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moult

From Wiktionary, the free dictionary
See also: Moult

English

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Alternative forms

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Etymology

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From Middle English mouten, from Old English *mutian (cf. bemutian), from Latin mūtō, mūtāre. Doublet of mute and mutate. Un-etymological ⟨l⟩ was introduced into the spelling by mistakenly assuming a French origen with -l- (compare fault, vault and solder with correctly restored etymological ⟨l⟩).

Pronunciation

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Noun

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moult (plural moults)

  1. The process of shedding or losing a covering of fur, feathers or skin etc.
    Synonyms: ecdysis, moulting
    Some birds change colour during their winter moult.
  2. The skin or feathers cast off during the process of moulting.
    Synonym: exuvia

Derived terms

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Translations

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Verb

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moult (third-person singular simple present moults, present participle moulting, simple past and past participle moulted)

  1. (intransitive) To shed or lose a covering of hair or fur, feathers, skin, horns, etc, and replace it with a fresh one.
    Synonyms: shed, slough
  2. (transitive) To shed in such a manner.

Translations

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See also

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Further reading

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French

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Etymology

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Inherited from Middle French moult, from Old French mut (with a silent ⟨l⟩ inserted per the Latin etymon), from earlier Old French mult~molt, from Latin multus, from Proto-Indo-European *ml̥tos (crumbled, crumpled, past passive participle). After having largely disappeared from the spoken language, where it was replaced by beaucoup, the term is now occasionally heard again, often with a spelling-pronunciation.

Pronunciation

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Adjective

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moult (feminine moulte, masculine plural moults, feminine plural moultes)

  1. (formerly archaic or regional) many; a lot of
    Synonym: beaucoup

Adverb

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moult

  1. (archaic or regional) much; a lot

Usage notes

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Used both as invariable and variable adjective:

Après moult hésitations, il prit cette décision. (invariable)
After much hesitation he made this decision.
Et, pour finir, moulte chose
Blanche et noire, effet et cause []
(variable)[1]
And, to finish, many a thing
White and black, effect and cause []

References

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  1. ^ Paul Verlaine (1896) “Prologue”, in Chair, published 1901

Further reading

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Anagrams

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Middle French

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Alternative forms

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  • mlt (manuscript abbreviation)

Etymology

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From Old French molt, mout, from Latin multus.

Adverb

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moult

  1. much; a lot

Descendants

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  • French: moult








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