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Webster 1913 Edition


Moth

Moth

(mŏth)
,
Noun.
A mote.
[Obs.]
Shak.

Moth

,
Noun.
;
pl.
Moths
(mŏthz)
.
[OE.
mothe
, AS.
moððe
; akin to D.
mot
, G.
motte
, Icel.
motti
, and prob. to E.
mad
an earthworm. Cf.
Mad
,
Noun.
,
Mawk
.]
1.
(Zool.)
Any nocturnal lepidopterous insect, or any not included among the butterflies;
as, the luna
moth
; Io
moth
; hawk
moth
.
2.
(Zool.)
Any lepidopterous insect that feeds upon garments, grain, etc.;
as, the clothes
moth
; grain
moth
; bee
moth
. See these terms under
Clothes
,
Grain
, etc.
3.
(Zool.)
Any one of various other insects that destroy woolen and fur goods, etc., esp. the larvae of several species of beetles of the genera
Dermestes
and
Anthrenus
. Carpet moths are often the larvae of
Anthrenus
. See
Carpet beetle
, under
Carpet
,
Dermestes
,
Anthrenus
.
4.
Anything which gradually and silently eats, consumes, or wastes any other thing.
Moth blight
(Zool.)
,
any plant louse of the genus
Aleurodes
, and related genera. They are injurious to various plants.
Moth gnat
(Zool.)
,
a dipterous insect of the genus
Bychoda
, having fringed wings.
Moth hunter
(Zool.)
,
the goatsucker.
Moth miller
(Zool.)
,
a clothes moth. See
Miller
, 3,
(a)
.
Moth mullein
(Bot.)
,
a common herb of the genus
Verbascum
(
Verbascum Blattaria
), having large wheel-shaped yellow or whitish flowers.

Webster 1828 Edition


Moth

MOTH

, n.
1.
An animal of the genus Phalaena, which breeds in yard and garments, and often does injury by eating the substance and destroying the texture. Matt.6.
The name is also applied to the whole genus.
2.
Figuratively, that which gradually and silently eats, consumes or wastes any thing. Idle persons are a moth to the community.

Definition 2024


moth

moth

English

a moth (1)

Pronunciation

Singular: moth

Plural: moths

Noun

moth (plural moths)

  1. A usually nocturnal insect of the order Lepidoptera, distinguished from butterflies by feather-like antennae.
    • 2013 May-June, William E. Conner, An Acoustic Arms Race”, in American Scientist, volume 101, number 3, page 206-7:
      Earless ghost swift moths become “invisible” to echolocating bats by forming mating clusters close (less than half a meter) above vegetation and effectively blending into the clutter of echoes that the bat receives from the leaves and stems around them.
  2. (figuratively) Anything that gradually and silently eats, consumes, or wastes any other thing.
Synonyms
Derived terms
Translations

Verb

moth (third-person singular simple present moths, present participle mothing, simple past and past participle mothed)

  1. (intransitive) To hunt for moths.
Derived terms

See also

Etymology 2

moth beans

From Hindi मोठ (moṭh).

Pronunciation

Noun

moth (countable and uncountable, plural moths)

  1. The plant Vigna aconitifolia, moth bean.
Synonyms
Derived terms
Translations

External links

Etymology 3

Noun

moth (plural moths)

  1. Obsolete form of mote.
    • 1603, William Shakespeare, The Tragedy of Othello, Act 1, Scene 3
      So that, dear lords, if I be left behind, / A moth of peace, and he go to the war, / The rites for which I love him are bereft me, / And I a heavy interim shall support / By his dear absence. Let me go with him.
  2. (dated) A liver spot, especially an irregular or feathery one.
    • 1895, Good Housekeeping, page 196, ISSN: 0731-3462
      To remove moth patches, wash the spots with a solution of common bicarbonate of soda and water several times a day, until the patches are removed, which will usually be in forty-eight hours.
    • 1999, R. L. Gupta, Directory of Diseases & Cures: In Homoeopathy, page 254, ISBN 8170215161.
      Craves for sour things, chalks and eggs, fatty people with light brown spots on the face or liver spots, moth patches on forehead and cheek.
    • 2005, J. D. Patil, Textbook of Applied Materia Medica, page 108, ISBN 8180565904.
      There are signs of liver affections as weakness, yellow complexion, liver spots, and moth spot like a saddle over the nose.

Anagrams

References

  1. http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/moth?s=t