mouldery Mold"er·y, Mould"er·y adjective Covered or filled with mold; consisting of, or resembling, mold.

Moldiness, Mouldiness Mold"i·ness, Mould"i·ness noun [ From Moldy .] The state of being moldy.

Molding, Moulding Mold"ing, Mould"ing noun 1. The act or process of shaping in or on a mold, or of making molds; the art or occupation of a molder.

2. Anything cast in a mold, or which appears to be so, as grooved or ornamental bars of wood or metal.

3. (Architecture) A plane, or curved, narrow surface, either sunk or projecting, used for decoration by means of the lights and shades upon its surface. Moldings vary greatly in pattern, and are generally used in groups, the different members of each group projecting or retreating, one beyond another. See Cable , noun , 3, and Crenelated molding , under Crenelate , transitive verb

Molding, Moulding Mold"ing, Mould"ing p. adjective Used in making a mold or moldings; used in shaping anything according to a pattern.

Molding, or Moulding , board . (a) See Follow board , under Follow , transitive verb (b) A board on which bread or pastry is kneaded and shaped. -- Molding, or Moulding , machine . (a) (Woodworking) A planing machine for making moldings . ( b ) (Founding) A machine to assist in making molds for castings. -- Molding, or Moulding , mill , a mill for shaping timber. -- Molding, or Moulding , sand (Founding) , a kind of sand containing clay, used in making molds.

Moldwarp, Mouldwarp Mold"warp, Mould"warp noun [ Middle English moldwerp : Anglo-Saxon molde soil + weorpan to throw up; confer OD. molworp , German maulwurf , Icelandic moldvarpa , Danish muldvarp . See Mold soil, Warp , and confer Mole the animal.] (Zoology) See Mole the animal. Spenser.

Moldy, Mouldy Mold"y, Mould"y adjective [ Compar. Moldier or Mouldier ; superl. Moldiest or Mouldiest .] [ From Mold the growth of fungi.] Overgrown with, or containing, mold; as, moldy cheese or bread.

Mole Mole noun [ Anglo-Saxon māl ; akin to Old High German meil , Goth. mail Confer Mail a spot.] 1. A spot; a stain; a mark which discolors or disfigures. [ Obsolete] Piers Plowman.

2. A spot, mark, or small permanent protuberance on the human body; esp., a spot which is dark-colored, from which commonly issue one or more hairs.

Mole Mole noun [ Latin mola .] A mass of fleshy or other more or less solid matter generated in the uterus.

Mole Mole noun [ French môle , Latin moles . Confer Demolish , Emolument , Molest .] A mound or massive work formed of masonry or large stones, etc., laid in the sea, often extended either in a right line or an arc of a circle before a port which it serves to defend from the violence of the waves, thus protecting ships in a harbor; also, sometimes, the harbor itself. Brande & C.

Mole Mole noun [ Middle English molle , either shortened from moldwerp , or from the root of English mold soil: confer Dutch mol , OD. molworp . See Moldwarp .] 1. (Zoology) Any insectivore of the family Talpidæ . They have minute eyes and ears, soft fur, and very large and strong fore feet.

» The common European mole, or moldwarp ( Talpa Europæa ), is noted for its extensive burrows. The common American mole, or shrew mole ( Scalops aquaticus ), and star- nosed mole ( Condylura cristata ) have similar habits.

» In the Scriptures, the name is applied to two unindentified animals, perhaps the chameleon and mole rat.

2. A plow of peculiar construction, for forming underground drains. [ U.S.]

Duck mole . See under Duck . -- Golden mole . See Chrysochlore . -- Mole cricket (Zoology) , an orthopterous insect of the genus Gryllotalpa , which excavates subterranean galleries, and throws up mounds of earth resembling those of the mole. It is said to do damage by injuring the roots of plants. The common European species ( Gryllotalpa vulgaris ), and the American ( G. borealis ), are the best known. -- Mole rat (Zoology) , any one of several species of Old World rodents of the genera Spalax , Georychus , and several allied genera. They are molelike in appearance and habits, and their eyes are small or rudimentary. -- Mole shrew (Zoology) , any one of several species of short-tailed American shrews of the genus Blarina , esp. B. brevicauda . -- Water mole , the duck mole.

Mole Mole transitive verb [ imperfect & past participle Moled ; present participle & verbal noun Moling .] 1. To form holes in, as a mole; to burrow; to excavate; as, to mole the earth.

2. To clear of molehills. [ Prov. Eng.] Pegge.

Mole-eyed Mole"-eyed` adjective Having eyes like those of the mole; having imperfect sight.

Molebut Mole"but noun (Zoology) The sunfish ( Orthagoriscus , or Mola ). [ Written also molebat .]

Molecast Mole"cast` noun A little elevation of earth made by a mole; a molehill. Mortimer.

Molech Mo"lech noun [ Hebrew molek king.] (Script.) The fire god of the Ammonites, to whom human sacrifices were offered; Moloch. Lev. xviii. 21.

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